1. |
6:1-10
04:42
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when it seems the end is near, and when the world is full of fear and there’s no hope
when the people run and scream, before their idols bend their knees and pray for hope
when the fields are set ablaze, and there’s nowhere for sheep to graze we run and hide
for seven years this has gone on, and midian is just too strong for us to fight
in a mountain cave we stay, and finally to God we pray to keep alive
here a man approaches
he’s screaming, he’s crazy
he’s turning this disaster back on our own heads
he’s claiming that he speaks for God
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2. |
Down Zhongnan Mountain
03:02
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down the blue mountain, in the evening
moonlight was my homeward escort
looking back, I saw my path lie in shadow
I was passing the farmhouse of a friend
when his children called from a gate of thorns
and led me twining through jade bamboo
where green vines caught and held my clothes
and I was glad of this chance to rest
and glad of this chance to drink with my friend
we sang to the tune of the wind in the pines
and we finished our songs as the stars went down
between us we forgot the world
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3. |
Watermarks
04:54
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this tim horton’s furniture is not very comfortable
this conversation we’re having is not very comfortable
you’re staring at watermarks in the ceiling tiles
I’m staring at watermarks just above your hesitant smile
and they’re making me smile
you say that you’ve got no one, that you are alone
you say that you’re suddenly scared that you’ll be left alone
I’m keeping my mouth shut, there’s too much to say right now
you need to be lifted up, to polish your beautiful crown
not to throw it down
you fell for the lie that you would be lonely forever
tim horton’s fell quiet, just as I called you a liar
I said, “I don’t believe it, somewhere someone’s waiting to meet you and most likely he won’t be perfect, but he will complete you”
you’re out on your motorbike, one hundred and fifty cc’s
you’re speeding down foreign roads on the coast of the andaman sea
found friendlier faces, once further away from home
you’ve discovered that no matter where you are, jess, you are never alone
then you found your way home
don’t ask yourself why these circles you’re running grow smaller
‘til the world neatly folds into nothing, and you feel like you’re falling
and abbotsford days, or andaman nights make no difference
geography is less important, than having him with you
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4. |
Under the Streetlights
04:11
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the night is still young but already the dark surrounds
and I’m racing the moon to the horizon
and steaming from my lungs my breathing comes in tiny clouds
our winter is just o’er the horizon
with headlights in my eyes and streetlights blocking stars from sight
I push a bit harder on the pedals
the wind begins to bite, I close my eyes and hold on tight
and I push even harder on the pedals
under the streetlights
riding on my bike
wondering what it would be like
to be at home with you
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5. |
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did not expect it to turn out the way that it did
for such a simple field trip, for such a basic field trip
three days ago the seismometer told me a lie
it told me I was going to die, a fiery end I’d surely find
as we got closer we saw a brown haze floating there
the smell of tephra in the air, but oddly I was never scared
and news reporters questioning everyone
live from the foot of mount st. helens
couldn’t believe what a frightening specter we’d found
what started as a little cloud, grew on and up without a sound
I saw volcanic ash blacken the once bright blue sky
and mountains grew before my eyes
a mountain grew before my eyes
take two steps forward breathe it in
ignore the danger, it’s a whim
just lose yourself in all of this
my power is so much greater
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6. |
My Starting Point
03:29
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we met at a fire while my house was burning down all our friends were gathered ‘round
the flames were higher than all the dreams that I had found that now lay smouldering on the ground
and oh my God, I can’t believe my eyes
we talked about pirates as they sailed down the marsh while your dog stood by and barked
then suddenly silent so that the ninjas in the car couldn’t follow us too far
and I on my moped over the miles in the rain, frozen fingers, frozen face, coming over to your place
and when the door opened you had put the kettle on and the tea was getting warm and we slowly made it a home
oh my God, I can’t believe my eyes
this is much too good to be true
the way this all turned out so perfectly proves it was neither me nor you
painted with pictures of dreadlocks and roses (I had given up when I met you)
smiles and freckles and coffee and wine (but you picked me up and I bet you knew)
the hands of an artist that doodle on class notes (that my starting point was the ending)
and eyes that light up when they’re looking at mine (and I felt my trajectory bending too)
the sense of adventure that keeps you dynamic (through thicker storms we have weathered)
the way that you jump when you see pretty things (and we’ll weather more if we stay tethered to)
I’m thanking my God for my beautiful wife (something bigger than the storm descending)
‘cause you gave me new life and a reason to sing (and we’ll feel our trajectory bending too)
and I’ve never known anyone better than you
and I’ll never know anyone better than you
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7. |
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daily mindless wanderings
through the busy city streets
walking to the market or maybe
maybe one day I’ll return to jing-joks and tuk-tuks
