PetroDragonic Apocalypse starts on a high note with one of the most intense and expansive songs in the band’s metal repertoire, “Motor Spirit.” Between the finger-tapping guitars, yelling and growly vocal deliveries, motifs of “Witchcraft”, “Flamethrower” and “Gaia” and numerous time and tone changes, Stu sings of a world that has given into gasoline, worshiping it as a holy fluid that allows their parasitic trucks and cars to function. Worship is not an exaggeration, as the lyrics compare oil to seraphs with its narrator stating that instead of praying to God, they kiss the ground in affection of their new holy water. Yet due to humanity’s fixation on oil and wealth, the world is pushed to the brink through climate change of biblical proportions. “Motor spirit” was originally coined as a formal term for gasoline/petrol, although it is far less popular now than it was back in the early 1900s. In fact, many longstanding oil and gas companies such as BP, Mobil and Shell used the phrase prominently in marketing and on their products. Within the song, however, it represents a new near-religious movement that prioritizes the accruement of wealth over the wellbeing of the planet.

It was first heard in its entirety between sets on 2023-06-08 and was released on June 16th, 2023.
For the album The Silver Cord, the opening of “Motor Spirit” was adapted to create the bassline of “Theia.” The extended version of the album features a few references. The twenty minute cut of “Theia” features the “motor spirit” chant while the extended title track reuses the idea of drinking motor oil in its added lyrics. The longer “Set” reinterprets the “drink the fuckin’ gas and killeth” line alongside a reference to the story of PetroDragonic Apocalypse.