Lyrics

PENGE

[LP] (2019)

 

SECRETS ON THE RADIO

 

Drag it out another year
The answer is so crystal clear, it’s easy
This ain’t some run on the capital

 

Decision is far overdue
I learned the hard way just like you, it’s easy
To forget your instincts tried and true

 

All the secrets I’ve ever known
I heard from a singer on the radio
Love is just a losing game
And soap won’t wash away your shame
All the secrets I’ve ever, ever known

 

The butterflies have long since gone
It makes no sense to soldier on, makes no sense
You can see the truth in your eyes

 

This is your life, could be your death
So heed your gut and save your, save your breath
This ain’t some run on the capital

 

I thought that we had something
That wouldn’t ever fade away
And though we did have something
We had to crush it anyway

 

All the secrets I’ve ever known
I heard from a singer on the radio
Mairzy Dotes, well Too-Ra-Loo
She needs you more than she loves you
Oh, no…

 

AMERICAN IS MY FAVORITE LANGUAGE

 

Land of the free
Home of the brave
Brave to be predictable
Cradle to the grave
Talk about the weather
Make a change of plan
Move into a penthouse
Uptown
With another man

 

American is my most favorite language
Could you make up one as good?
(American is my favorite language)
All of the others don’t sound quite as nice to me
I heard them on TV
(American is my favorite language)

 

Diamond ring
Fiancée
Selling stocks
For DNA
The tribe of Umatilla
Sure is making strides
They promised me a casino suite
That is
If I pimped their rides

 

We all live
We all live so free
Yeah
All your dreams come true
Tonight

 

FOUR LEAF CLOVER

 

Blue-eyed Ashkenazi
At my side
Under cover
Dressed a bit like James Bond tonight, uh-huh
The face don’t match, but that’s ok
A face is good; a face will play
It’s the gift of gab that gets the deals
Whisky neat, just spin the wheels

 

(I can’t lose tonight) talkin’ bout my
One, one, two, three, four-leaf clover (x2)

 

Didn’t like the food rules
But they paid off
The taste of money
(Always) much better than stroganoff
We cashed out before the fall
He saw the writing on the wall
It’s the gift of gab that gets the deals
Whisky neat, just spin the wheels

 

I HEARD THE RUMOR

 

When you go for such a long time
And you starve your body, cold inside
You won’t like
The effects of all those needs denied

 

Though the labradoodle evidence
Has been lint-rolled away
Memories of the car ride home
Are keeping you wide awake

 

“But it’s only a matter of time,” you say

 

I heard the rumor
I heard the rumor

 

Stop squinting in the sunlight
It’s shining through
Stop squinting in the sunlight
The truth will find its way to you
It wants to go home

 

SCOURGE OF THE WORKING CLASS

 

You have a hard time
Giving into new ideas
A very difficult time
Making it work up there

 

It’s time to face the facts; let go
To proof that you already know

 

The truth is staring you right in the face
The truth is putting you back in your place
At the back of the race

 

The scourge of the working class is working hard to put you down
The scourge of the working class will make you drink until you drown
(Forget about the girl)
(She’s a criminal)
(And I’ll be the witness)
She’ll never love you till you got your whole damn life
Figured out

 

If you let her push you around
It isn’t gonna make you strong
And all the sexual thrills
Are never gonna last that long

 

It’s time to face the facts and run
Keep looking out for number one

 

The Devil’s staring you right in the eyes
The Devil’s filling up your head with lies
But don’t compromise

 

Though it’s so hard not to worry from the pain and strife
Just remember it won’t add one minute to your life

 

It’s time to face the facts; concede
So don’t give in to all her greed

 

The scourge of the working class is working hard to put you down
The scourge of the working class will make you drink until you drown
(Forget about the girl)
(She’s a criminal)
(And I’ll be the witness)
She’ll never love you till she puts your whole damn life
In her mouth

 

FEASTWINE

 

I’ve knocked on every door
Seeking what is mine
Asking the questions
Anything to help me find

 

Some sort of answer
Direction, clue, or sign
What is my obligation?
Where is the drawn line?

