“Chemical Warfare” by Colorblind song meaning: me against me
Travis Moseley of Colorblind wrote “Chemical Warfare” with Joshua Landry, better known as Lø Spirit, about the times when it truly feels like we become our own worst enemy.
Mentally, this can actually be essentially the truth: our brains release “feel good” chemicals like serotonin and dopamine, but our bodies can also bring us back down by releasing the stress hormone cortisol. Those highs and lows create a real-life chemical warfare in our system. Travis Moseley wrote about his experience with those ups and downs on Colorblind’s latest single “Chemical Warfare.”
What events inspired “Chemical Warfare?”
“Chemical Warfare” is part of a new era for Colorblind as they look towards a full-length album after the build of singles and EPs that they have been releasing since 2018. Although their growth and milestones as a band have been exhilarating, they do come with a cost.
“I've spent a lot of my career battling the normal things that a lot of people in our jobs battle, like severe imposter syndrome and severe anxiety from just wanting to show up and be the person that everybody needs,” Travis Moseley says vulnerably. “I mean that in every way: the person and the front man that my band members need, and a role model for our fans to look up to, knowing how to say the right things, when to say them, and how not to freeze up.”
That pressure has intensified as Colorblind has landed spots on increasingly impressive bills, including supporting Dayseeker and Blessthefall. Since signing with Solid State Records, their ascent has been seemingly unstoppable, culminating in a series of runaway success singles last year (including a collaboration with prolific nu-metal artist Ekoh).
Travis admits, “Nobody talks about how real the yin-yang truly is. When you're on top of the world, that is always met with an equal amount of fear and anxiety. It's this weird thing that you can allow to dampen a beautiful moment. I think that's something I'm working on embracing.”
What is the meaning of the song “Chemical Warfare?”
“Chemical Warfare” was written early in the process of creating what would become the band’s forthcoming full-length album, Who Sold You This Truth ++ Was It Yours To Hold. Travis was writing with Josh Landy of Lø Spirit, who has been a steadfast advocate for mental health in alternative music.
“I was just brain-vomiting on Josh about the highs and lows and my anxiety, and he was like, ‘I feel you. It sounds like there's just you versus you in your head right now. It feels like some crazy stuff is going on up in your head right now,’ because it was very scatterbrained thinking. That's just how I am and how I write,” Travis explains. “We landed on the idea that there's chemical warfare happening in my head. There are all different types of things going on, confusion, and not really being sure if I'm making things up or if things are real. That's kind of how we landed on that song title and the lyrics that are in the chorus.”
Thoughts are going off (like bombs, like bombs)
And they’re aiming at my flaws (like guns, like guns)
Chemical warfare in my head
This is not worth it I am not perfect
Chemical warfare in my head
How does “Chemical Warfare” fit into Colorblind’s new album?
“The album title is Who Sold You This Truth ++ Was It Yours to Hold?” Travis Moseley of Colorblind shares. “This album is a bit of a journey through self-belief, identity, and inherited ideas. It questions the truths we're given, the lies we protect, and the weight of what we carry. Some truths shape us, some imprison us, and some were never ours to begin with. The album exists to remind people that questioning what you were taught is the first step towards owning who you are.”
“Chemical Warfare” is an essential step along that journey. Trying to reconcile warring emotions is a part of, ultimately, coming to peace with who you are and letting go of who you’re not.
“I think there are a lot of things about myself that I allowed myself to believe because I felt like other people put them on me,” the singer and songwriter reflects. “This album was a big breakthrough in questioning all those things. Some of the songs explore you versus you, the duality of belief and identity, and how your own self-perception can guide you or can cage you. We didn't really realize that was going to be the concept of this album when we first wrote ‘Chemical Warfare’ because it was near the start, but as the album finished, we were like, ‘Wow, a lot of these songs are just me battling myself.’"
In that way, “Chemical Warfare” has become a foundational cornerstone on the album, establishing the crux of the theme. Fans will get to hear the concepts expanded on when the full album releases on August 28, 2026. You can find it at https://colorblind.ffm.to/yourstohold/.
What is Colorblind’s message on mental health?
Colorblind’s music has always been emotive. This thematic focus on coming to grips with life’s highs and lows is nothing new for a band who has already experienced long conversations at the merch table about songs like the poignant “Ghosts.”
“All I can really do is talk about my experience and make somebody feel less alone,” Travis says. “I think there's a lot of clarity, and I've been able to relax a lot just feeling like other people are going through that too. Maybe a listener can look at the band, or look at anyone doing something that they look up to, and think that everything's great up here. But we are all human, and we're all going through the same things together.”
Colorblind’s ethos as a band is built on that commonality, focused on bringing that to the fore at every concert and in every song. It’s what he ultimately hopes to leave listeners with.
He says, “The whole band's message is just to have a handout for anybody that needs it and to allow people to know that we're in this together, we're feeling these things together, and they're not alone. Even though it can feel hopeless sometimes, being in the midst of a really hard time mentally — where it feels like you could never come out of it — I would hope that our music can assist them to keep fighting and take it day by day. I know it's a bit cliché, but I very much live by the ‘this too shall pass’ kind of thing. Sometimes it feels like you're in a season in your life where maybe it's 6 months, maybe it's 8 months, or maybe it's 6 years. It can be a long one, but it's a season. It's just a part of the human experience to have a rough time sometimes. All we could ever want is just to be there for people going through that.”
“Chemical Warfare” is streaming everywhere now. Who Sold You This Truth ++ Was It Yours to Hold is out everywhere August 28, 2026. In support of the album, Colorblind will be joining Catch Your Breath and TX2 on a coast-to-coast run this fall on the Not Broken Enough Tour. All dates and album information are available at colorblindtx.com.
“Chemical Warfare” by Colorblind lyrics
I think I think too much
Cause I feel so out of touch
With myself I’m no good
Can’t do what I should, feel like I’m on my way down
And nobody’s there to pull me outThoughts are going off (like bombs, like bombs)
And they’re aiming at my flaws (like guns, like guns)
Chemical Warfare in my head
This is not worth it I am not perfect
Chemical Warfare in my head, in my head, in my…I can’t escape it now
One more shot to take me out
Cause I don’t wanna feel a thing at all
Dodging bullets while you watch me fall
I hope this poison that I’m taking will numb the pain but it won’t wear offThey come for mе like a mortar shell
It’s like a landminе always watching my stepThoughts are going off (like bombs, like bombs)
And they’re aiming at my flaws (like guns, like guns)
Chemical Warfare in my head
This is not worth it I am not perfect
Chemical Warfare in my head, in my head, in my…Get me out of this nightmare
Exhausted and I’m so sick of taking cover
Save me from going underThoughts are going off (like bombs, like bombs)
And they’re aiming at my flaws (like guns, like guns)
Chemical Warfare in my head
This is not worth it I am not perfect
Chemical Warfare in my head, in my head, in myLike bombs, like bombs
Like guns, like guns
