A couple of days ago I Tweeted that I had just completed Elden Ring and that life is now empty. This was a little tongue in cheek, but I have played nothing else for the last two and a half months, clocking up around 190 hours of gameplay. There’s a strange feeling of loss attached to finishing a game which burrowed so completely into my consciousness. I have begun writing something about it so watch this space.
In the meantime, I have decided to try a new game called Citizen Sleeper, recommended by video essayist Jacob Geller (on his Twitter). The game has a distinctive art style, which instantly grabbed me, and is described as a narrative RPG inspired by tabletop roleplaying games. “Roleplaying in the ruins of interstellar capitalism” is the games tagline and now I’m on the hook.
I haven’t started playing it yet but I wanted to share the artwork and the music from the main menu and character class select screen. I’ve kind of frozen up here, unsure of what class to pick, but luckily the music is this gorgeous, echoey piano melody which oozes isolation and melancholy. I have been vibing to this for a good while now. Check out the three classes you get to choose from below for an idea of the art style and give the track by Amos Roddy a play. Watch this space for more.
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In 2018, on a now defunct blog, I began a series of mini reviews based on the music that Spotify was recommending to me on my personalised Release Radar playlist. There was only one instalment of this series but I am thinking about giving it another go as I believe it is a sound concept.
Here is the original article, reproduced for nostalgia’s sake. Hopefully you’ll find something to enjoy here:
JEFF The Brotherhood – Camel Swallowed Whole
Heartwarming lo-fi Indie Rock from Nashville. Camel Swallowed Whole has a charming laziness underpinning it. The lethargically plodding bassline sets the groove beautifully for the understated guitar melodies and laid-back vocals. A recorder solo adds to the DIY charm. In the back-half of the song a distorted and discordant guitar solo brings some vague hints of Stephen Malkmus’ early work with Pavement. A
Autechre – mirrage
The IDM veterans latest offering is a swelling sea of droning synths and intense reverse reverb. The way the weird little stutters of reverse reverb interact with the bizarrely modulated higher synths lends an illusion of tape-based production, although I suspect it was recorded using the duos unique generative production software. I imagine this would be fairly underwhelming to anyone but the most hardcore fan (of which there are plenty) and unlikely to attract many converts. B minus
J Mascis – See You At The Movies
The self-described inventor of “ear bleeding country” sure knows how to write a pretty little country rock song. See You At The Movies has a jaunty rhythm that bounces along pleasantly under his trademark sad vocals and twisting lead guitar lines (not to mention his legendary grizzled Jazzmaster tone) ensure this track will sound great to even the most casual fan. The sound of a rock genius at rest. A
Barbara Morgenstern – Brainfuck
Pretty acoustic guitar picking nestles up comfortably alongside deep bass drones and stuttering cut up string samples on the intro to this dark electro pop song. The beats on this track are shuffling pops and crackles reminiscent of the crackle and pop of a vinyl record run-off groove. The vocals are sultry and warm, recorded with crystal clarity, lending the whole thing a ‘90’s Trip-Hop vibe. A
TV Smith – No Hope Street
There’s nothing new or original in ‘70’s Punk survivor Tim Smiths latest strum-along social commentary but he delivers it with such heroic underdog gusto that you find yourself nodding and singing along. The lyrics have a nostalgic air to them, with the verses written in the past tense and detailing disbelief at the many misfortunes that have befallen him and the grim determination to stand up to the shadowy establishment figures responsible. B
Cloud Nothings – The Echo Of The World
Spiky guitars and hyperactive drumming are the order of the day on this latest Cloud Nothings single. The vocals are grungily snotty, sounding a little like Billy Corgan in places. The tune has a sense of grandeur that I’ve never really heard in their other work, although they don’t seem to be able to reach the dizzyingly euphoric heights this track seems to be aiming for, ultimately writing a cheque the band are unable to cash. C
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You’re probably familiar with these types of Facebook challenges that ask you to post something for seven days straight. They always start off with something like “to break up the monotony of Facebook….” I recently found a playlist of one which I did way, way back in 2016, which was a song from the ’90’s for seven days. I’d like to share that with you.
