What the Rivers Say

Life's pretty simple if you think it through
I'll live as me and you live as you
You gotta live for the moment not for the past
You gotta lean forwards if you want your dreams to last
You gotta dream big but you gotta live small
You've gotta pick your battles you can't win them all
You've gotta find your way but never ask for help
And you've gotta be yourself don't be anybody  else

I wanna stay hidden make myself into a ball
Don't wanna be seen gonna make myself small
Close my eyes so nobody can see me
On days like this I don't really wanna be me
Always looking back in the things that I've done 
And always obsessing on the things that went wrong
Please don't ask me if I'm ok
one step forward gotta get through the day

If the hidden you met the hidden me
would the chemistry and polarity
of that you and me
generate electricity?


Hidden You/Hidden Me

I kind of get it - you were on the brink
At the moment when she needed you most
You'd both become ghosts
But could you not dig deep and rise above?
Reach into the fathoms deep pool of love
That you filled together
That'll be there forever

I'm sympathetic - really I am
I understand the tears
It had been hard for years and years
But could you not push past the lines 
That you'd both drawn, even for one last time?
Was it too much?
Seems like it was too much
But could you not dig deep and rise above?
Reach into the fathoms deep pool of love
That you filled together
That'll be there forever

Did you need to be relieved of your burden?
To be free
Did you need to be relieved of your burden?
To be free

But that's the kind of freedom
Where every day and every night
You're gonna have to justify
Your actions and reasons why

The Fathoms Deep Pool of Love

Shoejazz

The World That We Create

Standing on the riverbank
Feeling the sun bringing warmth to my face
I screwed my thoughts up into a ball
I threw them in and watched them sink without a trace

Feel myself becoming small
Amongst the wonder of it all
Feel myself becoming small
And this is what the river said

It's alright
It's OK
The things you've done, you can't change them anyway
It's alright
It's OK

At the cairn at the top of the tor
Rising sun lights the moon in the west
Looking up and wondering why
I don't believe in God but I still feel blessed

Feel myself becoming small
Amongst the wonder of it all
Feel myself becoming small
And this is what the mountain said

It's alright
It's OK
If you don't love yourself, I'm gonna love you anyway
It's alright
It's OK

It's alright
It's OK
The things you've done, you can't change them anyway
It's alright
It's OK

And all the things you've done
You can't change them anyway
If you don't love yourself
I'm gonna love you anyway
x4

remember that day
when we walked for miles and we lost our way
the weak sunshine and the cool English breeze
remember that day
when we sat by the water watching the children play
remember that sound?
the laughter of your daughter

these moments in time are works of art
can you hold them in your heart?

remember the day
sitting together by the harbour
I think you told us then but we didn't hear
it wasn't clear
the sun was bright and the afternoon was glowing
was there ever any way of knowing?

these moments in time are works of art
can you hold them in your heart?

Next week – track 2 - WHTYHTM

Buy on Bandcamp

Works of Art

WHTYHTM Demo

call me
call me he said
but the silence says
romance is dead

i loved you
you idiot she said
how many years did it take 
to get that into your head?

all the good days
and the bad
all the moments
that we wished we'd neverr had

sometimes, he said,
i'm so happy i could cry
but most of the time
i'm wondering why

we're falling
falling through our time
and remembering 
is how we hold the line

all the good days
and the bad
all the moments
that we wished we'd never had

all the triumphs 
and the hurt
all the ups and downs
what was it worth?

The Triumphs and the Hurt

How did the world get so small?
Seeing so much I can barely see at all
So much sound all I hear is squall
How did the world get so small?

How did the lines get so blurred?
between what I said and what you heard 
The many meanings of every word 
How did the lines get so blurred?

Here comes the horizon
It's getting nearer each and every day
Here comes the horizon
It's getting nearer
It's filling up my eyeline
It takes my breath away

When did my brain get so slow?
Endless repeats from moments years ago
Pointless facts I don’t need to know
When did my brain get so slow?

So have we gone beyond repair?
Angry people with angry teeth bared
They're kind of laughing but they're also kind of scared
Have we gone beyond repair?

Here comes the horizon
It's getting nearer each and every day
Here comes the horizon
It's getting nearer
It's filling up my eyeline
It takes my breath away

Here Comes The Horizon

Write it down
Then read the words and weep
Turn the page
Taste the air
And find peace

We've come too far
We're not going to turn back now
So take my hand
And we'll walk together 
To the golden sand

We've Come Too Far to Turn Back Now

shoots of spring alive and green
river flows city sounds recede
sun is rising over huddled homes
eyes closed I'm on my own

oil skies
oil skies
sometimes we dream of a different life
but i'd always come back to these oil skies

wind and rain pound my face
all around me the sense of space
step by step the long way home
close my eyes and breathe; i'm on my own

oil skies
oil skies
sometimes we dream of a different life
but i'd always come back to these oil skies

Oil Skies

the mid summer sun
lying in the grass
we'll never know
how long this will last

will there be more?
i'm not sure
but
you're all i need

take a look around
at what we've got
I know its not a little
maybe its a lot

will there be more?
i'm not sure
but
you're all i need

the family's moved on
got their own lives to lead
these walls feel empty
without mouths to feed

will there be more?
i'm not sure
but
you're all i need

the machines on the ward
echo in our ears
holding each other
couting back the years

will there be more?
i'm not so sure
but
you're all i need

All I Need

This is my original sketch of 'All I Need'. I find I always love these first versions of songs - it's the essence of the track, raw and pared right back. In this case the final track stayed pretty close to the initial sketch, but I still really like this version.

