Voices

The album Voices contains 10 diverse songs ranging from goth, disco, prog rock, adult contemporary, and punk.

Each song describes a narrative about a delusional mind which is controlled by a dangerous voice.

The songs on this album delve deep into a disturbed mind diagnosed with Dissociative Identity Disorder.

This album was produced with the assistance of digital and AI tools. All lyrics written by Rick Henry Christopher. All song concepts and creative idea were developed and constructed by Rick Henry Christopher. Each song was created in 30 second intervals and stitched together with much patience, creativity, and time.

The catalyst for the Voices album was the song “Rising like a Phoenix.” After listening to the finished song and meditating on the lyrics I thought to myself this almost fits my character Timothy in my recurring story series Voices which I publish on the vocal media platform. However, the subject in “Rising Like a Phoenix” overcomes the roadblock and is victorious over the abuse he incurred, whereas Timothy succumbed to the roadblocks and sank into a degradation of his mental health. But the idea started here. After that I wrote the song "Rubber Room” and then ”Rearrange“ and it all fell into place from there.

I used the album Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd as an influence. I wanted my album to reflect the pressures of the human condition in these modern times, but I wrote the lyrics in a manner as such so they can be relevant no matter the time period - whether present, past, or future. I put an emphasis on mental illness as my story series, Voices, focuses on Timothy’s mental illness and the voices he hears in his mind.

Visit my website to see the lyrics for each song: https://rickhenrychristoph.wixsite.com/the-rick-henry-chris/the-songs

Voices: Song by Song

Keep Gently Building

“Keep Gently Building” was originally for the Isabel album, but I felt it was too complex for the overall feel of that album. After listening to the song a few times and soaking in the lyrics I came to the conclusion that the song fit the overall theme of Voices. It’s somewhat an introduction to Rick Henry (Mr. Henry) the one who gets into your mind by casting dreams none can refuse.

The lyrics of “Keep Gently Building” are heavily influenced by Syd Barrett (Early Pink Floyd). The psychedelic lyrics with British influenced terms like “plasticine hourglasses” and “soft and silky fleece” coupled with mysterious characters (Mr. Henry) are very Barrett-esque.

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Rearrange

The Bauhaus influenced post-punk “Rearrange” explores the experience of mental and emotional transformation through the metaphor of ultraviolet rays, symbolizing an invisible force that invades the mind and alters perception. The rays represent an intense internal struggle.

Some people find humor in this song and maybe the words; “Rip it out and rearrange” conjure thoughts of slapstick actions and movements. However, the song’s theme is heavy, touching on handling mental confusion by tearing out the brain and rearranging the thoughts.

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Voices

The title track, “Voices”, digs deeper into Timothy’s fragile mental state and how perilous it is to live with voices that control your mind and actions.

My goal in creating the musical landscape for “Voices” was to come up with something that sounded like a mental breakdown shrouded in mystery and creepiness. Jack Nicholson in his role as Randall Patrick “Mac” McMurphy in the 1975 film One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest helped me channel that creepy mysterious energy of insanity.

This song paints a surreal and disturbing portrait of someone experiencing a psychological breakdown, possibly due to intense sensory overload or a dissociative mental condition.

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The Two of Us

“The Two of Us,” an ethereally dreamy ballad, is the first song from Voices to break out and resonate with people. The song has landed a one week spot (July 16, 2025 to July 22, 2025) on the prestigious Spotify playlist: DistroKid Alternative which is followed by 359,000 people. It is one of 50 songs on the playlist and will receive exposure to thousands of listeners. The song has been added to another large playlist and has received 600 streams on it's first day on the playlist.

This song, though it reads like a romantic ballad, is actually a poignant inner dialogue between two identities coexisting in the same mind. The narrator is alone in the night, reflecting on their fragmented sense of self, with metaphors like “flying a string without a kite” symbolizing a lost or unanchored identity. Lines like “I search to find my proper name” and “two lives into one” reveal a deep longing to integrate the separate identities into a singular, unified self. There’s both comfort and confusion in this relationship—“It’s nice to have you by my side”—as the other identity feels like both a companion and a reflection, blurring where one ends and the other begins. Ultimately, the song is about yearning for peace, wholeness, and the elusive sense of becoming “ever one,” finally free from the inner division.

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Doctor Havelock

“Doctor Havelock” was influenced by the Beatles’ psychedelic era and David Bowie’s Scary Monsters era. Some of the lyrics come directly from the dialog of Chapter Two of my Voices story. In this chapter during a therapy session with his psychoanalyst, Doctor Havelock, Timothy is describing the details of an odd dream he had. (https://vocal.media/fiction/voices-part-two)

The song explores Timothy’s internal struggle as he copes with dissociative identity disorder, with Rick Henry emerging as a dominant alter ego within his fractured mind. The vivid dream imagery—black cats, shattered mirrors, and falling mothers—symbolizes Timothy’s overwhelming fear, guilt, and trauma. Dr. Havelock, a controlling and possibly unethical psychiatrist, exerts power through drugs and hypnosis.

