Taylor Momsen Turns Bat Bite Into Gothic Spectacle in The Pretty Reckless’ 'For I Am Death' Comeback Video

• by Atticus Montgomery
• Sep, 9 2025

A bat bite, a mirror that stares back, and a hard-rock return

A bat bit Taylor Momsen onstage last year. Now she’s turned that weird, viral moment into the defining image of The Pretty Reckless’ comeback. The band’s new single, “For I Am Death,” their first release in four years, lands with a music video that looks like a midnight movie: slick, stark, and soaked in black slime. It’s a statement that says the band’s “new era” won’t tiptoe in quietly.

The video opens with a prelude titled “Life Evermore Pt. 2,” a short, unnerving scene where Momsen sings into a mirror, then walks away as her reflection keeps staring. That split-second of wrongness sets the tone—this is a world where doubles refuse to behave. From there, director Lewis Cater cuts between high-contrast shots of the band and a transformation sequence that pushes horror right up against hard rock. The camera leans into texture: slick wings, viscous blackness, a body turning mythic.

Momsen’s onstage bat encounter—while performing “Witches Burn”—became one of those moments the internet never forgets. In the video, it’s not just referenced; it’s absorbed. The imagery treats the bite like origin story fuel, twisting it into vampire-lore logic. The bat doesn’t just land; it chooses. And the artist doesn’t flinch; she changes. It’s smart myth-making, the kind rock embraces when it wants to feel larger than real life.

That theatrical energy has carried into the rollout. BTS footage on TikTok shows the messy realities behind the polish—prosthetics, slime, cleanup, and the long hours that go into a three-minute burst of spectacle. On the carpet at the 2025 VMAs, Momsen talked about the band’s fresh chapter while showing the kind of arena-ready fitness that fans and photographers locked onto. The abs grabbed headlines, sure, but the bigger story is momentum: this is a band putting a flag back in the ground.

The track itself does what The Pretty Reckless do best. It’s riff-forward, heavy but hooky, with a chorus that snaps into place on first listen. Momsen’s vocal sits at the center—raspy in the verses, then wide open in the hook. The band leans into punch and pace rather than overthinking arrangements, which makes the song feel urgent. If you’ve followed their catalog, the DNA is familiar—big guitars, clear melodies, dark edges—but the edges are sharper this time.

Momsen isn’t over-explaining the lyrics. “With ‘For I Am Death,’ I want the music to speak for itself,” she said. “The interpretation of the song might align with my own, or it might come from the heart of the audience.” That choice fits the way the video works, too. Nothing is spelled out. The mirror, the wings, the black sheen—they hint at transformation, power, ego, danger, and maybe the thrill of letting those forces in. You can chase the symbols, or you can just feel the hit when the chorus lands.

Visually, Cater’s approach mixes the clean geometry of performance footage with the stickier textures of body horror. Black-and-white frames give the band a classic, almost documentary feel, while the transformation scenes live in a darker, wetter world. The contrast keeps the narrative moving: grounded band, haunted protagonist. It’s a simple structure that avoids the usual rock-video clichés—no empty warehouses, no tacked-on storyline—while still telling a story you can follow.

The “Life Evermore Pt. 2” prelude is a smart choice. It adds a cold open that primes the horror before the first downbeat. The mirror gag also neatly threads the song’s themes: the you that performs versus the you that watches, the person you were before the bite versus the person after. Rock loves a rebirth. This one just arrives with wings.

The timing helps. The Pretty Reckless recently wrapped a run opening for AC/DC, which put them in front of arenas full of classic-rock diehards. That kind of stage reps tightens a band and blows open their confidence. You hear that in the way this track moves—quick, decisive, hungry. No tour dates are on the books yet, but the band’s team is clearly aiming at a sustained stretch of activity. A single like this usually means more music is close behind.

For fans who came in through the early hits and stuck around, this release reads like a reset. The Pretty Reckless have a track record of rock-radio staples, and they’ve survived long enough to see trends cycle back in their favor. Heavy guitars are getting more space again, and there’s room for artists who can make hard rock feel cinematic without drifting into parody. That’s a fine line; the bat wings work because they’re tied to an actual event, not just a costume.

Momsen’s presentation, fitness included, has also become part of the narrative. The conversation about her washboard abs isn’t separate from the comeback; it’s about stage stamina, presence, and the visual vocabulary of a band that performs at full throttle. She’s been posting behind-the-scenes snippets that show the physical side of the shoot—crawling, climbing, being coated in goop. Performance art gets messy. That’s the point.

What’s next? If this is the “new era,” expect a few moves to follow. One, more singles that map the range—likely a bruiser, then maybe a slow-burner to show depth. Two, a video universe that keeps building from the mirror motif, the bat mythology, or both. Three, live dates built around rooms that suit the new visuals. Some songs exist fine on a dark stage; this one wants light rigs and haze machines.

The band’s message is confident but loose. “Either way, I’m excited to see what people take away from it,” Momsen said of the song’s meaning, ending with a grin at the oldest promise in the book: “Rock and roll will never die.” That line can ring hollow in the wrong voice; here, it sounds like a dare. Keep up. The tempo’s not slowing.

There’s something else in the craft choices worth noting. The edit pace leaves air where a lot of modern videos go hyper. The camera holds on the mirror. It lingers on the first glimpse of the wings. The restraint makes the shocks work. And by jumping back to stark performance in between, the band keeps reminding you: this is about the song first. No matter how slick the visuals, the riff is doing the real work.

As for the fandom, they’ve had four years to get hungry. The BTS clips have become their own channel—short looks at the set, silhouettes of the wings, makeup snaps, quick jokes between takes. You can feel the campaign building in real time, from early tease to full reveal, without giving away the whole trick. That approach buys attention without burning it.

The Pretty Reckless have always lived at the intersection of theater and thump. “For I Am Death” doubles down on both. The title is blunt, the hook is sticky, and the visual world is laser-focused. Turning a real onstage bite into a myth that fuels a comeback? That’s rock doing what it’s built to do—taking chaos, shaping it, and blasting it back through speakers big enough to shake the room.

The stakes of a ‘new era’

Calling a return a “new era” sets a high bar. It hints at a sound pivot, a visual overhaul, or both. Here, the pivot feels less like a left turn and more like a sharpening. The Pretty Reckless haven’t abandoned the core that made them work; they’ve cut it down to a harder, glossier edge. The risk is repetition. The reward is identity. On first pass, the band leans into identity—and wins.

That’s also why the bat imagery lands. Anyone can try on goth styling. Not everyone can anchor it in something lived. The real bite gives the fantasy teeth. Tie that to a chorus that sticks, and you get a package that plays on rock radio, fuels streaming playlists, and gives the band a stage story that people actually want to see. You don’t have to believe in vampires; you just have to believe this performer has something to prove.

So far, the signals point to a smart rollout: a teaser that introduces the mirror, a video that delivers the transformation, an interview that frames the intent, and steady social breadcrumbs to keep fans tapped in. The next few moves—artwork reveals, a second single, maybe a live performance clip—will tell us how big this run can get. For now, “For I Am Death” does its job. It reintroduces The Pretty Reckless as a force, says the aesthetic is dialed, and dares you to look away from the mirror. It’s still staring back.