1. |
a cormorant
05:07
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always messing around with a forethought
before it becomes a real thought
always chipping away at the stone
before a measure of seed is sewn
having your horn blown every time you strike a match
isn't always a good thing
and these days there's no such thing as a sure thing
like yourself even this as lightly as you tread
water fills every hole you leave in the sand
where gardens cannot grow
get a good bead on the beautiful meat
bellies wide open to the spreadshot sights
you incredible beings you want a chance to redeem
burn your existence into a carbon dated postcard
to the past and say
"hey dad, whaddya think of that?"
don't ask why if you don't care anymore
don't let on that you may know anymore
than anybody else you can see the rising tide
with your own red eyes
asphalt clouds filter down and fall into your mouth
they've nowhere left to go
and the great white nom de plume of boredom
claims another truckload of hapless victims
who can die by the grace of an unseen god
or whatever excuse is convincing enough
it's a slow motion replay of an impossible future
where the winners all die and leave life to the losers
and the rattle of chains in the creaking rafters
soak up the smoke of the same old disasters
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2. |
passing chords
02:49
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i'm a small cog in a smaller set of gears
and perhaps we'll reach a few handfuls of ears
but won't you listen to my pretty passing chords
i'm a no one in an empty room
yeah i should give up and go to bed real soon
but won't you listen to my pretty passing chords
i could lay down and exemplify
all the other tired oxen
and the faces of my destiny may go forgotten
oh i cannot beg 'til i am sore
against the din of bottles smashing to the floor
and the people who believe in all my words
or at least they say they've listened and they've heard
the drunks in front can yell that i'm the greatest
i'll just stay at home if that's what fame is
but would you listen to my pretty passing chords
close your eyes and hear my pretty passing chords
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3. |
long way down
03:54
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you’ve got fifteen reasons not to go outside
and every one of those tendencies is easily justified
but you’ve got me
whatever that might mean to you
and i've got ten gifted fingers that long for education
and a mind like a sieve trying to retain an aspiration
but i do love you
whatever that might mean to you
and you go a long way down
i’ve got a long way to go
you go a long way down
i’ve got a long long way
to get down there with you
you cut all ties with the circles you’ve averted
but you give yourself completely to the people
who deserve it
you’re the right kind of kind
though you may not agree with me
you’ve no sympathy at all for the affected and inflated
but empathy in abundance for those who are mistreated
and it makes you sick
and i think i’m starting to get a feel for it
you go a long way down…
i can try and reassure you ‘til i’m blue in the face
and i’m sure i’ll test the limits of your understanding and patience
but you are a catalyst and so you will always suffer
you get behind the eyes and not just under the skin
and i can see the desperate situation we’re all living in
and i am fortunate that you chose to blow my cover
you go a long way down…
i’m a man unabridged in a world without order
people waiting to disappoint me around every corner
but i do love you
and i’ll wait for the end of the world with you
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4. |
the driven
03:59
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young man get up be driven
'cause the driven are the ones
who beat disease
disease of the mind the soul and the body
well you can sit around and count flies
'til you're done but i don't think son
that you're gonna be ready
self image in doubt tough titty
gotta grow up cool down get with it
dig deeper stand harder and mean it
then slowly you begin to peel off your neuroses
well you can sit around and count flies
'til you're done but i don't think son
that you're gonna be ready to
break - prove me wrong and i will never
question you again
break
black out all thoughts of anguish
no guilt no secrets no shame
no jesus to free you from all condemnation
stop for a minute try to take it all in
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5. |
golden age
03:38
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this is the golden age of what the fuck happened
there are pages in the story that are overlapping
cram seventeen pieces of gum in your mouth
and see which one blows the biggest bubble
if you can answer every question you're asked
then we're really in trouble
and if you cannot answer any at all
then you're a heartless animal
let's do some great things and fly off to an island
and die unremembered
you're dealing with a cynical minimalist
in a therapy session
if you can answer every question you're asked
then we're really in trouble
and if you cannot answer any at all
then you're a heartless animal
and the lion lost his pride when we tore out both his eyes 'cause we couldn't stand to see a grown man
cry
we are none of us scared
we have none of us purpose
we own none of us valuables
and the lion lost his pride when we tore out both his
eyes 'cause we couldn't stand to see
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6. |
the beaten down
05:37
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an artist's heart can be black as the ink on a quill
an artist's heart can be bleak as the blink of an eye
it's feelings are paper it's doing it to us right now
say the world's an abomination
but won't raise a fist for fear of breaking it's fingers
patience child as the rush of the mob carries on
keep a close eye on the carryings on of the mob
batting their lashes robbing you blind of the chances
that people like you born years ago
were afforded because back then you were all
special
lifted high on the shoulders of the beaten
these weary times are tired and in need of respite
these weary lives are looking
for a means to their ends
family incomes fed into lotto machines
need is the gateway misfortunes' the thing
to ease you into these transgressions
lifted high on the shoulders of the beaten down
put on your snug bell bottoms
and go down behind the bank
twenty-one selling LSD to fifteen year old thugs
it's easy to be a wise man
when you're hanging out with the kids
got out in time with most of your mind
without turning into a skid
can't say how lucky i've been
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7. |
say you don't care
04:42
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i can't promise anything to anyone at anytime
but i want you all to love me
and i can't think of everything for everyone
all of the time
but i want you all to trust me
this is not a complaint this is just an admission
every time i get out of hawk i go into remission
trying to wrap your arms around the promise
of a good intention
you're gonna cry every time i deny something's wrong
you're only human - say that you are
i am only paper and steel whalebone and nickel
i am only feeling and tone
and my grasp is tenuous at best
speaking of feeling and tone they're the ones
i love the best
every lover i've known becomes a house guest
trying to wrap your arms around...
what are you going to tell yourself when i'm not there
the best way to say you understand
is to say you don't care
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8. |
company halt
03:46
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forgive them their indiscretions
forgive them their lack of direction
forgive them their need for interaction
forgive them their useless erections
paid a young date to stand o'er his face
and urinate
let the shame and the tears of forty-five years
run down his face
paid to erase the pages of faces that blew away
forgive them their reprimanding
reliving the fall of understanding
for betraying the doubts of their rational minds
without question
forgive them their disconnection
company halt i think we're all making a big mistake
emptied out bodies and emptied out rounds
communicate
retreat retreat what we have been told
is not really how things are taking shape
company halt
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9. |
cities
03:26
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walk hot headed into situations
collapse the walls of the maze
seek hot blooded for reciprocation
you are a man of your days
chalk dust elements of education
to what do you aspire
as long as you remain an honest addict
nobody can call you a liar
we are cities born and raised
drunk schmuck grabbing all available assets
dance hall irrelevance demotes the classes
bathroom etiquette leaves you pantsless
oh you're a real prize
all is charity to thine own purpose
drink all merchandise in alley store fronts
morning time melancholy out the back door
'cause i'm the king of the world
we are cities born and raised
you are an animal waiting to happen
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10. |
a post-it note
04:17
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i and many like me children terrified
doing what was asked of us no questions no reply
placed on vessels impressionable ageless
the shoreline pushed the distance and
the bottom disappeared
i am not certain when it happened
but somewhere along the way
i lost my depth perception
i and many of me cared not to think of what it is
where it's from where it's going
where it's been and what it does and why it's even here
was it always there for us to use
and are we only here to use it
are we just are we kind am i kind
i and i alone am responsible for everything
every insect trampled on and every blade of grass
i alone am guilty of falling under mass hypnosis
apathetic narcissism strangling my pacifism
independently wrapped in an arrogant body
i am sorry i'll try harder i will try
it's just a post-it note it's just a pencil shaving
it's just a bunch of batteries
it's just an empty seat and an old deflated tire
an old unwanted memory
it's just another show just one more place to go
it's only one more stop along the way
it's just an autograph an audio cassette
it's just another thing to throw away
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Jon Epworth
i read books and walk/bike around and then sometimes a song happens
Jon Epworth recommends:
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