Day 1: A Tribe Called Quest – Scenario
I always seem to gravitate towards A Tribe Called Quest when I’m feeling down or angry about political issues, for some reason. Something about the laidback feel of the beats & the enthusiastic feel of the MCing always helps me to feel a little better. In 2016 I was reeling from the general election the previous year & the disastrous Brexit referendum earlier in the same year & therefore listening to Quest loads. A love of this video would have made choosing Scenario an easy task.
*
Day 2: Meat Beat Manifesto – Asbestos Lead Asbestos
I had only recently purchased their seminal album, Subliminal Sandwich, after someone compared one of my songs the second disc of bizarre, experimental soundscapes. This track, & it’s great video, is an excellent Triphop-influenced cover version of a World Domination Enterprises song. Regular readers may remember it cropping up during the Song of the Day (Covers) series.
*
Day 3: NOFX – The Decline
I wonder if I was thinking of value for money here, with this 18 minute Pop Punk epic. Sadly, there’s no video for this song. Pure & angry Pop Punk excellence. Bouncy & anthemic in equal parts. I remember thinking it was about the post-9/11 Bush administration when I first heard it (late) in the early ’00’s, but it’s pre-9/11 release (’99) rules that out. A savage diatribe against the ‘religious right’.
*
Day 4: Pavement – Here
Another song without a video, Here was my favourite Pavement song at the time of the challenge. A title which is constantly changing in my head. My most recent “best of all time” list actually placed Grounded in my top-ten. Here is a gloriously (if deceptively) simple slacker ballad with some incredibly memorable lyrics. A+ song.
*
Day 5: David Bowie – Little Wonder
David Bowie shocking & awing in equal measure with this Drum n Bass inspired tune. Great song, great video & a reminder that Bowie is one of the greatest, & most diverse, musical artists in history. I love how heavy & upbeat it is following the smooth slacker tones of Pavement’s Here.
*
Day 6: Inspiral Carpets – Saturn 5
Another awesome video & a Hammond Organ flavoured slice of ’90’s Indie, flavoured by ’60’s Psych Pop. A charmingly upbeat tribute to the band’s super heavy-lift vehicle of choice, the Saturn V rocket.
*
Day 7: Fugazi – Blueprint
A smooth & melodic tune from the Post-Hardcore pioneers. Blueprint drips with DIY, independent cool. Sadly no video again, but an absolutely superb tune form this most ethical of all Indie bands.
*
Here they are in a Spotify playllist:
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Day 15. We’re on the homestretch. Soon I’m going to have to decide on the theme for the next Song of the Day series. One Love is taken rap wunderkind Nas’ debut album, Illmatic, produced by some of the greatest Hip Hop producers in New York (including Q-Tip).
This is essential Hip Hop. Intelligent, storytelling lyricism over crisp, clear beats.
