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Strain

from the fifth circle by ilyAIMY

/

lyrics

incomplete and left undone
the chord fragmented
left unsung
city-born and city-bred
I'll be lucky if I end up quick city dead

the rats all mutter in the gutter
in the sewer and the rush
as they rat race home
as a beast of burden I can carry my weight
maybe I try too hard

Back in the woods on a wood-lot trail
working hard like an animal should be
I write my songs in a backwoods bedroom
I ignore the snore of the clockgear
and I've been dead for the past six days
that's more than Lazarus ever could claim
back from the dead now look at me
I'm as strong as I ever thought I could be.

some people are better off dead
some people shouldn't try so hard
if they could then they would
but they can't so they won't
so you know you can rest here
so you know you can rest here
don't let them step on what these others
now could become
no no no!

maybe it's the clock gear
that keeps my blood going
and here I thought it was my anger or my rage
or my father or my sex drive, SOMETHING
but maybe it's the fear of the gear
and accompanying arm
and the passage of time
age and life, vitality, strife
maybe it's the blood that keeps the heart pumping

some people can't be left behind
now that they've tried so hard
Just cause they haven't doesn't mean that they won't
so you know you can rest here
so you know you can rest here
don't let them bring down the bird
that you now have become
no no no!

so they think they can break you
maybe you believe that they can
I know that they tried so fucking hard on me
but I found the direction I was headed
when I took a left turning
at the wrong right turn
spent a year light-headed
now I'm better threaded
together we will overcome

this isn't what you're here for
you were meant to go somewhere
never what you were meant to do
you never should have had to deal with all this
STRAIN

incomplete and left undone
the chord fragmented
but at least it's sung
city-born and city-bred
looks like I'm dying
that slow suburban death

the rats all mutter in the gutter
in the sewer and the rush
as they rat race home
as a beast of burden I can carry your weight
maybe I can help you
home

© rob hinkal

credits

from the fifth circle, released January 1, 2006

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ilyAIMY Baltimore, Maryland

ilyAIMY is a percussive acoustic rock animal hailing from Baltimore, MD. Mixing genres from rock to folk to soul to bluegrass; flavours as varied as jazz and hip hop curl through what is undoubtedly one of the most exciting sounds in today’s folk(ish) music scene. Instrumentation includes acoustic guitars, cello, djembe, cajon, Irish bones, keyboard, bass, drums & harmonies. ... more

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