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Triggers

The disco-funk “Triggers,” with its recurring synth keyboard sound, captures the urgency of needing to get out of town and get away from those triggers. The lyric “triggers everywhere,” gives the listener a sense that those triggers are like arms reaching out from everywhere waiting to catch you and pull you into the world of psychotic chaos. It reflects how overwhelming and constant the reminders of past abuse or emotional pain are for the narrator.

This disco-styled song delivers a stark emotional contrast: while its beat invites dancing, the lyrics expose deep trauma and the desperate need for escape. The upbeat tempo masks a narrative of someone fleeing a dangerous environment, likely filled with physical and emotional violence. The verses about bruises, name-calling, and punches suggest a history of domestic abuse or bullying, making the “rocky road” symbolic of a life filled with suffering.

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Mr. Henry

“Mr. Henry” opens with hypnotic keyboards but quickly works into a chaotic hard rock guitar. This lyric paints a poignant portrait of Mr. Henry—a boy born into wealth and fame but burdened by emotional neglect and the pressure of a manufactured image. Though surrounded by privilege, he feels invisible in his own home, where appearances matter more than connection. His retreat into a private world of insects and nature becomes both a form of escapism and a path to genuine self-discovery.

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Rubber Room

As I progressed through this song I envisioned a David Bowie meets Nine Inch Nails meets The Clash punk sort of anthem. I am drawn to the hard hitting industrial rhythm and metallic sound effects.

This lyric captures Timothy’s complete psychological collapse into the Rick Henry identity, where he no longer sees himself as Timothy at all. Overwhelmed by voices, confusion, and uncontrollable behavior, he resigns to the idea of living out his days confined—finding a strange comfort in the padded isolation of the “rubber room.” Ultimately “Rubber Room” paints a haunting picture of dissociation, where identity fractures, reality blurs, and isolation becomes both prison and sanctuary.

Side Note: back in 1992 I wrote a song titled “Rubber Room” with very different lyrics during a rehearsal with my band The Thunder Lizards. I wrote the complete lyrics within five minutes. My bandmates were amazed how it came to me so quickly. I guess I’ve always been a touch psycho.

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Mama (I Didn’t Mean To Hurt You)

This lyric captures Timothy's painful awakening to the reality that he may have harmed—possibly even killed—his mother, an act his mind had previously buried or distorted. He swings between denial, grief, and a desperate yearning for her love, which now feels lost and unreachable. The setting suggests he's institutionalized, sedated, and isolated, symbolizing both literal confinement and the inner prison of his guilt and fractured mind. The repetition of "Mama" throughout emphasizes his childlike longing and deep emotional dependence, even in the face of his own violent act. The final lines show a tragic clarity beginning to surface—he's starting to remember, and the weight of that truth is unbearable.

I imagined Queen's "Bohemian Rhpasody" as I began constructing the lyrics. In putting together the song I focused on building multitracked vocals. Toward the end I designed the vocals to be a capella which brings the song an unparelled soulful emotion.

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Mr. Henry Wears My Face

I dug back to Pink Floyd’s two albums released before their classic Dark Side of the Moon. Both Meddle and Obscured By Clouds combined acoustic instruments with synthesizer effects to create an ethereal sound on a palette of heavy rock instrumentation.

This final song, "Mr. Henry Wears My Face,” serves as a powerful closing to the concept album, capturing the climax of Timothy’s inner collapse and the full realization of his fractured identity. In this moment of painful clarity, Timothy acknowledges that he has been overtaken by the persona of Rick Henry—an identity he once believed would save him but that ultimately led him into deeper darkness. The lyrics reflect his dawning understanding that the path he followed, guided by this alter ego, was not salvation but disintegration. The once-glamorous illusion (“colors are dazzling,” “cameras flashing”) now feels surreal and hollow, with mirrors and melting clocks symbolizing a complete breakdown of time, identity, and perception.

This song ties the entire story together by confirming that Rick Henry was never a separate person, but a projected identity within Timothy—born of trauma, delusion, and a desperate search for escape. The title, though never spoken in the lyrics, now resonates with heavy meaning: Mr. Henry wears my face because he is Timothy, distorted and magnified, until all distinction is lost.

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The entire album is available here on YouTube:

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Purchase the CD here: https://kunaki.com/Sales.asp?PID=PX00W3FVHL&PP=1

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Visit my website for more information on each song:

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With Love, RHC ❤️