1. |
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Danny you can hear the factory callin'
Thick smoke and soot
got your lungs messed up good
It's appallin'
But you married her young
Now it's cold
Darn near numb
Every night 'cause the heat don't run here
Anybody says living's easy
Their head's not quite clear
Their head's not quite clear
It was fast cars and dark bars
For the first couple years
You made a decent living
And the freedom soothed your fears
Of being
Trapped in this
Dingy old relic of industry
Tell it again to me
How has it been?
You see, I'm wondering how a man
Can earn his stay right here
Upon this spinning ball of dirt and glass
And endless atmosphere
It's like the weight they always sang about
Is something no one lives without
And love is all that shakes the doubt
Of nothing within, and nothing without
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2. |
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You called me six times
when I was all bored
at that basement show in the suburbs
you made sure I knew where to go
to your bandmate's place
where you sat, tasting some of my words
you only remembered the simple tune
you only pretended not to lose your cool
and I was all flattered
that it didn’t even matter
that you caught hold of my hand
while your friend made an omelet
or a sandwich in the kitchen
in the middle of the night
(I think it was a Tuesday)
I quoted you the wasteland
beneath the blanket of your body
and you couldn't know
that I wouldn't get over you
But I pretend it all the time
and later that summer
I followed you to the ocean
I wanted to hear the water think
but you flirted with the breezes
and reckoned with the sand
and ripped my patience from my ribcage
you only remembered the simple tune
I only pretended not to lose my cool
and I was all flattered
that it didn’t even matter
that you caught hold of my hand
while your friend made an omelet
or a sandwich in the kitchen
in the middle of the night
(I think it was a Tuesday)
I quoted you the wasteland
beneath the blanket of your body
and you couldn't know
that I wouldn't get over you
But I pretend it all the time
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3. |
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i daydream about getting up
for another cup of coffee,
but i can't.
i know they said to watch out for
when you can't do your own laundry,
and i remember that.
and i know that i quit smoking cause
i ran out of unanswered questions, but
the answers have been getting to me.
i don't have the strength to pick my feet up
or turn the key in the door.
i am melting on the carpet
cause i sure as hell can't more forward.
if the blizzard's outside,
i'll be at the window
if the blizzard's in me, well...
after all this time,
my heart beating against the sheets in my bed
is enough for me
to finally arrive
at this decision to stand up
for myself without saying sorry...
i was frozen for a long time,
standing in the same spot
next to the door that might as well have been locked,
trying to stay as far away from relapse as i could get
thinking it all was my fault
until i saw a mark i had carved in a circle
i'd been round once before,
seeming to say: "this is where i take my leap of faith"
and after all this time,
my heart beating against the sheets in my bed
is enough for me
to finally arrive
at this decision to stand up
for myself without saying sorry.
this second time,
the lump in my throat
will convince me to take my own advice
and get myself out of this house fire burning
up the memories that stop me
when i think i'm ready to let go
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4. |
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I'm going to a place where I feel like I'm shit out of luck
where people overuse words like "privilege" and "construct"
I don't understand their humor
and I'm angry that they're laughing
It turns out
some people aren't afraid to hit a man with glasses
it's a problem when you've got a big mouth
and you need glasses to see
I want to be bigger and better than me
I'm going back to the land of the Minnesota Skyway
back to the land of subdivisions by the highway
back to the land of diabetes and uneasy smiles
watching my friends throw half-full beers at a daycare
here in the land of my first STD scare
I hope to God I can make it through this week
I'd like to believe that I know where I really want to be
It's the shit you hate that makes you human
it turns out other people also like Randy Newman
and it's nice to have someone just as hateful, if not more so, than me.
