At Least a Nine or Eight (feat. Shana Crow & Johnny Timberlake)

How many times have you just scratched your head and said "Let me get this straight" - I also released the acoustic and violin unplugged version for you to enjoy. 

Let Me Get This Straight 

Why does so much 
Not make sense? 
Why do so many 
Blindly defend?
Why do questions 
Get pressured to end?
Where are the reasons 
Things don’t mend?

Two opposing sides 
Are adamant they’re right 
At the same time 
The left is right 
The right is wrong 
Somehow in some way
Both sides are evil 
Singing the same song
(Curiosity dead)

Let me get this straight 
(Get this straight) 
Pinch me harder 
Am I awake?
In a Twilight Zone way
War is always the solution 
Did all our global leaders 
Flunk conflict resolution?
(Nah man!)

Let me get this straight 
‘Cause I wanna know 
What I’m missing 
Why progress is slow 
Why joining dots offends 
Their delicate show 
And how serving
Smells more like power tripping

So we are divine 
While biologically defined
Then a godless agenda 
Trapped with pronoun genders
Ask ‘em all, who we really are 
They act like rock stars 
Yet avoid the question 
Sell a bunch of um’s and r’s

Let me get this straight 
(Let me get this straight) 
Pinch me harder 
Am I awake?
Life is precious 
Is what they say
But when it starts 
They can’t name the day?

Let me get this straight 
‘Cause I wanna know 
What I’m missing 
Why progress is slow 
Why joining dots offends 
Their delicate show 
And how serving
Looks more like controlling

(Ooooooh!)
‘Cause I wanna know 
What I’m missing 
Why progress is slow 
Why joining dots offends 
Their delicate show 
And how serving
Looks more like controlling

I put a lot of things 
That sense don’t make 
On a ‘what the fuck’ shelf 
But the shelving breaks
Collapsing under the weight
Of my denial 
Of all the charades 
I could not get straight

Let me get this straight 
(Let me get this straight) 
Now this does take the cake! 
Decades of failed predictions
From the many gate keepers
Who disagree on causes
Of climate disasters

Let me get this straight 
‘Cause I wanna know 
What I’m missing 
Why progress is slow 
Why joining dots offends 
Their delicate show 
And how serving
Feels more like manipulating
Feels more like manipulating
Feels more like manipulating

As we do our research 
They mock that we try 
Insist we follow experts 
That are almighty wise 
And when they’re not 
And their advice harms 
They gaslight 
Flee out of sight 
Into the dark of night

Let me get this straight 
(Let me get this straight) 
The endless penny pinching 
Shocked me awake
They insist on blind trust for them
And distrust for us 
But we’re smart enough
To candidate elect? (Nah!)

Let me get this straight 
‘Cause I wanna know 
What I’m missing 
Why progress is slow 
Why joining dots offends 
Their delicate show 
And how serving
Smells more like power tripping 
Looks more like controlling 
Feels more like manipulating 
That’s so crooked, hey?!


Let Me Get This Straight

A mix of old-fashioned psychedelic rock with hip hop elements.
I hope you like this new track I made!

Lyrics © Señor Barends

I said too much, and I’m lost in the row 
Hands on my face, I don’t care who will know 
Pressure keeps rising, it’s starting to show 
Time slips away, but it still moves slow

A fracture, faster than a voice aloud
A script stripped silent, machinery bowed 
A sparkless heat, no flame to allow 
Time erased, displaced, replaced, here and now

Fingers slipping, wires shake 
Every signal starts to break 
Falling forward, blind and fast 
This is a moment built to last

Fields ripple, emitting their rays
Hands faceless, traceless, sweep all away 
Curves reverse where straight lines lay 
Spirals spiral, doors decay

Through spirals, trials of turning, burning 
Equations breaking, taking, yearning 
Measures bending, ending unseen 
Dance collapsing, grasping the screen

Signals scatter, shatter, obey 
Clouds fracture, capture, drift astray 
Orbits weighted, fated to ground 
Noise remaining, draining sound

Cut the cord and let it fall 
No escape, I take it all 
Through the pressure, through the fire 
Feed the machine my desire

Lights dividing, hiding streams  
Patterns breaking, faking schemes  
Hands of motion, skin they rend  
Pulse resetting, bending to end  

Gears lock tight, the edges grind  
No escape from the intertwined
Tension rising, nothing spared  
One more breath and the core is bared

Break the signal, tear the chain  
Scream the code into the rain  
Every cycle torn apart  
Hammer beats a burning heart

Every step suspended, defended in glass  
Every breath arrested, contested, will pass  
Not here, not then  
Only stillness again  
Where light cannot last, where time cannot cast

Not here, not then

This is a cover of a remix of my rock song, made by Christian Bussey. Dark psychedelic soul and Afro-tribal electronica with the weight of progressive blues. Original rock version: https://soundcloud.com/senior-barends/the-abyss-rock

The Abyss (Remix)

A new track, hip hop reggae fusion. I hope you like it!

