Old Song, New Demo

Porcupine Dilemma
Act III, Part 4

Jane:

I'm losing my voice
Trying to cut through this noise
To have and be had
Is there even a choice?

I am not your centerfold
And I am not your virgin
I am not yours to behold
to consummate your burden
I don't want to walk with you
To your happy ending
I don't need your sympathy
your pity is so demeaning

It's not you it's me
Satisfaction guaranteed
In sickness and sin
Old Mary never married

On Friday we kissed
And now I'm so sick of this
'Til Tuesday we part
And then we cease to exist

To Have And Be Had

Here's to Romance
or: The Porcupine's Dilemma

Act IV, Part I

Recycled Man:

Woke up in the kitchen sink
It was colder than you think
How much lower can I sink
Woke up in the kitchen Sink

I had too much to drink and now I’m dying
I had too much to think about now I’m crying

Put on my Sunday clothes
Blew the brains out of my nose
Don’t you think nobody knows
I took my Sunday dose

Nobody knows and now I’m dying
I forgot to close the door and now she’s crying

Indian ink is running from her eyes
Don’t watch me while I die

Nobody knows and now I’m dying
I forgot to close the door and now she’s crying

Indian Ink

Here's to Romance
or: The Porcupine's Dilemma

Act IV, Part II

Recycled Man:

Please don't kill the lights
I don't want to sleep tonight
Is there anything that I could say
To make you want to stay
I make a promise, hold her hand
Reminds me of my old man
Every time that he'd get clean
He would say to me

Never stop your desire
Never ever stop, carry the fire

They all come from miles around
And meet up in the church downtown
Johnny grabs a seat and frowns
And sits down in the circle
When it's time for him to stand
He says "Hello my name is John
They call me the recycled man
And I'm an alcoholic"

Never stop your desire
Never ever stop, carry the fire

Jane doesn't see what's wrong
With settling down and giving up
I'd rather chase the dawn
Than put myself to sleep
She wants the kind of man
Who crushes spiders in his hands
But I don't know if I can change
Or if I even want to
Never stop your desire...

Carry The Fire

Here's to Romance
or: The Porcupine's Dilemma

Act IV, Part III

Mr. Positive:

When I heard trouble called you to ask for a partner 
I knew whatever we had here would soon be over
What’s that you said? You’re through with running
say it again, or it means nothing
your heart, your head, your past, your friends
it means nothing

The way you opened the car door like there was someone out there
And faded off into nothing like you had never been here
What’s that you said? You're through with running
say it again, or it means nothing
your heart, your head, your past, your friends
it means nothing

under our willow tree you kissed me you kissed me
and I will never be the same you kissed me you kissed me
you left me lying in the leaves it killed me it killed me
under our old willow tree you kissed me you kissed me
your heart, your head, your past, your friends
it means nothing

It Means Nothing

Watch over me
I think, I am
I didn’t want it, I cannot lie
Needle in my eye
Cross my heart
Cross my heart

Needle In My Eye

This week’s theme: Religion

A few weeks ago we talked about song writing process. And because we just had a baby and there’s no chance I’ll be finishing this song this week I figured I’d share the earliest version of it. This was recorded in the car using voice memo.

Often I’ll start a song with just a title or a few lines decided. If I get an inkling of a melody, I try to record it right away. I’ve got hundreds of these snippets saved on my computer.

From this I would start in on the lyrics. This song is inspired by the events of my life this week. My wife had a very long and difficult labor and I was by her side the whole time, powerless to ease her suffering. At points I had an inner struggle wanting to ask god for help but internally criticizing myself because I believe that god is a fairy tale. Later in the week my alcoholic father send me an abusive torrent of messages about how he’s not included enough in my life.

So with these events, this idea crept into my head. Conceptually, the verses would be about men and women (mom and dad) and the struggles and joys of life and marriage and childbirth. And the third verse would be a message to god questioning the sufferings of women and the shortcomings of men in their pursuit of power and control. The bridge (“broken promises won’t break me”) would be a big build up where the verse and chorus melodies could weave in and out musically signifying resilience and dedication in the face of the unknown.

The irony that the title refers to is some vague feeling I have that needs to be worked out in the verses. Essentially I believe that women have this boundless depth for caring and compassion, but in opposition to this they endure such immense suffering, while the patriarchal forces in their lives (husbands, fathers, and to some people: god), who are often to root of the suffering, attempt to condescend or control their lives. 

From a demo like this I can hear guitars and drums and background vocals. And although it might take me years to finish (if I ever do), I generally remember what the arrangements should be just by hearing the voice demo. For this song, I suppose Against Me would be the musical influence.

I’m very critical of my ideas and I think this one might be a bit to maudlin or solipsistic, so chances are I won’t finish.

A Divine Attempt At Irony

Messing around with some riffs I've been practicing. I worked up some lyrics for the topic but didn't have time to put the to music.

If you're interested, here they are:

Topic: Cartoons (based on the Simpsons kind of)

(lyrics have nothing to do with this guitar jam though...)

Evergreen terrace Springfield
I will be there to see you
The air is thick with the fog of
Syndicated families

I clicked on the TV after school
The lineup of reruns give me something to do
Fall asleep right here on the couch
Forget how much my fucking parents suck

And I’ve seen this one 1000 times before
Homer designs a car
There’s a bubble in the back and a cup holder
That’s so big….

Seth Lambert 1