1. |
Red Field
04:43
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In the red field where I slumbered, under an ocean of skies
I saw the ghosts of my memories through a thick fog of goodbyes
Each in symbolic disguise
I followed them into the woods, where all the young ravers corralled
To marry their hands with the branches coming alive with the crowd
And the silence was never so loud
But I had nearly broken the ghost in the machine
I had to walk through darkness to see what I have seen
I followed the ghosts to their homes and drank all the spirits in sight
Painted our histories with smoke and strokes of a blue, lunar light
Ghost ships that pass in the night
And though the ghosts had spoken, I did not know their names
I had to walk untethered to be who I became
Now I know we're the same
We're only too close to see we're the same
So I'm calling the ghosts by their names
On a dark beach with the ravers, under a rorschach of clouds
All of us seeking our saviours in the solace of each other's mouths
Skeletal creatures of neon, rippling the ink up above
In the red field where I slumbered, every spectre was loved
But none were respected enough
For I was all emotion and I was all aflame
I had to walk through fire to be who I became
Now I know we're the same
We're only too close to see we're the same
And I'm one with the ghosts
You'll see we're the same
We're only too close to see we're the same
So I'm calling the ghosts by their names
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2. |
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Just another ordinary day in the ordinary sun
Lit by ordinary solar rays, beaming down on everyone
In which ordinary plans are laid and extraordinary demands are made
If an ordinary answer is here to find
The questions must first cross the ordinary mind
Are you uncomfortable here?
Sense isn't common and the common sense is fear
Appearances are not as they appear
Just another temporary way to appear to have a voice
That lends permanence to things you say
And gives decision back to choice
But the truth is, truth is borne away
'Til all the guilty parties' bones decay
If an ordinary answer is here to find
It may not make an appearance for some time
Now that the revolution's here
Our revolutionaries crawl into their holes
And peacefully surrender the controls
Our declarations seem sincere when they're declared
You keep up appearances, but I know that you're scared
The affections that are thrown away
For all the games that we've been known to play
If an ordinary answer is here to find
It is there among the days we've left behind
Now that the barriers are clear
What once was just obscured completely disappears
And the lies we tell ourselves fall on deaf ears
Painted horizons are the dawning of the real
You keep up appearances, but I know how you feel
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3. |
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So you're a performer, you ought to come here
Develop your pop persona, you could be top billing at the premiere
You want to be honored and to be revered
You gotta be always on, you gotta perform when you look in the mirror
Blow out of the water everybody near you
Hit everything harder, be on your guard, you gotta put up a veneer
Don't give any quarter if you want a career
Play hard on the martyr card
And we'll let the world know you're who they should hear
We could be having, having a real good time...
Singing in the circus
America's daughter, she's spinning the wheel
America's audience is into it 'til the pinata's innards are revealed
You want to be honored, so honor the deal
Jump into the lion's jaws and be the main course in America's meal
The image is all that determines appeal here
Don't ever depart from the subtle art of lowering the bar 'til it disappears
And we're all your idols, we are all the ideal
But we're only important for as long as you've got the need to survey the surreal
We could be having, having a real good time...
Singing in the circus
Welcome to the circus, get down on your knees
And worship the worthless, every purchase guaranteed to please
These animal urges, the high flying trapeze
Certainly superb on the surface, but search for a purpose
And find only hidden fees
And now if you're nervous, and if you're uneasy
You can be assured your concerns have been heard
But it's part of the masterpiece
That there be some aversion, that anxieties increase
With no sense of emergency or of controversy, our little circus would cease
We could be having, having a real good time...
Singing in the circus
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4. |
Inside Out
05:19
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Closing the door; swear I'm still here, son
Never sleeping, up with your voice
The end of the world in all of your tears, son
Always turning, turning our world inside out
Roll on the floor, crawl on your knees, son
Never blinking, eyes on our charge
And we're at our throats, your mother and me, son
Always turning, turning our world inside out
Learning to love and listen to reason
Never knowing which way is up
And you are the sun for every season
Always turning, turning our world inside...
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5. |
Earnest
01:52
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6. |
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When the visionaries ban the visionaries
Who are we to wonder when we wouldn't wonder well?
I never want to lose sight...