Regardless

A new track I made. Cinematic indie-rock with hip-hop pacing and acoustic intimacy. I hope you like it!

Lyrics © Señor Barends

They're whispering promises, smooth as silk, 
With an architect's plan, clean and straight. 
“Oh, all will be well,” they say, 
Just follow the line, just trust, just wait. 
Each word a shelter, soft and round, 
Each one a stone they laid in the ground.

And she walked it, so certain, eyes on the goal, 
Didn’t feel the ground start to shake below her sole. 
Didn’t hear the quiet crack underfoot, 
Belief too strong, the sound too good.

She can’t tell you the moment the doubt first began, 
It never shouted, no, it just stayed low. 
A small, hard truth she can’t disguise, 
The only thing she truly seems to know. 
She keeps walking the line, not for belief, 
But 'cause turning around’s a price she can’t pay. 
Losing too much, losing too much to walk away.
Too deep in, too deep in to walk away!

The wall was filled with hope and denial, 
No thought nor time could break it down. 
No reason, no logic, no subtle trial, 
Only pain, sharp, sudden, through the crown. 
It didn’t ask her permission, 
Didn’t care for comfort or ease, 
Just took hold, a cold-fingered conviction, 
And brought her crashing down to her knees.

In its grip, the lesson arrives, 
What we don’t wanna know still survives. 
It waits for us anyway, it bides its turn, 
The truth ain’t gentle, it just makes you learn. 
The pain that cuts is the door itself, 
And it opens when there’s nothing left.

She walked her path, eyes ahead, 
Didn’t feel the tremor beneath her tread. 
Didn’t hear the faith begin to fade, 
Didn’t see belief start to decade

She can’t tell you the moment the doubt first began, 
It never shouted, no, it just stayed low. 
A small, hard truth she can’t disguise, 
It’s the only thing she truly seems to know. 
She keeps walking the line, not for belief, 
But ‘cause turning around means losing the day. 
Losing too much, losing too much to walk away.

She’s too deep in,  
Too far gone,  
Too much spent to turn around.  
Every mile behind her sighs,  
Every word still weighs her down.  
It’s not belief that keeps her moving,
It’s what she’s already paid.  
Too much to lose,  
Too much to lose,  
To walk away.

Too Much To Lose

A reworked version of my song Nobody's Fool No More.

Lyrics © Señor Barends

Ooh, ooh  
Ooh, ooh  
Yeah… ooh  

I’ve been the quiet storm, the calm in the riot,  
Patience got limits, don’t try it.  
You mistook my kindness for blindness,  
When I needed you most, it stayed quiet.  

No titles, no chains, I’m free and fluent,  
You talk change, never walk through it.  
My feet firm, my voice loud,  
This ain’t your stage, it’s my crowd.  

Not gonna take it no more, no, no,  
I’m nobody’s fool, don’t you know?  
No more walking all over me,  
I’m gonna be deaf to your pleas.  

They want a nod, not a backbone,  
But I’ve been carrying stones to build my own home.  
Every “no” that I said got echoed wrong,  
Till I turned that silence into a song.  

Now they circle when they smell control,  
But I cut that cord, let go of the hold.  
Slow burn, still whole, I grow,  
Roots in rhythm, seeds I sow.  

Talk less, move smart, don’t show,  
Let the groove breathe, let it flow.  
Built on breaks that the world won’t know,  
Strength ain’t loud, it’s what you owe.  

Not gonna take it no more, no more,  
Nobody’s fool no more!  
We’ve been there before,  
I’m not gonna take it no more, no more!  

Step back, I’m centered, focused, ready,  
Weight on my chest but my stance is steady.  
You fed off fear, I fasted truth,  
Now my words cut clean, uncouth.  

This rhythm don’t beg, it claims.  
Same old trick, brand new names.  
But I got groove in my bloodline,  
No name, no rank, still I shine.  

Ooh, ooh...  
Ooh, ooh...  
No more, no more...  

Try me once, lesson learned.  
Try me twice, tables turned.  
This ain’t rage, this is control...  
Still on fire, but it’s a slow burn.  

Your version of love had claws and teeth,  
But mine got roots, runs deep beneath.  
Now I move with grace and grit combined,  
Power ain’t loud, it’s well-defined.  

Not gonna take it, no, no more!  
Not gonna fake it, no, no more!  
I said no, no, no more!  
Not gonna take it, no, no more!  

Ooh, ooh...  
Ooh, ooh...  
Not gonna take it no more, no, no...

No More

The best news ever, but why it is so hard to receive - eh?

