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All You Can Do is Burn

by The Founders

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1.
E C#m E C#m E Am G Em G Em G C
2.
We walk upon the pox on our feet We walk upon the rocks that we beat We talk of all the socks that we leave We talk of all the hawks of defeat We walk in time, in time we talk cheap We talk in rhyme; in rhyme, we retreat We walk a skip, a trip, a half-leap We slip and trip into hawks of defeat Oh, my version needs a rest Oh, my visions are the best We walk the line with the silver aura We walk in time toward the greenish hue We want the life they envisioned for us We hope, in time, we’ll avoid abuse We walk tall, in short we talk deep We talk falls, at length we grok sleep We shock halls and balk at false needs We hunt the eagles and hawks of defeat
3.
I wanna be the first to jump this ship I wanna coast along the ocean floor I wanna drift onto some distant shore I wanna taste your envy when I quit! I wanna be your rat I wanna be your rat There’s nothing wrong with that Just wanna be your rat! I wanna be the last to leave your home I wanna pour your fridge into my open, gaping maw I wanna watch you all avoid my calls I wanna make you friends appreciate your time alone I wanna be your rat I wanna be your rat There’s nothing weird about that Just wanna be your rat!
4.
All bets are off! We took turns guessing how the tabs would drop Our one mistake was thinking something might stay aloft But now we know better We took to the roads The highest ones, that all the saints foretold But now we see that ancient gets too old Yeah, now we know better Because it’s not enough just to say, “Hey, I can be tough!” If fighting’s half the battle, it’s a gamble just to see who stands So I say, Get out while you can! Well, I’ve been caught Where you could save or lose what all you’ve got The space between getting saved and getting shot And now I know better Than to tempt fate My hesitation’s taught me not to wait So when you’re positive that it’s too late Yeah, then you’ll know better Chorus As far as futures go, you’re in the air, trying not to look below But don’t trust gravity to break its laws and let you down slow Still, then you’ll know Better watch your head! Your ears don’t seem to hear the words you said Your eyes don’t seem to see the blood you’ve bled Your brain don’t know better Better, better run There’ll come a day when you will see the sun So when you forsake everything you’ve done, Yeah, then you’ll know better Because it’s not enough just to say, “Hey, I can be tough!” If fighting’s half the battle, it’s a gamble just to see who stands When you’re stuck in the middle, you can twiddle your thumbs and watch While the real people sacrifice you pawns for their master plans So I say, Get out while you can!
5.
So I hear that you don’t like the lonely parties You prefer to be catching yourself in the storm of the eye Well, forgive me my trespass, if I guess at you wrong, I’m sorry But if smiles keep you busy, then maybe you need time to cry Run along, catch your ride, hitch your buggy to horse Have no shame in the chase, in the ever-glorious try At the end of the night, everyone falls asleep, of course And you’re left by yourself, with your unlimited time to cry Maybe I don’t know where the clock’s gonna end, but maybe I might But baby, I am sure if you’re just made of friends, you won’t ever set right So don’t let me stop you now, no need to wonder how I called your bluff Just forget that I’ve seen the end of the road, where the time it takes is not enough So I get your uncertainty, you are a man among men And alone, you’re a boy with his mom always waving goodbye But I don’t understand why you wait til she comes ‘round again Why you wait at the window while biding your watch with a sigh
6.
Labrat 03:02
Hazardous chemicals Heptane and alcohol Cleaner and fuel for another week Nocturnal intervals Of counting particles Shuffle and flutter to hold back sleep Nuke the soup again Rubber gloves and dead skin Keep me from slipping into the deep Stare into the machine Keep it clean, keep it clean Keep me clean for another week Labrat I man my station Fight the occupation Keep my nose plastered to the glass My skull just cries Brain just fries A few more hours, I have to last Machines are broken Maintenance man is soakin And the deadline is drawing near Fix the jam Smile for the camera Break some standards, we’re in the clear Man, I could just go on if I weren’t just going down If I knew where I was going, I might be there by now Instead of just another week Punch the clock Trip the lock Race right home to scrub the reek Make some noise and Throw back my poison Liquor and legs are what I seek Pay for the reverie Ignore the reveille Curse the sun and turn your cheek Just play dead Rest your head You’re gonna need it for another week
7.
Oh, you mad machines of the future! Taking my days for all to look upon Pretending that I might have days to come Keeping eyes affixed upon a fixture! From somewhere far beyond the clouds of nylon, Purple planes ensconce the skyline for the nighttime With their happy bombs But as the king of this castle, All that I can say is “I’m not gone.” Oh, my steed, his stead he tread in silence I kept my bit in hand and drifted left Prevailing winds all pushed and pulled my heft But oh, I need to break the speed and violence! But don’t drop me off! From somewhere far beyond the clouds of nylon, Purple planes ensconce the skyline for the nighttime With their happy bombs But as the king of this castle, All that I can say is “I’m not gone.”
