1. |
Path Nine
03:52
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Even when you crawl out of bed but cannot see what's out there
Even if you call your own name but don't know what it means
Even if you stand tall but feel nothing above you
Even if you try but do not feel yourself trying
Like any day, it's half-baked, but so what
Do not write it off for having walked through it
Pulse lifts, lifts you, you say
You say, do what you can
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2. |
Running
06:01
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Simple enough to wave out to
The light and the shade
Calls me back to what I think
I see far ahead by the dark lake
No one appears, I’m walking on air through
Trees past the fields, and hills dry and bare
Nothing fades, and no one stares
Speed cast me out, the power of thinking about
The rolling life, or staying in place, holding out
And lessons will bar each way to begin it again
The leaving and feeling opinions dissolve in the rain
And holding up a banner
For all the birds to see
I declare no nation
If we can all breathe
My lungs open up, I hold all
The distance within my chest
And no one decides what to give back
I run with the wind
And falling away, the hiding place gives it up
A faction resists and asks what is not enough
Stand still, but not in the same place twice
You’ll let it all out, the reasons, desires, and times
To draw them back in
To walk in daylight
To see it go by
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3. |
Farce
03:11
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Mist and pale green scene unveils
The washed-up weekend catch
Gets a half-good plan
But has to throw the whole thing back
When the pond dries up he turns into a sadsack
Hops the bus going the wrong way
Rides backwards around the town
Overhears an empty song full of empty words
Something about, quote, "strangers in this town"
And he feels stranger every time he goes out
Puts all his petty opinions
Into an endless letter
People say they love The Rings of Saturn
But Austerlitz is actually better
When he thinks about it, he won't remember
Mist and pale blue eyes align
The misadventure of your life
You could be someone you can't explain
Turn over another old refrain
Could it be something you have to rearrange
Could it be something you don't know to say
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4. |
Eight Fifteen
03:47
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Wait to cross the shifting range
So I get home by eight fifteen
If I could remember
What I went out walking for
To keep up some new routine
Or to become more tender
Sprint across the busy street
Tracing the path it takes
Over the horizon
Who knows what you're going to do
This evening or any other
Don't have to remind them
If I'm halfway by seven
And stare out with a new question
Can I get an answer
If I return on time
Could I imagine a reply
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5. |
Summer Shadow
07:56
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We were crossing Spring St
On a summer afternoon
We'd half-finished high school
I'd spent every day with you
Then a breeze rose up from the ground
I saw you soar above the trees
I blinked and I looked up again
And you had flown away from me
Everyone told me you'd come back
Our friends said they'd seen you
I followed them around town
In hopes I'd catch a glimpse of you
I found a postcard in the yard
I couldn't read a word
But I recognized the way you wrote
If I listed every sighting
If I made a map
If I stood in every spot and sang
Would you come back
I had a dream later on (so you said)
I was walking home by myself (like you do some nights)
Passed your house as the night rolled in (you used to finish)
Four lights softer than anything else (so many of my thoughts)
Stood outside for a while (I can see)
Heard a voice and opened the door (you've been waiting)
A whole crowd was eating cake (I hope you know)
Blue balloons covered the floor (how much you mean)
Everybody gathered around (I'll tell you when)
Your family and all our friends (I come back)
It was your birthday (thank you for remembering)
And I could sit beside you again
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6. |
Seahorse
05:02
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Have you ever lost yourself
Trying to get somewhere, trying to get somewhere
Have you ever found yourself
And were lost somewhere, and were lost somewhere
Cold blood leaves you frozen still
You're afraid of the night, I'm afraid of the night
Let your breath go slow until
You don't plead to the eyes that you see in the night
Stay close, don't go, don't go
Sing one note, one note, one note
At a time
I wish I'd find the warmest stream
And build a shield from the rising steam
Find a horse and ride to sea
Join the seahorse creed, find the sea knight in me
Tide guide us, so slow, so slow
Sing one note, one note, one note
Then let it go
Have you ever lost yourself
Trying to get somewhere, trying to get somewhere
Have you ever found yourself
And were lost somewhere, in the absent air
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7. |
Relief
05:43
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A shower of wisteria
Cupped by the crescent moon
A barbecue in the distance
Tells me summer's coming
Let me reopen
An image no screen could contain
Screen door open to day's end
A night that won't catch me running
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8. |
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When sky surrounds you as you wake up
Pieces slide out of place
Half an hour won't be enough
To count everything that remains
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Distant Reader recommends:
Infinite Futures
by Full Spectrum Records
The real life rock 'n' roll of the future.
go to album
Hands in Our Names
by Karima Walker
One of the most fascinating works of music about the American West I've ever heard.
go to album
Fundamentals of Orchid Biology
by David Tagg
Irreducible chiaroscuro beauty.
go to albumIf you like Distant Reader, you may also like:
Making self-described “immersive music,” Brazil’s cøelho constructs hypnotic songs from rippling electronic sounds.
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Portland shoegaze that plays, as the best representatives of the genre do, with huge, hollow atmosphere against intimate observations.
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Influenced by music of the Pacific Northwest, drowse riffs on detachment, memory and the relationship to "self."
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