I can't say what I mean	
I don't know who I am	

I can hear 
the smile in your speech 
You seem to smile in my ear 
and it's nice 

This is strange and we are few 
I just want to be with you 
See the void and calm the surge 
Fill the space with what it's worth 

I don't want 
to think about me 
I'm the disaster and you, 
you're the king

I Am No Robot

Here an afternoon is stretching out 
Golden window glare 
Lingering are bits of August here and there 

Here an empty room has overflowed 
Silvery and bare 
Paisley moonlight nesting in the summer air 

Out of time 
You could say 
Stacked occurrences day by day 
Empty hours 
Wasted nights 
Adding up as you'd expect they might 

Sentient howls 
From the trees 
Sympathetic whispers shrugged away, oh me 
Empty house 
Wasted days 
Never heeding the wiser way 

Here an orange curtain shudders once 
Inward slipped the breeze 
Then I think it found a better place to be 

Here a kitchen floor is unadored 
Could maybe use a sweep 
Bits of crumb are lying in the cracks it keeps

Stacked Occurrences

Grey, grey hair 
From thoughts of staying here 
"I"s that I may never be 

So I declared 
An end to what has been 
Five years gone, well, c'est la vie 

Time does fly and grind 

Hand on gun 
Shots ring and it is done 
And I lay before me dying 

So I stare 
Into the void unscared 
How it shines and flickers and sighs 

And to it's light I release my "I" 

And I see you there

C'est La Vie

From Another Room documents the sordid circumstances of The Vale's beginning as both artistic and romantic partners, their uncertain longings, and the bland, unfulfilling domesticity that preceded their meeting. Their confessional songwriting, intricate arrangements, and washed out, lo-fi recordings have garnered comparisons to Tyrannosaurus Rex, Grizzly Bear, Nick Drake, Syd Barrett, and White Fence.

I search you for an answer 
For how you feel 
I search you for an answer 
But you don't yield 

Time goes by, 'cause you're so shy 
Time's on our side, some hazy nights 

But you've got yours 
and I've got mine 
But if you would, my my, 
So would I, 
So would I 

I search you for an answer 
That I do need 
I search you for an answer 
and I will plead 

'Cause you've got yours 
and I've got mine 
But if you would, my my, 
So would I, 
So would I 
And if you would, my my, 
So would I

So Would I (My, My)

I spend the hours of all my nights 
Now laying alone 
Wishing I might 
Wishing I might find words 
To ease the pain that you now hold 

I know I've changed from years ago 
When we were so near 
But hear me, my dear 
Hear me my dear, though I am gone 
My heart is with you 

And this is just for now 
This is just for now 
Let your hurt hang down in veils around you 

I'll hold your hate 
I'll take your scorn 
'Cause darlin I know 
The killer was me 
The killer was me with silent feet 
And eyes a'wandering 

(This is just for now 
This is just for now)

Just For Now

Back when I was four foot high 
Cradled in a willow tree 
I'd turn my sights up above the city's lights 
And look to the western sky, oh 
Off of the western sky 

Back when I was five foot high 
Alone and struggling to be 
I had my hopes pinned upon a city's ghost 
Off in the western sky, oh 
Off in the western sky 

And when I had lost everyone 
It screamed out and I made to come 
But when I arrived, I felt such shame 
I found the western sky was just the same 

Now that I'm near six foot high 
And settled in a place back east 
I find sometimes, and I do fear this desire, 
I look to the western sky, oh 
Off to the western sky

Western Sky

Before you came I had nothing to say 
But now my tongue is alight with your name 
Fast we grew and fast we fell 
My my, oh well 

You found me out 
You've consumed me now 
You'd go very far for me 
I know that you'd risk everything 

But they don't know 
The things that we said 
And I don't care 
What a fool I've been and I don't know how this ends 

And I can lie to him 
But I can't lie to myself 
And once I feel your touch I fear I won't let go 
I fear I won't let go 
And now I can't let go 

But they don't know 
The things that we said 
And they don't know 
That you've left me singing in the dark again 
And all I know 
Is that you are my friend 
And I don't care 
What a fool I've been but I'd like to have the chance 

To say I love you 
I do 
I shouldn't love you 
But I do 
I love you 
I love you 
This is truth

What I Know

Summertime is up 
White earth is sleeping 
Closed its wide, dreaming eye 
And slipped away 'til the weather's fine 
With hazy nights and the dragonflies 

Summertime is up 
But I'm not sleeping 
Find I stay inside 
Looking out for an inner light 
Looking out for an inner light 

The clouds above were daisy chains 
Lingering with lazy grace 
Then there came the autumn shade 
Smoldering to winter's grey...

Summertime

 The Vale’s new single “In Motion” finds them embracing the warmth and radiance of their new home in California. Introducing shimmering electric guitars, a galloping rhythm section, and bright, energetic vocal harmonies to their sound, the track puts the influences of Mac DeMarco, George Harrison, Animal Collective, and The Hollies on full display. Significantly more expansive and up tempo than their previous efforts, “In Motion” represents a marked shift away from the sparse, muted approach on their 2014 album From Another Room. 

released 14 April 2015 

All performances by The Vale (Marissa Deitz and Chace Wall) 
Words and music for "In Motion" by The Vale 
Words and music for "Tiniest Lights" by Angel Olsen, arr. by The Vale 

Recorded by The Vale at Mills College in March, 2015 
Mastered by Daniel Ryan at Minbal Studios, Chicago 
Artwork by Marissa Deitz

In Motion

Tiniest Lights (Angel Olsen)

The Vale is an art pop duo composed of Oakland-based songwriters/multi-instrumentalists Marissa Deitz and Chace Wall. Combining elements of dream pop, guitar-driven folk, and experimental electronic music, the pair crafts intricately arranged pop songs that straddle the line between the nebulous and the intimate, the direct accessibility of pop music and the rigorous challenges of the avant-garde. Their sound has earned comparisons to artists like Grizzly Bear, Nick Drake, Tyrannosaurus Rex, and Syd Barrett.

 The Vale’s new single “In Motion” finds them embracing the warmth and radiance of their new home in California. Introducing shimmering electric guitars, a galloping rhythm section, and bright, energetic vocal harmonies to their sound, the track puts the influences of Mac DeMarco, George Harrison, Animal Collective, and The Hollies on full display. Significantly more expansive and up tempo than their previous efforts, “In Motion” represents a marked shift away from the sparse, muted approach on their 2014 album From Another Room. The band is currently planning a summer 2015 tour of the Pacific Northwest, and has begun working on their second album, to be released in autumn of 2015.

The Vale was formed by Marissa Deitz and Chace Wall in the summer of 2013 in Chicago, IL. Beginning as an intense but forbidden mutual attraction, Deitz and Wall’s relationship has blossomed into a bountiful artistic and romantic partnership. From Another Room, their debut album released on February 18, 2014, documented the sordid circumstances of their relationship's beginning, their uncertain longings, and the bland, unfulfilling domesticity that preceded their meeting. The release has been praised as “…an almost lace-like combination of folk and pop and even a hint of classical that somehow manages to cling together, sweet and simple and absolutely beautiful” (Side One Track One) and “a quiet and intimate album that needs to be heard” (The Deli Chicago).

The Vale (band)

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