 

I say that it isn’t left up to me
I say it was nailed upon that tree
Ironic
I can’t stand the people who sit back and let it all be

 

Has anyone (anyone)
Anyone ever done anything (anything)
Anything to save their own life?
How much is in your hands
And how much is in mine?
I am a branch attached
But You are the True Vine
I never thought that Your life would flow through me
Like Feastwine

 

And lurking stealthily
Patient in their crime
Are secret agencies
Born and bred to undermine

 

My sense of urgency
My sense of wrong and right
They seek to dampen me
With fame, flesh, and food tonight

 

I KNOW WHAT YOU DID IN DETROIT

 

My popsicle days were pure piety
Pontifical in their propriety
I never thought with your boasts
You’d ever get very far
But now I see
Clearly
Just how wrong I was

 

I know, I know, I know, I know (x3)
What you did
In Detroit

 

Disguised as building communities
You seized real estate opportunities
I never thought with your pride
You’d ever get very far
But now I see
Truly
Just who you are

 

I know, I know, I know, I know (x3)
What you did
In Detroit

 

Now I know what I’m doing
And now I know when
Despise the lies that I’ve been told
Just keep the fires melting gold

 

I know, I know, I know, I know (x3)
What you did
In Detroit

 

GHOST IN THE MACHINE

 

What can I do
If you’re against me?
And what can I say
If you won’t hear me?

 

Everyone seems the same these days
There’s a ghost in the machine
And it’s begging me to take the wide gate

 

Japan
You can
Hold me in your palm like a baby’s hand
If I could
I would
Never sleep again

 

Everyone seems the same these days
There’s a ghost in the machine
And it’s begging me to come back and stay
Everyone has no shame these days
There’s a ghost in the machine
And it’s begging me to take the wide gate

 

Tokyo
Puppet show
Hold me in your palm like a baby’s hand
If I could
I would
Never dream again

 

A HANDFUL OF DUST

 

I could be in my room
I could be in my room

 

Is there something between us?
Is there something between us?

 

Nothing’s changed
I’m still the same person
That you never really knew
Yeah, I still work the job downtown
In the building right next to you
So on and on with these ordinary
Things that we’re supposed to do
On and with these ordinary
Lives that we’ve both fallen into

 

I could be behind that door
I could be right behind that closed door

 

Is there something between us?
Is there something between us?

 

Nothing’s changed
I’m still the same person
That you never really knew
Yeah, I still live in the tower downtown
On the same floor as you
So on and on with these ordinary
Things that we’re supposed to do
On and with these ordinary
Lives that we’ve both fallen into

 

PASSOVER

 

A forest needs a fire
For the vermin to be tamed
But when a man is broken
His confidence is maimed

 

I sometimes wonder where you are
And where you’ve been
One little whisper in my ear
I swear I’m being tricked by you
Again

 

What happens
To the man who grows so tall
That he falls over?
He falls over

 

What happens
When a woman grows so tough
She gets passed over?
She gets passed over

 

When a bone is shattered
It heals stronger than before
But what’s the point of fighting
In this never-ending war?

 

I sometimes wonder where you are
And where you’ve been
One little whisper in my ear
I swear I’m being made a fool
Again

 

Somehow I knew they would
Try to tell me
That you’re no good
I’m still waiting
For you
To do all the things
You promised you were gonna do

 

(Just don’t tell me that it’s over) (x4)

 

THE OTHER TEAM

 

What’s the point of lying to yourself?
There’s only one thing on your mind
Tried to keep it up with Hyacinth
She must’ve known the whole damn time

 

Walking on eggshells and jumping the gun
Tasting dessert before the meal’s begun
The simmering sins of your youth
Have brought you to the main course
Can you swallow a hard truth?

 

(Help me, someone)
What do you think I’m here for?
Can’t you see I’ve spent my life
Tiptoeing in and out of hell
Just to wish you well?

 

’Cuz you will never understand
The way she does things
How she likes to comb her hair
Or read the morning paper
It’s the same with every girl
The story repeats over and over
Winning’s just a dream
Why don’t you join the other team?