[Verse One] What’s up kid? I know shit is rough doing your bid When the cops came you should’ve slid to my crib Fuck it black, no time for looking back it’s done Plus congratulations you know you got a son I heard he looks like you, why don’t your lady write you? Told her she should visit, that’s when she got hyper Flippin, talk about he acts too rough He didn’t listen he be riffin’ while I’m telling him stuff I was like yeah, shorty don’t care, she a snake too Fucking with the niggas from that fake crew that hate you But yo, guess who got shot in the dome-piece? Jerome’s niece, on her way home from Jones Beach – it’s bugged Plus little Rob is selling drugs on the dime Hangin out with young thugs that all carry 9’s At night time there’s more trife than ever What’s up with Cormega, did you see ’em, are y’all together? If so then hold the fort down, represent to the fullest Say what’s up to Herb, Ice and Bullet I left a half a hundred in your commissary You was my nigga when push came to shove One what? one love
[Verse Two] Dear Born, you’ll be out soon, stay strong Out in New York the same shit is going on The crack-heads stalking, loud-mouths is talking Hold, check out the story yesterday when I was walking The nigga you shot last year tried to appear like he hurtin’ something Word to mother, I heard him fronting And he be pumping on your block Your man gave him your glock And now they run together, what up son, whatever Since I’m on the streets I’m gonna put it to a cease But I heard you blew a nigga with a ox for the phone piece Whylin on the Island, but now with Elmira Better chill cause them niggas will put that ass on fire Last time you wrote you said they tried you in the showers But maintain when you come home the corner’s ours On the reals, all these crab niggas know the deal When we start the revolution all they probably do is squeal But chill, see you on the next V-I I gave your mom dukes loot for kicks, plus sent you flicks Your brother’s buck whylin’ in four maine he wrote me He might beat his case, ’til he come home I play it low key So stay civilised, time flies Though incarcerated your mind (dies) I hate it when your moms cries It kinda wants to make me murder, for real-a I’ve even got a mask and gloves to bust slugs for one love
[Verse Three] Sometimes I sit back with a Buddha sack Mind’s in another world thinking how can we exist through the facts Written in school text books, bibles, et cetera Fuck a school lecture, the lies get me vexed-er So I be ghost from my projects I take my pen and pad for the weekend Hitting L’s while I’m sleeping A two day stay, you may say I needed time alone To relax my dome, no phone, left the 9 at home You see the streets have me stressed somethin terrible Fucking with the corners have a nigga up in Belleville Or h.d.m., hit with numbers from 8 to 10 A future in a maximum state pen is grim So I comes back home, nobody’s helping shorty doo-wop Rollin two Phillies together in the Bridge we called ’em oowops He said, “Nas, niggas could be bustin’ off the roof So I wear a bullet proof and pack a black tres-deuce” He inhaled so deep, shut his eyes like he was sleep Started coughing, one eye peeked to watch me speak I sat back like the mack, my army suit was black We was chillin’ on these benches where he pumped his loose cracks I took an l when he passed it, this little bastard Keeps me blasted he starts talking mad shit I had to school him, told him don’t let niggas fool him ‘cos when the pistol blows the one that’s murdered will be the cool one Tough luck when niggas are struck, families fucked up Could’ve caught your man, but didn’t look when you bucked up Mistakes happen, so take heed never bust up At the crowd catch him solo, make the right man bleed Shorty’s laugh was cold blooded as he spoke so foul Only twelve trying to tell me that he liked my style Then I rose, wiping the blunts ash from my clothes Then froze only to blow the herb smoke through my nose And told my little man that I’m a go cyprose Left some jewels in his skull that he can sell if he chose Words of wisdom from Nas try to rise up above Keep an eye out for Jake shorty wop One love
Looking for some great music? Why not check out the Song of the Day (BLM) playlist?
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David Bowie’s 1997 album Earthling was the first new Bowie record I was aware of as a teenager. I already knew songs like Space Oddity & Ashes To Ashes, & even liked what I knew, but Earthling was essentially my generation’s Bowie album.
Bowie, finger ever on the pulse of the zeitgeist, was inspired by emergent genres like Drum & Bass, IDM & Breakbeat. Earthling was written & produced with these influences at the fore. Everything could have gone so horribly wrong. Many other classic artists who embrace genres of younger generations fail miserably (in my opinion), take Neil Youngs synthetic experiments in the ’80’s for example.
Luckily, Bowie was able to understand & appreciate what it was about these genres that made them special & unique. Instead of bending the technology & techniques used to create Drum & Bass to match his songwriting, he bent his songwriting to match the technology.
Album opener & lead single, Little Wonder, is a great example of this. A thumping, Junglist, Drum & Bass beat underpins trademark. His incredible vocal melodies floating above the hard, Junglist beats. In line with a key influence at for Bowie at the time, The Prodigy, Little Wonder’s skittering breakbeat manglement gives way to headbanging, anthemic hard rock sections.
Elsewhere, other influences come to the fore. Looking For Satellites is heavy downtempo breakbeats, somewhere between Hip Hop & Trip Hop (Meat Beat Manifesto?), but with rhythmic vocal melodies that wouldn’t be out of place on a Talking Heads record.
