This Way Out (2007)
| story - credits - lyrics |
|
THE STORY:
Finishing This Way Out felt like the last mile of a marathon, I would imagine, having never run one. But when we were done there was certainly both that exhaustion and triumph of having accomplished a lifetime goal. It was perfect for us to tour with and it's given us a lot of mileage. This was the beginning of our momentum. Since its release things have only moved faster for us. We took the fall break of our senior year at Oberlin and invaded the TIMARA studios a second time, stealing whatever hours we could from the students that actually had a legitimate right to be in there. After that we turned to our closets in Oberlin, Chicago, and Pittsburgh - playing our hearts out into microphones placed delicately in front of sweaters and towels. It was those times that really made me wish I was the drummer. It really is a testament to our dedication that the band could get completely burnt out finishing this album and then recharge by going on tour immediately afterward. This Way Out coud have been our swan song - a record of our college years in songs and methods - but it instead became a jumping off point. The January 2007 tour for This Way Out was where we first started coming into our own, and came to realize that this band could be for real. CREDITS: -Mixing by Josh Lava -Production and Engineering by Cobalt -Album Art by Garrett Miller -Mixing on tracks 15 & 16 by Leif Shakelford -Keys on “Be Deep” by Josh lava -Tracks 1, 3, 6, 9, 10, 12, 15, 16 written by m. hart -Tracks 2, 4, 7, 8, 11, 13, 14 written by t.fort -Track 5 written by m. roth LYRICS: Just Found Out it's like you just found out that life is cash and you aint got none the world's gone crazy convinced that you're the crazy one from outside looking in it makes you wanna wreck it and you just found out that life is cash and you aint got none i trusted you like a daughter trusts her father thought you'd recognize the slaughter and whisk it all away i thought for sure that the hypocrites would cower when the people had the power but not today go on and lay me down go on and lay me down go on and lay me down, down, down with all the things i left behind i was a man of faith last night that we're always moving closer to the good and the right but you slammed that door so hard that i can taste the splinters thought i was a man of faith last night it's like you just found out it's like you just found out it's like you just found out it's like you just found out and you aint got none The Edge you’re the girl i’ve tried so hard to get off my head sex hangs off an awkward shell dull flame hangs in your eyes red hair i know it’s dyed amplified electric buzz sets off siren in my head lash me to my ship now hold the course if i’d led a different life if i’d settled on door three then it might have been more than simply vain fantasy here’s another one of my silly love songs played on a promiscuous guitar felt the longing heard the calling turned my back i’m not sorry but i’m sorry how do i explain it’s so hard i’m creeping closer to falling off the edge heard the verdict posted armed and dangerous intentions have become circumspect i’m lyin’ here tryin’ real hard not to touch your breast lying next to you restless in bed afraid the wrong move is around the next bend wanting you close watching myself trusting us both to hold back from the edge Your Own he couldn't figure out quite who he was but he knew that he could never be the same again. searched for answers but all he found was "just because" and a scowl every now and then so now he's reaching and now he's preaching like a soldier bleaching the blood off of his hands and now he's hiding but still confiding in me and all those plans we had all that time that i thought i knew you you were really a million miles away all that time wish i could've had the wisdom to say you are your own best thing they were always together tomorrow couldn't be a moment too soon she followed him like a sunflower chasing the moon but now she’s crying at just the notion of being away from him these next few years she’s got to cross that bridge someday all those tides of loneliness and those waves of fears. it's too bad that my love of life wasn't quite enough to rub off on her and it’s a shame that a razor blade was all she could find to escape the blur god knows there was never quite enough for me to say when i knew more than her voice was on the line that night. i wonder if i had these simple magic words could i have made every thing all right? Rome As you sit solemn faced, sonnets scrawled in your book and you’re Determined to keep chaste, as me and the boys call you out in the street You’re heartbroken and hard-nosed with your brim pulled low so your eyes won’t show And you’re stuck ‘cause you believe that she’s the woman of your dreams (well) I’ve got news... yeah I’ve got news she’s far from the best, you could do... Through all your Rosalyns and your Tybalts, built for you like bookends After your star crossed loves, I’ll be your brother You’ll be my Romeo And I’ll drag you out to the bars and I’ll carry your leaden heart If boys step across that line don’t flinch a bit you know you’re back is mine So let your words seek my ear and stain my collar with your tears ‘Cause when I’m low and at my worst I’ll look to you to see our roles reversed (well…) Run Me Down we were out wastin time until a quarter past three work on time tomorrow's got no guarantee if your big bad bossman if he only knew he might just give me a wink and leave me black and blue mama always warned me 'bout someone like you that carefree dance and smile baby, i can see right through yes that carefree dance and smile baby, i can see right through you know how time tends to fly in this tiny, tiny town so i know it wouldn't be long before i saw you 'round i saw you walkin you wouldnt look my way now ten feet gone before i got a chance to say mama always told me don't be nobody's clown so if you keep on runnin me you're gonna run