 

Few of the beautiful ones
Will share our sacred cup
Marionettes in beanbag chairs
Working nine to five for a tech startup

 

Candy and flowers
Wilting and aging
Pretending the conversation’s engaging
All the lies of their youth
Have brought them to the main course
Can they swallow my hard truth?

 

(Help me, someone)
What do you think I’m here for?
Can’t you see I’ve spent my days
See-sawing in and out of death
Just to save your breath?

 

And in that moment of your life
It seems that it’s all over
That little moment of your life
It seems that it’s all over…
But, trust me, you will look back in five years
And laugh
Oh…

 

(Help me, someone)
What do you think I’m here for?
Can’t you see I spend my nights
Thrusting the lid off of my tomb
Just to save you room?

 

’Cuz you will never understand
The way she does things
How she likes to comb her hair
Or read the morning paper
It’s the same with every girl
The story repeats over and over
Winning’s just a dream
Why don’t you join the other team now?

 

(Heyo heyo)
My body feels amazing (x3)
(Heyo heyo)
I said my body feels amazing
(Heyo heyo)
My body feels amazing
(Heyo heyo)
I said my body feels amazing now

 

ANGLO ARTS RHYTHM MONSTER

[LP] (2014)

 

PRODIGAL SON

 

Shining star
Please let me be crucial
In the next phase of the world
Help me to be
Seen as more important
Than the other boys and the girls

 

Because we’re all really trying to do the same thing
Star in flicks or move into the West Wing
I see my-­‐self as the guiltiest one (ooh yeah)
(But) heaven prefers the prodigal son

 

Guiding light
Shake me into motion
When the sun doth rise in the east
Feed me with lust
Greed and some ambition
And watch me relish the feast

 

‘Cuz everyone is on a self-­‐love kick
Releasing songs recorded with an ice pick
I see myself as the guiltiest one (ooh yeah)
(But) heaven prefers the prodigal son

 

There’s something you should probably know ‘bout me
Well, everybody should (mmm)
I take all my vitamins with a squirt gun and they taste really good
Good, good, good, good, good, good, now (x4)

 

Because we’re all trying to live more than one life
Deviate and settle with the third wife
I see myself as the guiltiest one (ooh yeah)
(But) heaven prefers the prodigal son

 

ODDS & ENDS

 

I broke into the plaza
To raid the jewelry store
But I regret that I couldn’t get you
The things you was lookin’ for
I tried to save my money
I worked from nine to five
I sold my soul for a dead end job
Just to try to make you mine
I said I sold my soul to try to make you mine

 

But I don’t care about the weather
And I don’t know about your friends
And if it seems that there is nothing we can talk about
Then let’s just start with the odds & ends

 

I may not be a rich boy
A noble English lord
But I got cheek and a slim physique
That your body’s aching for
I’m not some hall of famer
Backstage VIP
So I’ll improvise, tell little lies
Just to get you to notice me
I said I’ll tell you lies just to get you to notice me

 

But I don’t care about the weather
And I don’t know about your friends
And if it seems that there is nothing we can talk about
Then let’s just start with the odds & ends (hoo!)

 

Bah-­‐dah
Bah-­‐dah-­‐dah-­‐dah (x2)
(Yeah yeah, Terri’s over)

 

This could be a daydream
But I can’t not act defensive right now
‘Cuz I know

 

That I don’t care about the weather
And I don’t know about your friends
And if it seems that there is nothing we can talk about
Then let’s just start with the odds & ends (hoo!)

 

Bop-­‐bop-­‐doo-­‐dop, bop-­‐bop-­‐a-­‐way-­‐bop
Bop-­‐bop-­‐doo-­‐dop, bop-­‐bop-­‐a-­‐way
Bop-­‐bop-­‐doo-­‐dop, bop-­‐bop-­‐a-­‐way-­‐bop
Bop-­‐bop-­‐doo-­‐dop, bop-­‐bop-­‐a-­‐way
Bop-­‐bop-­‐doo-­‐dop, bop-­‐bop-­‐a-­‐way-­‐bop
Bop-­‐bop-­‐doo-­‐dop, bop-­‐bop-­‐a-­‐way
Bop-­‐bop-­‐doo-­‐dop, bop-­‐bop-­‐a-­‐way-­‐bop
Bop-­‐bop