Prodigy vibes abound on Battle For Britain (The Letter). Crunchy, digitally harsh guitar chords juxtaposed against similar Junglist rhythms to Little Wonder. Bowies trademark melodic melancholia & a space rock glueing the whole thing together. Free jazz piano segments notwithstanding.
Seven Years In Tibet brings us more downtempo drum machine shenanigans, with heavy, metallic guitar riffing. This is more in Nine Inch Nails’ sonic territory than Prodigy though.
Dead Man Walking sees modem noise distorted guitars over thumping four-to-the-floor beats. Techno synth arpeggios & harmonic vocal loops give this a distinctly ’90’s vibe to it. Perhaps reminds me a little of Björk’s Hyper-Ballad. I could easily imagine a successful mix of the two songs in the hands of a competent DJ.
Telling Lies sees the return of the Drum & Bass rhythms. Lowkey baritone Bowie vocals & incoherent moaning help to build an oppressive sonic atmosphere.
The Last Thing You Should Do is upbeat, cut-&-Paste breakbeat with melancholic, subdued verses & explosive, distorted choruses. Like The Chemical Brothers with a more experimental sensibility. Grunge dynamics feel strangely at home here.
I’m Afraid Of Americans is more downtempo, industrial influenced darkness. Wears it’s Nine Inch Nails influence proudly on its sleeve. Doubly so on the various Nine Inch Nails Remixes which were also made, Trent Reznor’s unique production style bringing out Bowie’s darkest artistic impulses. You’ve got to hand it to Reznor. Not only did he do a great job of this, but he did it from the position of being completely starstruck & in awe of Bowie.
Finale, Law (Earthlings On Fire) is another dive into the sonic textures of Techno. Four-to-the-floor drums, bubbling, sidechained bass lines & stabs of distorted noise. Vocals mimic the rhythms brilliantly, acting as just another instrument in the soundscape.
I forgot how much I loved this album & I’m glad I was reminded of it by a post on Facebook earlier this week. One of Bowies darkest, & most sonically adventurous, albums, Earthling still sounds incredibly contemporary today, 23 years after its release.
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New Cheekface single, Emotional Rent Control, is a politically charged slice of laconic, slacker Pop. Minimal three piece fuzz Rock with witty, abstract poetic lyrics. The bands Twitter account says that Emotional Rent Control comes from a mishearing of Bernie Sanders saying “we need national rent control”. The melodic guitar riffs are in tribute to Ric Ocasek &, they say, the song is influenced by the Power Pop of Fountains Of Wayne in tribute to Adam Schlesinger. Emotional Rent Control, I think, is referring to greater mental health provisions & community togetherness. “
Break down the boxes and put the lid on the trash I’m feeling good, but I’m sure it will pass
Original Composition is a downtempo, spoken word poetry speak singing, solid rhythm track inspired by Minutemen’s History Lesson Part 2. This seems to be addressing wider social & political issues, especially the looming, and increasingly unavoidable, environmental breakdown. The song is, according to their Twitter, about “solipsism in the face of a big, big catastrophe.”
Emotional Rent Control w/ Original Composition is available now from all good digital distributors & streaming services.
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Sub Pop band Bully’s new single, Where To Start, is a cathartic slice of Grunge Pop fuzziness. Singer Alicia’s voice is a raspy, raw snarl. There’s a Punky naivety to her voice which places it in similar sonic territory to Kurt Cobain (seriously, check out their cover of About A Girl). A thick, fuzzy bass line propels the song along on upbeat drums in a way that calls to mind Debaser or Freak Scene. Melodic & harmonic guitar parts tick all the relevant ’90’s revival boxes too, from strummed Nirvana progressions to off-kilter Pavement melodies. In the ’90’s this would have been huge & we’d still be hearing it today.
Check out the great video. The fuzzed up visuals, psychedelic cuts & broken VHS effects compliment the song beautifully without devolving into shameless ’90’s pastiche. Plus there’s a dog in the video, so bonus points there. Come to think of it, the dog in the video makes me think of the (previously mentioned) Debaser video.
