This was the second single from American Christian rock band Skillet's eighth studio album, Awake. In a 2014 Songfacts interview, John Cooper said this was inspired by the 2008 movie The Incredible Hulk, starring Ed Norton. After Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth) is injected with chemicals to become The Abomination, the Hulk's adversary, a soldier asks him how he feels. "Like a monster," he replies.
Frontman John Cooper explained:
"It's a song about being fake and putting on a face for people that's not the real you. But it's basically about the nature of sin and the nature of the divine, which is the duel nature we have as Christians. Everyday we have to strive to throw away the old and be that new person in Christ."
"In a theological sense, the song is about original sin. You are born into the human race, you're guilty or sinful, no matter what you hope to be. 'Monster' is about the fact that there is somebody we know we don't want to be. Some people call it the old man or the old self. That guy wants to creep out when you're driving and somebody cuts you off. You wonder as a Christian, how do I keep it at bay? I liken it to the idea of a '50s horror film of this beast inside you coming alive."
Lyrics
The secret side of me
I never let you see
I keep it caged
But I can't control it
So stay away from me
The beast is ugly
I feel the rage
And I just can't hold it
It's scratching on the walls
In the closet, in the halls
It comes awake
And I can't control it
Hiding under the bed
In my body, in my head
Why won't somebody come and save me from this?
Make it end!
I feel it deep within,
It's just beneath the skin
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I hate what I've become
The nightmare's just begun
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I, I feel like a monster
I, I feel like a monster
My secret side I keep
Hid under lock and key
I keep it caged
But I can't control it
'Cause if I let him out
He'll tear me up
And break me down
Why won't somebody come and save me from this?
Make it end!
I feel it deep within
It's just beneath the skin
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I hate what I've become
The nightmare's just begun
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I feel it deep within
It's just beneath the skin
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I, I feel like a monster
I, I feel like a monster
It's hiding in the dark
Its teeth are razor sharp
There's no escape for me
It wants my soul
It wants my heart
No one can hear me scream
Maybe it's just a dream
Or maybe it's inside of me
Stop this monster!
I feel it deep within
It's just beneath the skin
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I hate what I've become
The nightmare's just begun
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I feel it deep within
It's just beneath the skin
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I'm gonna lose control
Here's something radical
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I, I feel like a monster
I, I feel like a monster
I, I feel like a monster
I, I feel like a monster
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