 

PAPER TUESDAY

 

When I told you those lies
That the letters you found
Were from some distant friend of mine
I could see it in your eyes
By the way you moved
That what we had was compromised

 

I told you all the time
When I was with you
We have to be patient
At falling in love
But you could tell I wasn’t true
Burning away
Paper Tuesday

 

It still hits me every day
But why from the start
Did you have to push me away?
As I reeled with every warning
Like how you didn’t enjoy
Saturday Night & Sunday Morning

 

I told you all the time
When I was with you
We have to be patient
At falling in love
But you could tell I wasn’t true
Burning away
Paper Tuesday

 

Your mom’s so glad
She says I’m bad
Just like your dad
(Always will I want you)

 

I told you all the time
When I was with you
We have to be patient
At falling in love
But you could tell I wasn’t true
Burning away
I told you all the time
When I was with you
We have to be patient
At falling in love
But you could tell I wasn’t true
Burning away
Paper Tuesday

 

MAKE THE RACES

 

Calling every doctor
Calling every nurse
Bleed the ground with needle frame
A left-­‐handed curse
But, don’t help him
He’s no good
Look right through
The boy who cries wolf
The accusations
All make my head spin round

 

So I would like to apologize
For all the times I laughed in peoples’ faces
I wanna make the races
I would like to apologize
For all the times I rubbed you in wrong places
I wanna make the races

 

Statues in the courtyard
Pine and juniper
Vaulted does flesh coalesce
With frankincense and myrrh
The night bequeaths its Judas kiss
I realize that I am nothing
The constellations
All make my head spin round

 

So I would like to apologize
For all the times I laughed in peoples’ faces
I wanna make the races
I would like to apologize
For all the times I rubbed you in wrong places
I wanna make the races

 

On my own
I’m begging you to run away with me but

 

I would like to apologize
For all the times I laughed in peoples’ faces
I wanna make the races
I would like to apologize
For all the times I rubbed you in wrong places
I wanna make the races
I would like to apologize
For all the skulls I crushed with iron maces
I wanna make the races
I would like to apologize
For all the times I lied and hid the traces
I wanna make the races now

 

But I will never apologize

 

SALT & VINEGAR

 

They’re making a killing in this business, you know
Reel in every man who’s got no better place to go
Reel in every woman with nothing left to say
Reel in every woman anyway, anyway

 

Moments of tears
Old people tears
Salt & vinegar
Taste all the years

 

Yesterday, oh yesterday, my memory forbidding
Punched a stranger in the face and told him I was kidding
Saturday, last Saturday, what the hell did I do?
Heard the wife’s confession; pretended I knew

 

Moments of tears
Old people tears
Salt & vinegar
Taste all the years

 

If this is my prime
Why am I hell-­‐bent on wasting time?

 

‘Cuz I’m living in another world anyway
Work the night shift
Praise the theater lights
I don’t want that much, except to see some shows
I don’t care to see the mistakes underneath my nose

 

Moments of tears
Old people tears
Salt & vinegar
Taste all the years

 

BENNY’S MUCH OLDER THAN ME

 

Every night I run into a dead end
When I’m tryin’ to make her mine
I’m stuck with Adonis for a best friend
I’m just tryin’ to make her mine

 

Look, I know he’s such a pretty boy
But Benny’s much older than me
Yes, he’s such a pretty boy
But Benny’s much older than me

 

I was satisfied when we were younger
Now I’m startin’ to feel the hunger
It comes but it don’t go
Warps my little mind

 

I want some love
I want some love in the middle of the night
I need some love
I need some love in the middle of the night

 

Look, I know he’s such a pretty boy
But Benny’s much older than me (older than me, now)
Yes, he’s such a pretty boy
But Benny’s much older than me

 

It’s hard to say that I really believe
These are the best days of our lives
‘Cuz I’m still waitin’ for things to get better
Golden years to arrive

 

Look, I know he’s such a pretty boy
But Benny’s much older than me (older than me, now)
Yes, he’s such a pretty boy
But Benny’s much older than me
I know he’s such a…handsome boy
But Benny’s much colder than me
Yes, he’s such a pretty boy
But Benny’s much older than me (older than me, now)