8.
I almost saw it in the tea leaves All the futures almost lived had gone unspoken And though I almost thought I was relieved I was just barely awoken I almost licked it off the pages He in the scent so strong, he almost started choking And though St. Ages watched with almost all her sages She was just barely awoken I almost took the right direction Kept waiting for a blinking sign, but almost all were broken And though I watched them lock down almost every section They were just barely awoken I almost held it past the instant The red-hot youth I’d grown had almost started smoking And though the years I’d dreamed were almost non-existant I was just barely awoken
9.
When John Wesley Harding caught our approach, he proclaimed, “I don’t know how I did what I’ve done!” Then he greased the wheel and set the flame, warning “Averting your eyes erases the sun.” We said, “Look how far he’s come He’s nowhere and getting close.” We sucked the air and burned our throats. See the green patient, patiently still! He’d plead, “My head’s like a still pond, still stagnating.” See the will in his hands, he’s given up and offering, “Drill open my head and see what’s waiting.” We said, “Look how fast he’s fading When he’s filled up to the brim.” What kind of light burns that dim? We found John in the backyard, muttering “I don’t know how I did what I did, but I did, now I’m done!” Then he greased the gear and set the bone, swearing “For everything that festers for the sun!” We said, “Look how far he’s gone! He’s balanced on the ledge And playing with the edge While we’re anticipating But look how fast he’s fading! He’s breathing through the gills That never gave, but maybe will If he could only move that heft, But nothing’s right when nothing’s left!”
10.
Show My Face 03:32
I watched the Army of God as it Rose in the hills and fell at the sea I was a child of modern sin Not the man they wanted, just the man they wanted to see I was not prepared for a fight I was not prepared to pretend I was grown I was not prepared to be fighting friends I was not prepared to be fighting so close to home I was never on the racks, no And I was never severed bits No maniacs with shotguns Just brothers begging me to quit The sun may not come out tomorrow But when it does, it won't be by our grace Well, you can call it any name But our fears are all the same So in the deep, dark shadow of death and sorrow I won't be afraid to show my face I stood with just my words They, poised, wore armor, head to the ground My victory was to fight again To ward off heavy storms trying to make me drown I've watched time take its toll And I've tried not to give what I have received But if it's boogeymen that you've been told The fifth light just gets easier to see But I never feel the pressure Until the threats start to show It's never up, down, left, right It's always lurking just below
11.
Stab the butterfly bloated with time Cry if you have nothing better to do Do you hear the children screaming? Did you expect those fires gleaming? Just enjoy the shapes that they shine through Onto you Fix the words that muddle the mix List what you have nothing better to Follow the signals coughing up The sparks from smokestacks’ lightning’d top Just enjoy the heights that they climb to From you Take the best guess just in jest Attest, arrest and test the blessed Unless you are among the Chosen Then keep your chest compressed and frozen Lest a watchful eye espy a clue Of you
12.
I crack my neck for echolocation I feel the broken, strained magnetic pull I keep my eyes awake for information But on a steep slope up through stranded huts Scarred by jagged rocks and ruts I turn against the cold, the cold, the cold! Shillelagh, lay with me in the grassy grove We’ll never have to do as we are told But if we’re caught by the many that we drove I know a shortcut through the hidden trips Where we can hide from tongues and lips And turn against the cold, the cold, the cold! I can’t tell you where I am You might follow, might just try I can keep the narrow steps You can only see it if it’s in your eye! If my escape is fleeting, let it be so If my returning is just so foretold And if my companions still believe I know That on a straight line down down the forest hills A friend can help and always will They’ve never faced the cold, the cold, the cold
13.
No use knocking, mister No lights in the window Not much hope for Krista Tonight, she sleeps in limbo No love for this sister No light through the concrete Not much hope for Krista When all she wants is a heartbeat As you might expect, the rubberneck The rapt allure Will fade and grow with sun and snow And with no cure But it’s obvious the little trust Will wane and wax with any facts When all we ask for this small cause Is reverence for who she was
14.

about

"There is no final justice. The only thing you can do is burn and burn and burn."

credits

released December 18, 2010

Cover art by Liz Nichols

Guitar/Vox: Nick Kieper
Bass: Casey Gaines
Drums: Matt Newlin
Saxophones: John "The Last Domino" Orr

Printed by North Street Media

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The Founders Indianapolis, Indiana

Albert the Owlbear
2007-2012
2018-2020

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