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7. |
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Go see a life, see a life bloated up much larger
With your appetite, your appetite tied to your belief
And your voyeur's eyes see black and white, blind to any color
We've fallen for your climb, you were gone before your time
And everybody thinks they get the picture
Front row for the fight, and from every seat in sight
Everybody thinks that they have it right
You feed the fires, feed the fires and find you are the forest
You advertise, advertise and find yourself for sale
You learn your lines, learn your lines and now you're speaking for us
We're all for your decline, in the court of our design
Everybody thinks they get the picture
Front row for the fight, and from every seat in sight
Everybody thinks that they have the right
And I don't know where to begin
And I don't know where to begin, I'm seeing noise again...
We're all for your decline, in the court of our design
Everybody thinks they get the picture
Front row for the fight, and from every seat in sight
Everybody thinks they get the picture...
Everybody thinks that they have the right
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8. |
Shifted Adrift
05:21
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Sailing through fog off a foreign coast, saying a prayer to the holy ghost
The captain is acting a fool, he's obviously worried the most
The crew are all losing their cool, when the course was as straight
Course was as straight, course was as straight as a ruler
Plotting a long overdue divorce, we're both climbing into our trojan horse
But under pretense of a truce we've no true intent to endorse
We're only prolonging this duel, when the course was as straight
Course was as straight, course was as straight as a ruler
Of all the potential pursuits, we're pulled toward our personal wars
And shifted adrift from the school, when the course was as straight
Course was as straight, course was as straight as a ruler
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9. |
Astray
04:11
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Here I am in trouble again, taking it apart, backsliding
Falling into the same routine, coming unglued and recovering
After the aftermath, I will face the facts
And then after that, I won't ever look back
Put the past in the past and get over the overpowering pull to go astray again
I can't do this on my own, sounding the alarm, going back home
Inevitably I will deviate, but I can't say when the bomb will detonate
After the aftermath, I will face the facts
And then after that, I won't ever look back
Put the past in the past and get over the overpowering pull to go astray again
Cause I know, sir, yeah I know, sir, that a reckoning's coming closer
And I want to be on the side of it that paints me in the best light
So the next time you know that I won't ever go astray again
Here I am in trouble again, waking to the realization
That I'm back where I said I would never be
And I've taken everybody I know with me
But after the aftermath, I will face the facts
And then after that, I won't ever look back
Put the past in the past and get over the overpowering pull to go astray again
Cause I know, sir, yeah I know, sir, that a reckoning's coming closer
And I want to be on the side of it that paints me in the best light
So the next time you know that I won't ever go astray again
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10. |
Glass House Wilderness
08:13
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11. |
Fearlessly
06:14
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I often wonder who you will be; will you be more like her or more like me?
And I often hope that you'll be an oddity, someone the world can't classify easily
And I hope you hold your head up triumphantly
I hope you open up to failure, fearlessly
I hope you see everyone instead of what everyone sees
And I want you to know that whoever you turn out to be
You'll always be my baby
I often wonder how I am to explain all of the ignorance you'll have to face
And I often hope that this time the times do change
But if you're up against the same old things
Then I hope you question everything that you're told
I hope before you purchase, you take stock of what you're being sold
I hope you show your substance by never letting it be controlled
And I want you to know that no matter how your life unfolds
You'll never, ever be alone
And everything you need is everything you've got
Don't ever believe that you're anything you're not
I want you to be free, I want you to go far
But most of all, to be exactly who you are
I hope your deepest wishes all will come true
I hope you have a vision, but know it's not a universal view
I hope you see difference as only in sight for seeing through
And I want you to know that no matter what you say or do
I couldn't be more proud of you
And I want you to know that
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Reticent Alien Greenville, South Carolina
Reticent Alien is the recording project of indie folk rock singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Justin Wiles, whose music combines melodic, psychedelic guitars and the influence of experimental Americana and noise rock. His music has been compared to Elliott Smith, Bon Iver, Paul Simon, Iron & Wine, and The Shins. ... more
Reticent Alien recommends:
Brilliant record that puts me in the perfect headspace; every repeat listen just amplifies my admiration. Well worth the wait!
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Frenetic 70's-tinged guitars with a modern indie edge, catchy as fuck melodies, snarky as fuck lyrics. When they get in a groove like at the end of Pepsi Cola Addict, I wish it would go on and on.
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