Thad Granger and the Lantern Boys strip away the satire of the previous track for something much more haunting and heavy. “Help That Never Came” is a sober account of the Great Betrayal—the moment when the authorities’ “homeland charade” finally collapsed, leaving the survivors to fend for themselves in a world of gray crops and brown rivers. It is a song about the death of trust and the birth of self-reliance.
Suited Up Saints
The lyrics paint a grim picture of “suited up saints” handing out pills and “rebranded” cures while the sky was falling. The contrast between the official maps with “no towns marked” and the reality of burying one’s trust in “foil and ash” hits close to home for anyone listening in the bunker. Thad’s voice carries a weary authority here, reminding us that the “fire” was set by the same people who “blamed the flame.” It’s a powerful indictment of the empty promises that preceded the “final storm.”
Learning to Chew
Musically, the song is slow and mournful, sounding like a funeral march for a “rusted parade.” The refrain—”We said goodbye and learned to chew”—is the ultimate survivalist’s mantra. It signifies the transition from waiting for rescue to accepting the “roots and steam.” By the time the song fades out on the final “never came,” it feels like a collective exhale. It’s not just a song about loss; it’s an anthem for those who stopped waiting and started living, however “scrappy” those lives may be.
HELP THAT NEVER CAME
by: Thad Granger & His Lantern Boys
They came on the screen with a flag in their hand
Said we’ve got a plan you just stay where you stand
Said the food was clean and the water was clear
Just don’t breathe too deep or get too near
They handed out pills like they knew what to do
Said these’ll protect you from most of what’s true
Painted the filters and wired the ground
While the crops turned grey and the rivers browned
It’s the help that never came
The cure that wore a different name
They set the fire then blamed the flame
And told us not to play the blame game
It’s the help that never came
We watched ’em roll past in a rusted parade
Suited up saints in a homeland charade
They left us maps with no towns marked
And advice like breathe softer when it gets dark
One by one we buried the trust
Wrapped it in foil and ash and dust
Now we chew on root and sleep in steam
Livin’ off scraps of a promised dream
It’s the help that never came
Just echoes and a rebranded name
They said the sky would turn back blue
We said goodbye and learned to chew
Yeah the help
Never came