Where To Start is available now on Sub Pop records.
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Neil Young has released another song form his “lost” 1974 album, Homegrown, as a single ahead of its release on the 19th June. Vacancy is the kind of fuzzy, proto-grunge rocker that Neil Young is famed for. His excellent falsetto vocals piercing a rocksteady rhythm section & his expressive, intuitive guitar playing. Sections of harmonica ground Vacancy in atmospheric Country Rock which would inspire early Alternative Rockers like Dinosaur Jr. Another excellent single.
Vacancy is out now on all good digital music platforms.
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Day 11. Old School. Oldest School. Released in 1982, The Message was the first successful Hip-Hop tune to address social issues rather “self-congratulatory boasting or party chants of earlier hip hop” (The Message, Wikipedia). Lyrically, The Message addresses issues of inner city poverty, drug addiction & homelessness.
Lead rapper, Melle Mell told an NPR interviewer “we didn’t actually want to do ‘The Message’ because we was used to doing party raps and boasting how good we are and all that.” Thankfully, they did decide to make The Message & other rappers, taking notice, decided to write about their own lives, hardships & politics.
It’s like a jungle sometimes It makes me wonder how I keep from goin’ under
Broken glass everywhere People pissin’ on the stairs, you know they just don’t care I can’t take the smell, can’t take the noise Got no money to move out, I guess I got no choice Rats in the front room, roaches in the back Junkies in the alley with a baseball bat I tried to get away but I couldn’t get far Cause a man with a tow truck repossessed my car
Don’t push me cause I’m close to the edge I’m trying not to lose my head It’s like a jungle sometimes It makes me wonder how I keep from goin’ under
Standin’ on the front stoop hangin’ out the window Watchin’ all the cars go by, roarin’ as the breezes blow Crazy lady, livin’ in a bag Eatin’ outta garbage pails, used to be a fag hag Said she’ll dance the tango, skip the light fandango A Zircon princess seemed to lost her senses Down at the peep show watchin’ all the creeps So she can tell her stories to the girls back home She went to the city and got so so seditty She had to get a pimp, she couldn’t make it on her own
It’s like a jungle sometimes It makes me wonder how I keep from goin’ under
My brother’s doin’ bad, stole my mother’s TV Says she watches too much, it’s just not healthy All My Children in the daytime, Dallas at night Can’t even see the game or the Sugar Ray fight The bill collectors, they ring my phone And scare my wife when I’m not home Got a bum education, double-digit inflation Can’t take the train to the job, there’s a strike at the station Neon King Kong standin’ on my back Can’t stop to turn around, broke my sacroiliac A mid-range migraine, cancered membrane Sometimes I think I’m goin’ insane I swear I might hijack a plane!
It’s like a jungle sometimes It makes me wonder how I keep from goin’ under
My son said, Daddy, I don’t wanna go to school Cause the teacher’s a jerk, he must think I’m a fool And all the kids smoke reefer, I think it’d be cheaper If I just got a job, learned to be a street sweeper Or dance to the beat, shuffle my feet Wear a shirt and tie and run with the creeps Cause it’s all about money, ain’t a damn thing funny You got to have a con in this land of milk and honey They pushed that girl in front of the train Took her to the doctor, sewed her arm on again Stabbed that man right in his heart Gave him a transplant for a brand new start I can’t walk through the park cause it’s crazy after dark Keep my hand on my gun cause they got me on the run I feel like a outlaw, broke my last glass jaw Hear them say “You want some more?” Livin’ on a see-saw
It’s like a jungle sometimes It makes me wonder how I keep from goin’ under
A child is born with no state of mind Blind to the ways of mankind God is smilin’ on you but he’s frownin’ too Because only God knows what you’ll go through You’ll grow in the ghetto livin’ second-rate And your eyes will sing a song called deep hate The places you play and where you stay Looks like one great big alleyway You’ll admire all the number-book takers Thugs, pimps and pushers and the big money-makers Drivin’ big cars, spendin’ twenties and tens And you’ll wanna grow up to be just like them, huh Smugglers, scramblers, burglars, gamblers Pickpocket peddlers, even panhandlers You say I’m cool, huh, I’m no fool But then you wind up droppin’ outta high school Now you’re unemployed, all non-void Walkin’ round like you’re Pretty Boy Floyd Turned stick-up kid, but look what you done did Got sent up for a eight-year bid Now your manhood is took and you’re a Maytag Spend the next two years as a undercover fag Bein’ used and abused to serve like hell Til one day, you was found hung dead in the cell It was plain to see that your life was lost You was cold and your body swung back and forth But now your eyes sing the sad, sad song Of how you lived so fast and died so young so
It’s like a jungle sometimes It makes me wonder how I keep from goin’ under
Looking for some great music? Why not check out the Song of the Day (BLM) Spotify playlist?