 

IMAGINE MANNEQUINS

 

You make moves
Shifts that leave me shaking
I feel robbed
Decades from my life you’re taking
Please don’t tell me what to do
Somehow I’ll give into you
Position me with a voice like thunder
Over, sideways, up, and under

 

Imagine mannequins staring at you in the night (oh, I wonder)
You could boss, domineer
Play the Queen Puppeteer
They won’t mind (oh, I wonder)

 

On my own
Life moves in slow motion
I work hard
Giving you my blind devotion
Please don’t tell me what to say
Claim that I’ve some debt to pay
Pushing me into a panic
Building up my rage volcanic

 

Imagine mannequins staring at you in the night (oh, I wonder)
You could boss, domineer
Play the Queen Puppeteer
They won’t mind (oh, I wonder)
Imagine mannequins instead of me wave goodbye (oh, I wonder)
Out awash in the sea
Where you said I should be
Mannequins stay dry

 

Don’t ask me now
What I want and what you’ll allow
Don’t draw the line
Tellin’ me what’s yours it just ain’t mine
But even so
Don’t tell me that there’s no place to go
Knowing I will be the one to knock on those unknown doors

 

LITTLE MISS BONAPARTE

 

I struggle to pull through
But everything’s easy for you
It isn’t very hard to see
My life Russian Roulette
When everything you want you get
But nothing’s ever guaranteed

 

You make plans
But don’t you know things fall apart?
Such great plans
For my Little Miss Bonaparte

 

Am I a minion?
A servant in your opinion?
Well this will be the last goodbye
You charge me with treason
Without any rhyme or reason
Good luck until the well runs dry

 

You make plans
But don’t you know things fall apart?
Such great plans
For my Little Miss Bonaparte

 

You’re begging me to stay
I’m not a penny saved up for a rainy day

 

You make plans
But don’t you know things fall apart?
Such great plans
For my Little Miss Bonaparte

 

KNOCK ON WOOD

 

It’s been 40 days since I knocked on wood
I dunno, I just don’t see no reason
There was a pine door
In the cellar where I lived before
So make my day, please

 

With folded hands
I’m still trying to figure out
If I should

 

I find it very hard
To finish what I start
To set the time apart
Plan hours on a chart
It’s unbearable

 

With folded hands
I’m still trying to figure out
If I should

 

Knock on wood

 

And in the pool’s reflection
I saw my hair
Like the serpents of Medusa
I was frightened by my own despair

 

With folded hands
I’m desperate to figure out
If I should

 

Knock on wood
Knock on wood

 

FRANKENTHALER

 

I could stand here for fifteen years and
Stare at this Frankenthaler with ease
I could stand here for fifteen years and
Stare at this Frankenthaler with ease
If I had the faith

 

Does it all seem impossible?
Sometimes it does
But is it truly impossible?
On the nights when you drink alone
You wish it was
You wish it was

 

Why do you lock yourself in your room?
You want to be out making friends, having fun every night
But you know that cheating the system just ain’t right, well

 

I could stand here for fifteen years and
Stare at this Frankenthaler with ease
I could stand here for fifteen years and
Stare at this Frankenthaler with ease
If I had the faith

 

Does it all seem a carousel?
A hazy blur
But is it truly a carousel?
Every morning when you hit the Scotch
You wish it were
You wish it were

 

Yes, every word is true
At least in their little minds
But ignore what they say
Drink what you drink
Close your eyes (close your eyes) and two-­‐step to this beat
You know, I like the way you move your feet, well

 

I could stand here for fifteen years and
Stare at this Frankenthaler with ease
I could stand here for fifteen years and
Stare at this Frankenthaler with ease
If I had true faith (vibrato on faith)

VULGARIS

[Mini-LP] (2012)

 

WESTERN COUNTY AT NIGHT

 

Take me back, Henry Failing
I must be ailing
Take me back to the trails
Lay my body in the Ochoco woods
Beneath the Cascades
If everything else fails
I’ve been running around the world, you see
Supposedly finding the real me
Oh, but long ago I found trees
And mountains reaching higher than any of these buildings