Divine Lyrics 

Let me flex 
My lyrical skill 
Weave in words 
That flow and thrill 
On a higher trip 
Where hearts do fill 
With rhyme ’n rhythm
So you can’t stay still  

But will I rant 
About something deep?
Where ‘aha’ moments  
Wake the dead from sleep 
It ain’t easy to do 
So maybe I won’t 
I’d rather play
Than rattle bones 

Yet I still say it 
To spray it far and wide 
Influence the masses 
Who lie and hide 
But why do I bother? 
You want me to tell?
One more shot to help
Buy what I sell 

It’s the worst kept secret 
This divinity thing 
We search all over 
But rarely within 
It’s the worst kept secret
This endless you 
Fully loaded   
To fill big shoes    
The more you go in 
The more you’ll find 
Like I told you 
You’re indeed divine 
(Indeed divine) 
Indeed divine 

You’re too tired?
Too old, too young?
Swing the excuses 
Claim you’re dumb  
Am I picking on you?
Do you want me too?
Are you sick of your life
And need a breakthrough?

‘Cause I can crack 
Your shell wide open 
Expose the rot 
Where you’re broken
So you can see 
It’s an inside job 
Where all your worth 
Has been robbed 

So again I will say it 
May it enter your soul
Influence your being
To get outta that hole 
But why do I bother? 
Why did I tell?
One more round of shots
To buy what I sell 

It’s the worst kept secret 
This divinity thing 
We search all over 
But rarely within 
It’s the worst kept secret
This endless you 
Fully loaded   
To fill big shoes   
The more you go in 
The more you’ll find 
Like I told you 
You’re indeed divine 
(Indeed divine) 
Indeed divine

Your turn to join me 
Crack open the shells 
Let’s spread that message 
So life ends well 
Help those kids 
In adult bodies 
Following nasty masters 
We’re ending the folly 

So let’s say it 
May it enter their soul
Influence their being
To get outta that hole 
But why do we bother? 
Why did we tell?
Hold the rounds 
You must sell well 

It’s the worst kept secret 
This divinity thing 
We search all over 
But rarely within 
It’s the worst kept secret
This endless you 
Fully loaded   
To fill big shoes   
The more you go in 
The more you’ll find 
Like I told you 
You’re indeed divine 
(Indeed divine) 
Indeed divine 
(Indeed divine )  
Divine, divine
Divine
 


  

Divine

A tribute to the country gospel songs I grew up with.

Lyrics © Señor Barends

Lord, I’m burnin’ for what I done,  
Ain’t no priest where I come from.  
They say judgment day gon’ come,  
But I’ve seen hell beneath the sun.  
Ain’t no salvation where we run.

Mmm-hmm, mercy gone, mercy gone,  
The Judge gonna weigh what we’ve done wrong.

The Judge don’t speak, but His hammer will fall.
Hammer will fall
He don’t shout twice, He don’t answer your call,  
No, He don’t answer your call.
Every sin’s in the book, every name on the wall.
The Judge don’t speak, His hammer will fall.

Ain’t no peace in these blood-red streets,  
God lookin’ down, but He don’t speak.  
Been prayin’ hard with dirty hands,  
Blood on the lines where I stand,  
Every prayer got a price, every deal got a brand.

(Mmm-hmm, fire roll on,  
Every deal you made gonna burn by dawn.)

The Judge don’t speak, but His hammer will fall,  
Hammer will fall, hammer will fall.  
He weighs our words, He don’t spare us at all,  
No, He don’t spare us at all.  
When you whisper His name, better stand tall.
The Judge don’t speak, His hammer will fall. 
 
I seen bodies cold, I seen names erased,  
Mmm-hmm, no hiding place.)
If bones start talkin’ when the ground lets go,  
We all gonna answer, every soul we know.

My face knows shame a guilty man wears,  
I’ve ducked my friends, avoided their stares.  
If beggin’s cheap, then let me be poor,  
I’ll spend every tear knockin’ Your door,  
Till somethin’ inside ain’t rotten no more.  

Lord, we cry for the ones we lost,  
Paid our dues, still count the cost.

The Judge don’t speak, but His hammer will fall,  
Hammer will fall, hammer will fall.  
No lawyer, no lie gonna cover it all,  
No, can’t cover it all.  
Every saint, every thief gonna hear that call,
The Judge don’t speak, His hammer will fall.  

When the bell rings out, I’ll stand in line,  
Nothin’ to hide and not much to shine.  
If He weighs my soul, let the balance creak,  
I’ve said my truth, and the Judge don’t speak.  

The Judge don’t speak, His hammer will fall...  
The Judge don’t speak, His hammer will fall...

At Least a Nine or Eight (feat. Shana Crow & Johnny Timberlake)

dXter

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