Some songs are born out of moments that transform our perspective on the world. Christ and The Machines’ “To Live Unaffected” was created in one of those times, transforming a time of terror, loss, and emotional exhaustion into a meditation on resilience and hope.
It was a song written during a very tough time. Within days, the songwriter had almost lost a brother to a medical emergency, only to find out that a buddy had committed suicide shortly after the sibling’s recovery. The emotional environment created by such events was undoubtedly overwhelming. But the inspiration for the song came from an unexpectedly basic sight. Sitting by a road, the composer saw flowers blooming through cracks in the tarmac and making their way into surrounding woodland. That photo became a poignant reminder that life can keep on truckin’ even in terrible conditions.
This is the principle that offers the emotional core to “To Live Unaffected”. The song is not about avoiding pain. It’s not about that, but about the hope we can find in hopelessness and the love we can discover in the darkest of times. The narrative of its genesis is even more stunning for the conditions of its song. That night, in a vivid dream, the song began to form, the music and the words both arising from the experience.
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