me down if you keep on runnin me you're gonna run me down Road Song aint much left to pack but a halo and a knife one’s to keep you honest but you never see it coming when it's on the other side of the door and there aint nothing wrong with there aint nothing wrong with there aint nothing wrong with the road tonight it's 2 am and i can hear your engine roar and the tires taste the pavement like they have a thousand times before the night splatters on the windshield – you aint got time for, time for regrets but it matters what you’ve revealed, and now you’ll try to, try to forget but this is not the way i wanted us to play and now the goodtime’s gone stolen by the dawn my love there’s no one left to leave, there’s nothing left to grieve they took it all away, a little every day i’ve got this swollen sense of self suspicion and i really should listen, but I wouldn’t dare but i know what its like to be in your position your trust was oxygen and i forgot it was there War Cries & Bird Calls open the lockers just once again open your hearts and see where they've been open the books about history crooks see which is you, see what he do open the door that goes down the hall go with your fiends or don't go at all what's to be good, what's to be bad this stuff is better than we've ever had teenage angst fills the halls resounding war cries and bird calls i hear them all on my way i'll come back to get you someday fly down the halls on your wings faster than light can them brings if love be rough with you then i say to you be rough with love I once knew a boy who lived out his life among those he loved - though unrequite and this poor boy, vainly did he love one very sad day he took his own life don't be like the boy, in needs screw them all one of these days they'll pay for their faults put on your armor and second-hand clothes back to the fray - i'll stand by you close Once knew a girl, captured my heart and to this day all love impart she uses me like a dog on a leash wait til she she sees what she could not believe faster now fast for one and for all i've got your back, don't falter don't fall once knew a city, lived on a lake enchanted by dreams it's there that i wake mystical place with mystical beings i see you all float without strings Just Louise Louise drew a draft and tapped a keg Wore a wedding ring but showed a lot of leg Left lonely, by a husband, behind bars Now cross the counter sat Rocky with his crew In army dress sporting spit shined shoes He eyed Louise and he turned on the charm She left numbers on his napkin and lipstick on his collar she loved him hard april through july till he packed his duffel left without goodbye and on her 21st, she bore him a son left all alone she was just Louise Now her John would be getting’ out real soon And the baby wasn’t loved and she felt used So she put him up for auction, with a prayer Then 35 years passed by like a train With flashing lights and rattles on the rails Parade without distinction or fanfare She watched her life drift past her like she wasn’t even there so like Moses you released me to the rushes and the water and I was taken by another, a father and a mother now I never felt I lost you, ‘till after they were taken so I set off to find you, with nothing but a name just Louise In the hills nestled in the sticks I found you as you turned 56 I searched for likeness, in your eyes and lines And I wish that I could say I saw it all But you were less a mirror, more of a wall And when I left no tears came to my eyes Not happy, not sad, not satisfied louise you were no mother, no you never were to me and though I love that I found you, I can’t love what I see ‘cause I got no happy end, no gold or four leafed clover and though you were no mother, I know my search is over, Louise Louise to me, you are just Louise but thank you for setting me free Louise to me, you are just Louise though it must have left a scar to see me leave Think You Should May and June are gone, and August is comin’ And I have yet to find my summer lovin’ I cast you for the part – you cast me away Up until this point we’ve focused on what’s fun So I know the kinds of things that you would really love And for a while I thought maybe one of them was me And I have been known to let my romantic keep reality at bay But this time my head agrees – don’t you let her get away (I just want you to) See me, the way I see you Smile the way that I know you would Hold me, the way I long to hold you I know I’m kind of biased, but hey, I really think you should And I know that things with you could be much simpler than they are Former love is a commander that leaves no one in charge Amid the chaos and confusion, how could you consider me? And I know the me you’ve known was kind of a mess But I’m mostly put together now – just a few loose threads Wondering what we could weave if we just closed our eyes And I’m sorry for these plans that I made without permission And I’m sorry for the way that you must act with me now But I had to stop calculating, contemplating what you would say (if I said) California I think I need a change of scenery All this shit just looks the same Could write a song about California But I’d still be stuck here in Maine And this pain wraps around me like a noose So this rage aint got nothing left to lose I don’t belong to you Not how you meant me to There’s something you should know Love melts just like the snow And you can play those awkward games I watched you play a hundred times And jury all my crimes against your heart Cuz you’re convinced I’m someone new A bleaker boy, a bit confused But I’m the man you knew right from the start and the snow blocks all the windows And the snow blocks all the doors And the drifts are creeping closer Like the tide against my shores For this time I’ll set myself alone And I find that I can make this prison home. The Hunter & the Thief oh the hunter and the thief are one in the same, now and i hate him cuz he beats me at playing my game cuz i play catch and release and he plays