 

Far, far away I’ll go
Folks always say hello, all my
Worries behind me
So free

 

If you’re from Norway, Myanmar
Or Madagascar
Consider yourself blessed
It’s a triumph for an American man
To have just one day
His doubtful mind at rest
We say, “If God is real, well then I need proof!”
And struggle to find some definitive truth
I think I’ll walk outside instead
To find more wisdom and credence than anything some book said

 

PARTY FOR MYSELF

 

Another day
Holding down the fort again
“We’ll be back in a week,” they said
“Pathetic seeing your tears,” they left
Unnaturally, I drew up a plan
Like any sensible child would do
Though it’s taken me
Till I was a man
Card games, cutting cake soon after
Faces filled with helium laughter

 

But Jamie, Jamie, Jamie’s always out of town
Chasing well-to-dos in a wedding gown
And Michael went away to find a real career
How he’d look at me strangely still living here
Imagine me in a pirate suit
Hunt for hidden treasure
If I find the nickel lipsticks on the highest shelf
They’ll be swallowed whole
I’ll throw a party for myself

 

Another night
Unwillingly alone again
An Epsom bath and a restless nap
Pop-up books with fatal finger traps
My hands shake, scraping the floor
I know I never asked for much
Or begged for some sin
I just want to go outside
But I’m not sure it’s alright
The critics are gone and still I shake with this stage fright

 

To push, push, push against the safety rail
In the cradle, nearly drunk off of ginger ale
I’ll come crashing down, crashing down in the blink of an eye
They say the longer you live, the longer you die
Imagine me in a pirate suit
Hunt for hidden treasure
If I find the Robitussin on the highest shelf
In a liquid ore
I’ll throw a party for myself

 

MIRROR PHOBIA

 

Spider eyes
A thousand views of my face
Be safely blurred by disaffection
In the light of the day
Every bathroom (every little bathroom)
Like a gleaming royal chalice
And every fad’s
Shiny window ad
Like a televangelical crystal palace

 

I know I’ve gone too far
I don’t know what else I can do
Build a casket
In a tar pit
Hide away, hide away from this
Mirror phobia

 

The pictures
Really were fun
The ones we took in an oatmeal bath
Veiled from unflattering sun, oh-ho-ho
The pictures
Were admittedly fun
But would you believe?
Could you conceive?
That I tore them to shreds, every one, and

 

I know I’ve gone too far
I don’t know what else I can do
Have a wrestling match
With a briar patch
Hide away, hide away from this
Mirror phobia

 

ROBERTS BLOSSOM

 

– Instrumental –

 

RED ROPE OF JERICHO

 

The end of the week so nervous finds me
No more comforted by night or the thought that my life, itself
Is writing a book already on the shelf
The clock always slows to Friday’s crawl
Shadows in the street bay the Siren’s call as
Mansions appear; negligees surround me
In costume rooms
Built as tombs
For the shy and lonely

 

So I’ll wait for your sign
Throw down that Red Rope of Jericho
When will you join my side
And tell me the secrets that I’ve never known
Yeah, I’ll wait for your sign
Throw down that Red Rope of Jericho
Sometime

 

The twilight fades so far behind me
Your door slammed in my face, this petty bourgeoisie
Just wanted some community
I’ll lie in bed, watch a TV show
I’ll try to live my life in the status quo
You say, “The next generation will change our worldview”
But I’m the man
The also-ran
That your kid grew into

 

A PRAYER FOR SECOND CHANCES

 

When I see a debutante acting so dull
A paint-by-numbers sketch on an unblemished scroll
I get a taste for bitter food
I get a taste for bitter food

 

When I hear a young man of curious aims
Admit to someone else passion fed by two flames
I get a taste, I do, for bitter food
I get a taste for strong drink

 

Because I know that when the
Rain pours down
They’ll prolong their goodbyes
And when the wind knocks me over
The faster their jets fly by
The only words of comfort I may hear
Are, “Don’t look so wrecked. What did you expect?”

 

A prayer for second chances
A prayer for second chances
A prayer for second chances, whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh