1. |
Drone in F#
03:09
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2. |
Claim Your Birthright!
03:15
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My stomach is swelling up.
I'm no longer hungry and I'm hoping that you will
continue in your own way:
Slightly forgetful, slightly young
and flowing forwards like a mighty
and fearless river.
Constantly reforming yourself and
simultaneously reforming the entire shoreline.
I hope you forgive the whole world.
By that, I mean, I hope you can forgive yourself.
By that, I mean, I hope you forgive the whole world.
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3. |
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This whole god damn world is a mirror.
I tried my best to turn away from it.
I was ashamed of it, I guess.
And when I turned, I turned forever.
Like a ballerina who had confused grace
with saving face.
My life was whizzing by.
This whole god damn world is a mirror.
I tried my best to run away from it,
I was afraid of it, I guess.
I ended up on top of Mt. Tremper.
The stars shined brighter there than anything
I had ever seen.
In fact, they gave me sight.
And then I watched you as struggled to free yourself
from the shackles that were inside of your head.
It was like watching a child resist the arms
of his mother when she would lay him in bed, oh lord...
Surprise, surprise: He still got fed.
Sometimes I hide inside of my brain.
It's lonely there but its safe
And I know when I go that I will go unstained
You could never stain this mind.
It's as much yours as mine.
This is as much yours as it could ever be called "mine".
So, I hope, my love, when your skin starts caving in from time
that you will still sip on my love like a well-aged wine.
And please do not waste one more of your beautiful tears
on the youth that you lost, for you never really owned it my dear.
If there's one thing I've learned, it's that Earth just turns for
itself.
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4. |
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Child, don't dream of a world you can't see,
rather, inspect the one that you're in.
Shouting, "I stand alone on the Earth we call home
looking for a God I can trust."
Well, they may call you mad. They may point, they may laugh.
Saying, "He sure could have been great."
Your world might collapse as you struggle to grasp
just a fragment of your fate.
But to be a phoenix, you first must become ash.
And that fire's been lit, so stop trying to clutch the past, my friend.
Pretty soon, you will burst
out of the Earth
and leave a trail of tongues
in your wake.
Everyone knows about the Emperor's clothes.
It's the easiest club you could join.
It takes far more strength to practice restraint
than to indulge in the noise of your voice.
So the challenge is this: could you ever resist
the urge to find my solid ground.
From the depths of the sea toward the heights of folly,
I've heard only one canonical sound.
It went:
To be a phoenix, you first must become ash.
And that fire's been lit, so stop trying to clutch the past, my friend.
Pretty soon you will burst
out of the Earth
and leave a trail of tongues
in your wake.
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5. |
An Ancient Voice
04:40
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You have an ancient voice.
And the language you use
I will never fully understand.
You say you've made your choice
and now you'll wander upon this Earth
with nothing in your hands.
Comporting yourself
right in line with all the wind's commands.
Your lips are the peaks and the troughs
of the shifting sands.
And now I'm listening
to the prayer that your throat
and you heart have made love and birthed.
It's like some christening.
A ritual more sacred
than the largest church.
Or a miracle more common
than a clump of dirt.
Yours is a life that's lived
and died as one eternal search.
Tell me what it is you seek.
And is that message heavy or are my ears weak?
Won't you tell me what it is you found?
My heart is racing fast like some young greyhound.
Won't you tell me what it is you seek?
Been waiting on that wisdom week after week.
Won't you tell me what it is you found?
The reverberations of some ancient sound...
And it goes and it goes and it goes:
This life is happening.
And there's no where that this giant earth could go.
This life is happening.
One generation comes as another one goes.
This life is happening.
From the top of your head to the tips of your toes.
This life is happening.
One never-ending moment like some grand rainbow.
This life is happening.
And our pain ties us together like ribbons and bows.
This life is happening.
And you can change the course of rivers but you can't stop their flow.
This life is happening.
This life is happening.
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6. |
Lovesick Lullaby
03:57
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I heard the words you said
when were drifting off to bed.
When you told me you were in search
of some kind of heaven.
I'm aware this world is rough.
All those politicians just bluff,
while the mommies prepare their babes
for Armageddon.
And I would not say I'm wise.
I've just seen with my two eyes
stronger swimmers than you
drowning in Heineken.
So may your love shine through
every single thing you do.
May you try and touch the stars
and fail and find that what makes them shine
is what makes you what you are.
And what you are is a dim but steady light.
What you are, it just calms me down at night.
What you are is a lovesick lullaby.
Have you listened to the post-modern blues?
They play it daily on the 24 hour news.
I think it sounds quite a bit like
self-righteous indignation.
And I cannot think of one thing
beyond celebrity-gossip magazines
and a sense of unending hunger
that unites this nation.
But when I remember the cracks in your skin
and that steady gaze when you truly listen,
it reminds me that the pains in my bones are
the seeds of salvation.
So, may our love shine through
every single thing we do.
May we try and steal the stars
and fail and find that what makes them shine
is what makes us what are.
And what we are is our only source of light.
What we are, it just rings on through the night.
What we are is a lovesick lullaby
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7. |
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Your whole life was one long panic attack.
Your whole life was one long panic attack.
You sure seemed like you knew what you lacked
but your whole life was one long panic attack.
And you could not touch anyone that you loved
No, you could not touch anyone that you loved.
Your shame covered you like a workman's glove
so you could not touch anyone that you loved.
You found some peace inside of a song.
You found some peace inside of a song.
For a moment or two you could do no wrong.
You found some peace inside of a song.
And I guess that it's true we're all waiting to die.
Yes, I guess that it's true we're all waiting to die.
This world can be brutal but at times it shines,
for instance, my dear, you have the loveliest eyes.
Ba-da-dum...
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8. |
We Are Donkeys
05:25
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Were we right or were we wrong?
Well, we'll never really know.
But like donkeys, we will run
after that carrot on a rope.
And when we get it,
-IF we get it, that is...
When we get it,
if we get it, that is
will it be like we are younger?
Or braver or stronger or numb-er?
I do not know that much, I just know you
and the way that you laugh.
Yes, you. And the curve of your back.
Oh, you. You've got such a knack
for getting me grounded.
Are you here or are you there?
It depends on where you're not.
So bring that grindstone to your ear
and ask it what it wants
And when you hear it
-IF you hear it, that is...
When you hear it,
if you hear it, that is
Do you think it will bring you pleasures?
Or success in this world full of pressures?
Or do you think it will echo through your cells
like the pulse of a bell?
Through your cells, like a hero through hell?
Through your cells, like a coin down a well?
May you be your own fortune.
I watched you as you stumbled through Eden.
You were clothed in just your shame and a single leaf.
Have you ever hungered for freedom?
Or have you ever wondered what that word means?
We'll find out, baby, when we stop breatin'.
And when that moment comes, do not worry.
'Cause we're going home...
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9. |
Best Wishes
05:27
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Haven't you
ever stared into
the milky way?
Been blown away
by the force of it all?
Or haven't you
ever run into
a former self?
The kind you could not sell
for nothing at all.
Isn't it true
what they said about you?
That you're this open book
I could never overlook.
Not even from afar.
And everything's changing, oh no.
This body keeps aging, oh no
Are we worth saving?
I hope so.
I wish you the best.
Wasn't it you
who instructed me to
forget myself
and permit myself
to start anew?
Well, now, you listen here:
There's no need to fear
making mistakes.
If a mess is made,
we'll clean it up.
Just help me give thanks
to these ones we can't shake.
The ones inside of our lives.
We can cover our eyes
but they're still there.
And everything's changing, oh no.
This body keeps aging, oh no
Are we worth saving?
I hope so.
I wish you the best.
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Matthew Squires Austin, Texas
I think, all things considered, the songs I write are much more listenable than the songs I don't write.
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