All I Need (initial sketch)

Beautiful morning
With nothing to do
And the most beautiful thing is 
I can do it with you

Ocean sunset
Such a beautiful view
But the most beautiful thing is
I get to see it with you

Run from the chaos
Meander into space
Empty days are our sacred place

Run from the chaos 
Meander into space 
Empty days are our sacred place

Beautiful morning
In so many ways
Let’s fill up our lives with empty days

Beautiful sunset
In so many ways
Let’s fill up our lives with empty days

Empty Days

For anyone who's ever lost a friend x

It's last orders but it's cold outside
Let's take our time before they turn out the lights
Finish that story that you'd started to tell
You know the one that starts off funny, and ends up well

We're just atoms, you and me
We're each our own galaxy
And its beautiful
Because atoms are free

Looking back we thought that we could run and run and run
So I look up to you to say 'look how far we've come'
But you're not there, I'm on my own
It's last orders and everyone's gone home

We're just atoms, you and me
We're each our own galaxy
And its beautiful
Because atoms are free

Last Orders

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3sPowchT9s

Lyrics: 
Passing long hours
Trying to work out what I want to say
What's my meaning, what's my angle?
What's in my way?
And it doesn't come easy

But when it comes
It fills me up
It knocks me over
Cos I can finally see
What's in front of me
With real clarity

Letting time go by
Hoping that you see things 
The same ways as me
Because we each percieve the world
A little differently
But it doesn't come easy

But when it comes 
It fill us up
It knocks us over
Cos we can finally see
See each other
With real clarity

Clarity

Life's pretty simple if you think it through
I'll live as me and you live as you
You gotta live for the moment not for the past
You gotta lean forwards if you want your dreams to last
You gotta dream big but you gotta live small
You've gotta pick your battles you can't win them all
You've gotta find your way but never ask for help
And you've gotta be yourself don't be anybody  else

I wanna stay hidden make myself into a ball
Don't wanna be seen gonna make myself small
Close my eyes so nobody can see me
On days like this I don't really wanna be me
Always looking back in the things that I've done 
And always obsessing on the things that went wrong
Please don't ask me if I'm ok
One step forward gotta get through the day

If the hidden you met the hidden me
would the chemistry and polarity
of that you and me
generate electricity?

I kind of get it - you were on the brink
At the moment when she needed you most
You'd both become ghosts
But could you not dig deep and rise above?
Reach into the fathoms deep pool of love
That you filled together
That'll be there forever

I'm sympathetic - really I am
I understand the tears
It had been hard for years and years
But could you not push past the lines 
That you'd both drawn, even for one last time?
Was it too much?
Seems like it was too much

But could you not dig deep and rise above?
Reach into the fathoms deep pool of love
That you filled together
That'll be there forever

Did you need to be relieved of your burden?
To be free
Did you need to be relieved of your burden?
To be free

But that's the kind of freedom
Where every day and every night
You're gonna have to justify
Your actions and reasons why

Look at the things around us
The things that make a life
We’re living on autopilot
On the edge of a knife

He said you’re always right there
But you’re never right here
Sometimes I feel like
If I breathe out once more I’ll just disappear 

When it’s gone it’ll stay gone
Face the facts
It’s not coming back
When it’s gone it’ll stay gone
We’ve got to fight for that

Everything we have
It’s a miracle made real
But so all encompassing
We don’t have time to feel

She said but I’m always on
I’m talking but you don’t hear
Sometimes I feel like
One more day and I’ll just disappear 

When it’s gone it’ll stay gone
Face the facts
It’s not coming back
When it’s gone it’ll stay gone
We’ve got to fight for that 
Or it’s not coming back

Stay Gone

The clocks have all run backwards
Morning in the evening
Sleeping with the lark

It's a liminal sensation
Living in the margins
Waking in the dark

When all the pieces fit
I feel it in the sunlight
I feel it in the wind

All the people making traces
In unfamiliar places
Following their paths

I need more than just location
More than bricks and mortar
I need to feel your spark

When all the pieces fit
I feel it in the sunlight
I feel it in the wind

In the Wind

18000 Days On Earth Set - 080825 run through

Untitled Improv

18000 Days Set.m4a

Wake Up (working title)

That Other Life

Part of an experimental project I've been working on. The concept is to write, record and perform tracks in a a single sitting.

The first four tracks were all recorded early in the morning before the rest of the house got up. It's too dark and cold in the mornings for that now, so the second batch of tracks will be done in the afternoon!

Each track takes a couple of hours. The workflow is to write and record some samples (using electric and acoustic guitars, piano and occasionally synths), then build a track by looping them, adding beats and effects.

I'm using Bandlab, Loopy Pro, Other Desert Cities, Dubstation 2, Bleass filters and Replicator.

In terms of genre, SubmitHub tells me this track is:

Experimental Electronic (41%)
Gothic / Dark Wave (40%)
Witch House (27%)
Shoegaze (25%)
Ambient (23%)

So something for everyone then :)

btw wtf is Witch House?

Hope you enjoy, please let me know what you think.

This has been a really fun project. Sometimes working with restrictions is a great way of sparking creativity.

PM.001

Shoegaze, indie, post rock and electronica from Manchester, UK
tomleonard_uk@protonmail.com

Tom Leonard

Pinned to spotlight

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