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5. |
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6. |
Eva Walsh - Last Name
02:49
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7. |
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well isn't it remarkable
how it's still light, not dark at all
at dusk your eyes keep telling you
there must be hours left to do
what we want
nocturnal sounds have filled with dread
the path upon which we had tread
but we can still see light ahead
and "to the top" is what we said
we'd shoot for
when at the top we turn around
our eyes can find no safe way down
but if we never make it through
I'll gladly stand here next to you
and tell you I'm not scared at all
and this has been what I would call
a good night
good year
good life
goodnight
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8. |
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9. |
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Way above the puffy tofu clouds
There’s a spot where I hang out
And stay for days
Sure, traffic can get somewhat thin
A kind of desolate waste bin
Then I look down
A million ants scurrying to and fro
Empty conversation wherever I go
And I think, no-o-o
This ain’t for me
Do I know the secret to a happy life?
Sure as hell don’t, but this don’t feel right
Genuine hearts take genuine flight
And I might stay the night, the night
What’s to be had and to be done?
Blindly searching for conviction
Something to grasp
So I’m chasing all my paper dreams
In constant search of the compelling
And hope it lasts, hope it lasts
A million ants scurrying to and fro
Empty conversation wherever I go
And I think, no-o-o
This ain’t for me
Do I know the secret to a happy life?
Sure as hell don’t, but this don’t feel right
Genuine hearts take genuine flight
And I might stay the night, the night
The night, the night
The night, the night
Oh!
The night, the night
The night, the night
Oh!
A million ants scurrying
And we’re just hurrying
A little less worrying
We’ll be all right, all right
A million ants scurrying
And we’re just hurrying
A little less worrying
We’ll be all right, all right
A million ants scurrying
And we’re just hurrying
Through the night
A million ants scurrying to and fro
Empty conversation wherever I go
And I think, no-o-o
This ain’t for me
Do I know the secret to a happy life?
Sure as hell don’t, but this don’t feel right
Genuine hearts take genuine flight
And I might stay the night, the night
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10. |
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Gracefully she moves across the room,
a flower in her hair, her feet are swift and bare,
and when she's by my side,
my words are loud and clear
and I have nothing to fear in this life.
Gracefully she moves across the room,
necklace spinning 'round, she's singing sacred sound,
and though she rarely speaks,
her voice is soft and pure,
like I've never heard before in this life.
Gracefully she moves across the room,
while I'm just hangin' 'round, like Babel falling down,
but when she's by my side,
my voice will always know
what I'm feeling in my soul in this life.
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11. |
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I went down to the crossroads
and i saw a sign in the middle of the road
one said southwest and one said south and
I can go and see all my friends
oh boy its the carnival
we can all shout over all the bullshit
spend all our cash to drive real fast
down to texas and make lasting connections
I got a showcase at 4 in the morning
hotel lobby everyones snoring
fast asleep in all their dreams
while the unsigned folks who cant afford it
complain about music and its gentrification
taking over austin and the locals get displaced and
cant afford the festival but enjoy the tourists fixation
(slow)
cause its the only time anyone ever cares about texas
ignore all the more dillemas about laws they pass in texas
wont tour here any time all year except for when the company lets us
I reckon its time to go down south because the carnival bekons
oh I went down to the crossroads again
it didn't treat me so well last year
but I met one kind of nice agent
who said hed pass along my demo to his boss and
this year I actually got a spot to
sing my song in a legetimite venue
I think I am going to kill it
even if its only 15minutes
but at least its 15 minutes of fame
iv got nothing to lose and i have everything to gain
except for my time and all of my savings
and time I could be spending touring around playing
my music to ten people to a time
who will actually care about my life
but thats ok cause Im ingrained
with the bogus social contract that we have arranged
(chorus)
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12. |
Family Photo - Eureka
03:56
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13. |
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14. |
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15. |
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16. |
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Try as I might I can't sleep at night. And you got it, man; I can’t stay awake during the day. Try as I might. To think about all the good things in life when I get to sleep, can't stop the nightmares. They haunt me the next day. I've got a hillside in West Virginia waiting for me to lay my naked body in its grass. I've got a wagon in Oklahoma; at least that's what the Oregon Trail told me; though I never won that game. Try as I might; and I Try With All My Might; can't quiet down the noise; the noise in my head. So I try to write it down; try to get it out. Sometimes it works out ok. Those days I feel pretty great. Daydream bout a big slice of pie from Texas. Dream about the Pacific Northwest; its weather's supposed to be pretty grey. Maybe I could learn to love rain; rains here every other day. I'll buy a pair of rain boots and go outside some day
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17. |
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18. |
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It's a juniper war
From the summer before;
Where the sun won't come 'round, it just drags you down
Yeah, they take you away.
