The song itself is inspired by the Stephen Sondheim musical Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Lead Singer Andy Biersack said he was inspired by the story of Sweeney Todd via a CD copy of the Broadway cast recording of the 1979 Broadway production with Len Cariou portraying Todd & Angela Lansbury portraying his accomplice Mrs. Lovett. Biersack said his usage of darker themes and imagery in the band’s sound was first started by Sweeney Todd, and later other musicals like Phantom Of The Opera and eventually comic book characters like Batman, & bands like KISS and Misfits. Biersack said he wanted the song to not be solely about the character of Sweeney Todd, but to be “directly connected to me.”
The song itself is inspired by the Stephen Sondheim musical Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Lead Singer Andy Biersack said he was inspired by the story of Sweeney Todd via a CD copy of the Broadway cast recording of the 1979 Broadway production with Len Cariou portraying Todd & Angela Lansbury portraying his accomplice Mrs. Lovett. Biersack said his usage of darker themes and imagery in the band’s sound was first started by Sweeney Todd, and later other musicals like Phantom Of The Opera and eventually comic book characters like Batman, & bands like KISS and Misfits. Biersack said he wanted the song to not be solely about the character of Sweeney Todd, but to be “directly connected to me.”