for keeps, now and his notion of you is in captivity and you fell for him like a hungry dove and now you believe this is really what you want but the sun will rise and you'll roll out of bed and you won't find me with a hanging head oh i'd love to see you free but you love to be deceived, now cuz you're wild like the sea and a mare looking to breed oh you hunter and you thief how you haunt me in my sleep like a specter of my fate had i gone a different way, now Intertwined The night outside, it smells like brand new wishes But in here, it’s bitter apples and hard lemonade. I hold your hair back as you recall the night’s events, Then you start to question all of the love that we’ve made. I know that things have been just a little bit confusing lately But a bathroom stall is just no good place for a long discussion ‘bout Who is in and out of love. All I know is nothing but you's been on my mind and lately, your bed has become mine Like a pair of roses, singing on the vine, intertwined. You know I’d never complain about your head resting in my lap But the tile’s getting colder with every breath that you breathe. Yet, somehow you're gorgeous under florescent lights- Awake or no you give me so much to believe. Tonight you are my goddess, I’m just looking for a shrine There’s something ‘bout you makes me want to make your life a paradise And as I help you stumble up the stairs to your room The hallway smells like incense and beer. And in the moments just before you fall asleep, You ask me what I’m still doing here. “What are you still doing here?” So as you sleep I’ll empty the garbage And I’ll take care to wipe off your best friend’s high heels. It’s kind of funny, its been such a long night, But I want you so much, and that is all I can feel. So just sleep baby, sleep. Rest your tired eyes Sleep baby, sleep. I’ll sing you a lullaby. Be Deep Fall Apart if this were an emo song this’d probably be the part where I absolutely fall apart i got over you a year ago and i’m movin’ on but i’m movin’ slow i’m not sorry i’ve got no regrets my eyes drip like broken faucets keep me up and keep my pillow wet, haunted by thoughts that i can’t forget kept your letters and i kept your stuff you said it’s over but i’m callin’ your bluff (lay your hands in mine) if this were an emo song this’d probably be the part where I absolutely fall apart and the strings come in and the trumpets too and we all bask in the gathering gloom (if you’da listened you’d’ve heard) now take a deep breath kid take the stage give misery to fans against the cage (they’ll hang on every word) grab your glimpse of a boy choked up with his woman gone and copious bad luck (it’s more than you deserve) but i’m no tenor with my pants too tight thick black glasses and skinny thighs i don’t need your sympathy so back off y’all don’t try to comfort me i’m keepin’ pace with a field of stars I been chasin’ dawn in my fast car sparse tears come i could not predict against my will the derelict but i’ve got my rock yes i’ve been marooned on this island here for many moons with a steely will see my jaw defined, i’ll clench my teeth and a turn a blind eye i’m waging war on the way i feel i’ve put my shoulder to the wheel i’m trying to go quietly sneaking slowly from the field The Ride I haven't felt this way for such a long time At this point, in this room, there are more stairs to climb. These feelings like echoes, but each with a new pulse Like the one I feel beat beside me. Fortune best not deny me. Why do I feel guilty, now that you're finally mine? And why do I feel guilty to let my heart out on the line? Again… Can't let myself get too busy not getting hurt. Reckless abandon tugs like a hungry child at my shirt. Not easy to ignore all those tears that I cried, But it's not 'Here we go again,' it's 'Let's enjoy the ride.' So why am I so afraid, now that you're finally mine? And why am I so afraid to let my heart out on the line? Again… Again… Maybe all I need to know and all I need to understand Is that you're lying next to me, and your heart is in my hands. I whisper a sweet melody into your slumbering ear. A warm and timeless lullaby just to remind you that I'm here. Oh for that music in my soul that plays whenever you're around. It's just you and it's just me, and the rest just fades into the background. Your warm breath on my skin, your sweet lips tasting mine. Just a little longer please, we're running out of time. So why am I so lucky, now that you're finally mine? And why am I so lucky to put my heart out on the line? To you… To you… And there is nowhere that I would rather be Than right here with you sleeping right next to me. And as I ponder this sweet dream of you I realize there is no one that I would rather sing to. Shades i walk in and the whole house reeks you’ve been painting your room again but while one coat is drying new colors invade and now you’re frantically trying just to match all the shades when i ask you what it is that you seek your reply is in colors and numbers and men but i say they're just little boys being taught what to do they're just playing with their toys and the last one was you and the room is a nightmare, and the furniture's stained but i can still make out on the doorframe the pencil marks that we made so if your next coat covers those timelines of height and age baby please understand you better break out the turpentine and get that shit off your hands so now you step back you take a look and it's like a mosaic and each piece is a pain and it all looks so familiar to me because i was there every time that it rained so don't get caught up in all that shakespearian drama so much ado about nothing comedic at best cuz i have been here forever and i've shown you you're better so just take it as you like it and get rid of the rest and remember it's simple things that that keep us alive and those even simpler that bring bright color to the walls to the walls of the rooms that we lock ourselves in in hopes to survive every breath until death as eternity calls |