Oh, it's a juniper war.
It's the salt that we shake
In the wounds that we make
Like the love that we shared, that never was there
When we got carried away.
Oh, it's the dreams that we fake.
It's the songs that we sing
And your ears as they ring.
And the lake bed that night, was so full of light
As we were walking away
Oh, it's the songs that we sing
Oh, it's the songs that we sing.
Oh it's a juniper war...
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19. |
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20. |
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I’m in a tie at my desk I’ll be ready soon
I’m in my going-out clothes in my bedroom
Sittin’ in my brown leather chair from Staples
Waiting for a second wind
I’m in a hurry oh the night is closing in
If I don’t leave pretty soon what will my life have been?
24 years sitting in square room waiting for my life to happen to me
But tonight I don’t feel right
Haven’t accomplished a single objective
This isn’t how a person with real self-respect is
I don’t know how to do anything
Fun enough to convince me to not just sit here
Call up a friend but they’ve gotta be somewhere
Scroll through your contacts like the savior is in there
You’ll let the sun set on a wasted day
‘Cause you can’t get it together but I’ve gotta say that
Tonight I don’t feel right
It’s getting’ late oh I’d better just stay in
Maybe I could go to bed early awaken
All refreshed and ready to go
But there are only five episodes left of this online show
Still gotta read 300 pages by Wednesday
An essay and a unit plan due on the next day
Not keeping to the schedule that I made but that’s okay
Tomorrow I’ll work twice as hard as should have today
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21. |
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It all started as a dream, my eyes wide and seeing reality return to my mind...to this cage of a room - or more like a tomb, and I'm the Pharaoh cut down in his prime. From the ceiling to the floor are possessions galore. All the precious items that define a previous time and a life left behind for solitude, a title, and wine. Left behind was a girl, with the will of a soldier, and plans both perfect and refined. I won over her heart, but as easy as it started, all ended at the drop of a dime. Not sure of my worth, and unable to confer on a timescale of years of her time why mending this bridge would allow her to live to the potential deserved of her kind. At the time I was convinced I had earned every inch of her heart, her soul, and her mind. Those assumptions would be, most definitely, the straw that broke her back.
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22. |
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now i've moved,
i've tipped my hat, i sang along.
i moved out west, i hit the beach
i was disarmed
i try to sing
i know my name, but not my place.
i love my friends.
and i could never be alone anyway.
you can break my heart,
can say goodbye, i understand.
i love you still
the sky got big.
i lost my voice. there's no one here.
the streets are bare.
and i could never be alone anyway.
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23. |
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And I stood out on your front porch tonight.
The clouds were purple and gray in the moonlight.
I talked out loud like you were still around
and here is what I had to say:
"I hope I'm doing this right. I want to live an honest life. I want to take your advice. I want to try and live a good life. But between an honest life and what I am: the sea."
And Lily waved on her way to the hospital.
I think she died later that night.
So I'll sing this loud because you are not around
to hear that which I have to say.
"I hope I'm doing this right. I want to live an honest life. I want to take your advice. I want to do my family right. But between an honest life and what I am there is a sea."
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The Michael Character Boston, Massachusetts
It's political music, whatever. Based in Boston, MA. Absolutely willing to drive very far to play for you and five of your vaguely alternative friends in your combination kitchen/laundry room. Hit me up. I'm fully serious.
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