The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus release “Slipping Through (No Kings)” 

5X Platinum-certified alternative rock mainstays The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus have released “Slipping Through (No Kings),” their latest single and video for Better Noise Music. The urgent and impassioned rallying cry—written by lead vocalist, guitarist, and founding member Ronnie Winter with producer and songwriter Matt Squire—compellingly looks at the societal chaos gripping America right now.

“It’s about what’s going on in our country. The destruction of it. Everything we ever stood for is ‘slipping through,’” says Ronnie Winter. “It all began with Matt Squire and I working together in Los Angeles. He played me the track, and it immediately hit me. I knew this was the moment to say something about what’s really going on and happening in our city. To put it simply,” adds Ronnie, who lives in Los Angeles, “my neighbors are disappearing. Families are being torn apart. And our community has reached a breaking point. These aren’t strangers, they’re our friends, our loved ones. They’re not immigrants to us, they’re neighbors. And like Jesus said, ‘Love thy neighbor.’ That’s what this song is about.”

In the “Slipping Through (No Kings)” video, directed by Steve Tramposch and Jamie Lewis, there is destruction everywhere in a world devoid of color. The main characters—“X boy” and “X girl”—watch as their friends and loved ones are snatched off the streets by masked men in menacing dark cars. The characters have X’s for eyes symbolizing their disillusionment, while others also have X’s for mouths, symbolizing that they’ve been quieted and have lost their voice. “X boy” and “X girl” are left to navigate the rubble and fend for themselves. An Alliance flag, the symbol of their rebellion (and the band’s fan community) is planted in the rubble at the end and the video turns from black and white to full color. The eyes of “X boy” and “X girl” return to full circles to emphasize their awakening and solidarity. These are the youth of the world planting their flag with open eyes after there’s nothing left.

Watch the powerful message below: