1. |
Year of the Rat
02:55
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You stood high out of reach
there at the top of the tower
you blew out the clouds, blocked out the sun
no end to the pull and power
a rope tied over the land
suddenly frayed and unwinding
eyes, sharp as a warrior’s blade
but in your own smoke you were blinded
so come all you liars
saints and lost souls
one day’s black is another day’s gold
it’s a strange place to see you tonight
but it’s all or nothing
and it’s gone
what’s that racket down on the street
is it the year of the rat or the sheep
smoke and sting, this chaos and reek
the hum and the haze of the hollows
it’s a ruse, a line, between yours and mine
we’re dumping the body of evidence
spread that paper, cover your eyes
and flee to the walls and the shadows
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2. |
Can't Trust The News
03:53
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too many years
in the wind disappeared
and you can’t go back
but you rescued your heart
from the cinders and wreckage
of one bloody final crash
oh, you knew there was something
a bright little beacon
a kink in the dark
now you walk with intention
a smile and a sword in your arms
trust your eyes
they will follow the light
it’s a new tragic story
trust your heart
it will swallow the dark
it’s a mecca of heartache and doom
you can’t trust the news
the dark midnight runway's
as still as the lake of your younger years
when the sunshine was brighter
the laughing was lighter
you never gave in to your fear
oh, you could call it a waste
a disaster, a chase for the ghost of love
but you spat out the skin and the seeds
and the dirt on your tongue
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3. |
Down The Line
03:17
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Skin of fire, bones of coal
these piston arms are born to roll
down, down the line
you don’t find it, it finds you
if you don’t drive, it’s what you do
down, down the line
i see an open stage
a crowd of people sit and wait
oh my fingers burn
mother, dear, please don’t be hurt
for if i stay i won’t be heard
and oh my fingers burn
focus on the work at hand
twisting bolts upon the plan
down, down the line
heavy is this steady wage
pulls the sun down on the day
down, down the line
saturday morning was a hell of a crash
but you've gotta keep rolling on the trail of cash
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4. |
Scarecrow
03:26
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little wonder
wide awake
buried under
the promises you make
don't be worried
somebody's gonna take you home
remember
if you fall
fall with grace
don't let 'em see the fear upon your face
if you break
break the reins
it's better up in lights than down in flames
city soldier
tall and proud
find your pleasure
wherever you're allowed
underwater
someone's gotta take you home
keep you on your throne
bastard brother
so far away
if I call you
I wonder what you'll say
little wonder
home is just a word to me now
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5. |
Balto
03:26
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Carry on, Balto -
straight through the storm
you are my legs
my eyes, my ears
i cannot run
cannot see
cannot hear
swallow a cold fire
hard in our lungs
there's a girl i love
waiting for me
with a child in her arms
don't hold me back
oh i can feel it so close
don't hold me back
i’d die for the white light of Nome
don't hold me back
my love, this is all i can give
don't hold me back
under the darkness is hope, i can feel it
hold on my darling
no, i won't delay
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6. |
Letters
05:03
|
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Lost, farewell
under this sinking sun
in an ocean of sky
dust and bones
echoes of rusty guns
i'm not too young to die
your love is a compass rose
steadfast through this sand and stone
wind, carry these letters home to Joan
old memories come to life
a last dance in this amber light
wind, carry these letters home tonight
spinning wheels
since i was just a boy
with a traveling mind
the bright moon steals
the heart of orion's joy
we trace a simple line
all our days
there was a song that played
for you in my head
all these things on my mind
now that i'm taking the time
to write
see these letters swirl
like a thousand white birds
in the sky up above her
i'm a flag unfurled
and I’m sending my heart
to a dear friend and lover
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7. |
Pardon
03:21
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They came for me early
that morning was surely
the last I would see a free man
burst through the door
threw me down on the floor
while my fickle friends scattered and ran
proud and undone I surrendered my gun
and allowed them to lead me outside
but I have never been guilty
I don’t need a pardon
I don’t need prayers
I’m fine to face my accusers
and show ‘em my ten-mile stare
I’m prepared
these bars the aren’t permanent
rust takes a turn
but it won’t be til I’m still and cold
my confidence fades
as their baskets and blades
all grow brittle and broken and old
out in the yard I cast glares at the guards
and I hurl these words at the sky
and laugh while they show me to a
room I’ll never leave outside a wooden box
no familiar faces not a friend
I won’t be afraid I won’t apologize
I will be alone until the end
I’m prepared
I’m not scared
I’m prepared
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8. |
Hindsight
04:49
|
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Eyes in a mirror
so unfamiliar
show me your failure
and show me your pride
chasing, grieving
always believing
flaring or burning
you've watched me learning
face in a memory
young and unbroken
show me a reason
to fall on your sword
chasing, waiting
burning and fading
striving or leaning
you gave me meaning
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9. |
Footnote
03:54
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Another day
another cameo
another artificial heart beats on and on
he's got a job
he's got some furniture
and he's got friends who can't tell anything is wrong
but he hates his old apartment on the Gardiner
and he swears he won't be living here that long
it's been two years since that night down by the reservoir
but he'll always have that song
he's got a car
and maps of everywhere
and he's put stars on every city name he knows
but he can't move
he can't go anywhere
cause he can't think of any place he wants to go
and he knows she's out there somewhere chasing hurricanes
putting miles between them every day she's gone
it's been three years since she left him in Toledo
but he'll always have that song
and every time that it comes on he sings along
and it kills him when he hears it on the radio
but all his friends are glad he's finally moving on
it's been five years since he said her name to anyone
but he'll always have that song
and every time that it comes on
even if he sings it wrong he sings alone
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10. |
Copper Leaves
03:33
|
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We all abused you, threw you on the tracks
stood with bated brain
a simple thrill to kill the boredom
of a wasted summer day
and now they’re showing you the door
one hundred years and fifty more
these cold machines punched out your leaves
and though your aspirations soared
the sidewalk would not take your seed
and now they’re showing you the door
i think we’ll find it hard
to walk without your rattling bones
the story broke a year ago
a nickel was the only one who screamed
“god save me from this fate!
oh, darling, i just can’t believe
that now they’re showing you the door”
we can’t afford to keep the change
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11. |
Blackout
04:37
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The year was '67, the last we raised it up.
years come and go, still nothing to show in these cold, cold hands.
We blame Barilko's body on a decade drought
but what buried bones do we have to bring home
for another chance?
It’s a blackout, but we follow along
We keep chasing the puck
ever whispering “Someday we’ll drink from the cup”
we crept out from the gardens
into the neon glow.
a pauper’s chair to an emperor's throne still without a crown.
did we leave the blood stains, the crack of ice to bone?
as the winter melted away our thirst for glory drowned.
when the final score is settled and the final roar decays
did we throw our sticks in the fire or did we have our day?
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12. |
Up In Lights
05:11
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The first time
always overwhelms
and our bodies
frozen like we’re
statues of ourselves
our eyes close
we’re ready now
whatever we might see
tonight we’re all expecting it to be
big as life
the earth moves
underneath our feet
and all our big plans
get tossed aside
like pennies in the street
in the morning
the music stops
whatever we achieve
tonight we need a reason to believe
we’re big as life
all the doors and windows blowing open
all the walls and barriers will fall
all the lights on our marquee say
we will always be
big as life
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