the rain has finished falling
the road before me calling
through sugar cane and palm trees on pedals
maybe one day I’ll return to fruit stands in siam
all these wonders, waiting there
of tuk-kaes and tuk-tuks
the endless sunshine makes me happy
it’s a bio-chemical reaction
and I’m just a leaf on a tree
undergoing photosynthesis
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8. |
Under the Terebinth
04:45
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while pining for sunshine, the mourning brings rain
there hiding in corners ‘til morning again
I pass the long night hardly sleeping at all
I hide behind doors listening for morning’s call
but all I can hear through my weak barricade are the dark things outside and the noises they make
I’ve tried everything, hum a tune, plug my ears
but what I can’t hear only adds to my fears
the dark like a blindness, the rain like a drum that’s beating to keep all the patriots numb
I can’t feel my hands and I can’t hear my heart
the fear of the moment grows on in the dark
I fumble with matches, I strain for the light
oh something please something to put out the night
but hands finding nothing return to my chest and folded there trembling they long for some rest
sometimes it takes darkness to see clearly
no it’s better to know to be sure of what’s there
so I peer through a crack ‘tween the blinds as I dare
there’s a man out there standing there meeting my stare
and he stands resolute with an angelic air
now he beckons me out now I open the door
now I’m scared but I have no control any more
now I walk out to him, now I fall to my knees
now he opens his mouth and he’s starting to speak (he says,)
"it’s not in your pain or the way that you run
it’s not in your tears for the things that you’ve done or the times you were wrong
you are an elm in october, you’re still standing strong
though your heart turns to fear as your leaves turn to brown and falling to the ground
it’s nothing you’ve done, it’s nothing you’ll do
for ten-thousand years I’ve been following you and I’m still after you
my brush strikes the canvas and colours appear
your heart and your hands, your smiles and tears are perfectly clear
they are perfectly clear"
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9. |
The Lights in the Trees
04:28
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I wanted out of this terrible fight
I can’t believe that he gave me no choice
now it’s too late and we’re all going to die
he’ll kill us all with the sound of his voice
pictures with sounds playing over again
delicate vein spreading out on the leaves
waking me up with its volume and then
thundering silence is all I perceive
the sound of the wind in the trees is reminding me of the footsteps of an army
I could have sworn I’ve seen this in a movie somewhere long ago, in the future
and the clinking of that tent spike that somehow came unearthed, could it be the rattle of swords and sinister work, about to be unleashed on you and me, could it be?
the rattle of a sword, could it be?
the rabble of the lord, could it be they’re descending?
delicate fixtures and load bearing sides
miles of thorns passing under my feet
bones made of glass that have shattered inside
we travel on ‘til we suffer defeat
one has a vision he shares with the next
everyone sleeps in the frailty of night
falling like thunder it fractured our tent
pierced by his blade, feel it writhing inside
do you see the lights in the trees
can you hear the humming of bees
is gideon seen again on his knees
hearing those voices again on the breeze
haven’t you heard that this is our last stand
what is it that he holds there in his hand
though we have numbers like oceans of sand
the lights in the trees spill our blood on the land
this picture I painted of how it would end
shows a thickly wrought cord wrapped around our frail necks
and the children of Judah are holding it fast
it all makes sense at last
oh isn’t life great
oh isn’t life terrible and great
now look to the grave
we’ve given to death what we wanted to save
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10. |
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six months in and I’m starting to fade
you told me you’d find me a beautiful day
and I followed blindly just as I was told
but never knew beauty so quickly grew old
and it’s hard to be so far away from you
and it’s hard for me to walk the way that you do
the stars are less frequently giving off light
the moon does its best to stay hidden from night
the people packed tighter, they’re closing in fast
and I suddenly feel like I’m doomed to collapse
walking streets with blinders on
I cast a glance but quickly turn
I’d rather sing a different song
to keep myself from getting hurt
I’m longing for beaches and mountains so high
I’m longing for sundays and crystal clear skies
I’m longing for family and friends and a home
I’m longing for moments of being alone
but it’s hard to be so far away from you
and it’s hard for me to walk the way that you do
I’m longing for something familiar to hold
I’m longing for silver and longing for gold
I’m longing for things that I feel I’ve lost
but longing is paying a terrible cost
here is where trumpets and voices resound
here is where foolish men run to their homes
here is where idols lay smashed on the ground
here is where flesh wraps itself around bones
here is where 300 tastes like 10,000
here is where 300 swords find their mark
here is the sound of the thundering heavens and
here the clouds open with force in the dark
now that it’s over I’m walking back home
the streetlights are brighter the burden is light
the way feels shorter, I walk not alone
I hear only traffic far off in the night
here is the future but here is the past
I need to hold on to this tight with both hands
here is the feeling I need to make last
here is where home is, I’ll stay in this land
the magnitude, the scope of this
the power here, there’s hope in this
and midian is left to rot
it’s probably good that we trusted God
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