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Day 10. Blackstar is Mos Def & Talib Kweili. Respiration, with guest raper Common, Blackstar adress the issues of violence within the Hip Hop community.
Known for intelligent, thoughtful lyrics, Blackstar are often credited as one of the first handful of Alternative Hip Hop acts. They were initially active at the very end of the ’90’s, when Hip Hop production was gearing more & more towards slick, Pop radio friendly productions. Alternative Hip Hop gained popularity with the underground fans. It’s raw, old school inspired productions reached out to old Hip Hop fans who were disenfranchised by the glossy, corporate aesthetic of the mainstream.
“What’d you do last night?” “We did umm, two whole cars It was me, these, and Main Three right? And on the first car in small letters it said “All you see is” and then you know Big, big, you know some block silver letters That said “crime in the city’ right?” “It just took up the whole car?” “Yeah yeah, it was a whole car and shit…
“Escuchela, la ciudad respirando [Listen to it, the city breathing]
Escuchela
The new moon rode high in the crown of the metropolis Shining, like who on top of this? People was hustling, arguing and bustling Gangsters of Gotham hardcore hustling I’m wrestling with words and ideas My ears is picky, seeking what will transmit The scribes can apply to transcript, yo This ain’t no time where the usual is suitable Tonight alive, let’s describe the inscrutable The indisputable, we New York the narcotic Strength in metal and fiber optics Where mercenaries is paid to trade hot stock tips For profits, thirsty criminals take pockets Hard knuckles on the second hands of working class watches Skyscrapers is colossus, the cost of living Is preposterous, stay alive, you play or die, no options No Batman and Robin, can’t tell between The cops and the robbers, they both partners, they all heartless With no conscience, back streets stay darkened Where unbeliever hearts stay hardened My eagle talons stay sharpened, like city lights stay throbbing You either make a way or stay sobbing, the Shiny Apple Is bruised but sweet and if you choose to eat You could lose your teeth, many crews retreat Nightly news repeat, who got shot down and locked down Spotlight to savages, NASDAQ averages My narrative, rose to explain this existence Amidst the harbor lights which remain in the distance
So much on my mind that it can’t recline Blasting holes in the night til she bled sunshine Breathe in, inhale vapors from bright stars that shine Breathe out, weed smoke retrace the skyline Heard the bass ride out like an ancient mating call I can’t take it y’all, I can feel the city breathing Chest heaving, against the flesh of the evening Sigh before we die like the last train leaving
Breathing in deep city breaths, sitting on shitty steps We stoop to new lows, hell froze the night the city slept The beast crept through concrete jungles Communicating with one another And ghetto birds where waters fall From the hydrants to the gutters The beast walk the beats, but the beats we be making You on the wrong side of the track, looking visibly shaken Taken them plungers, plunging to death that’s painted by the numbers With crime unapplied pressure, cats is playing God But having children by a lesser baby mother but fuck it We played against each other like puppets, swearing you got pull When the only pull you got is the wool over your eyes Getting knowledge in jail like a blessing in disguise Look in the skies for God, what you see besides the smog Is broken dreams flying away on the wings of the obscene Thoughts that people put in the air Places where you could get murdered over a glare But everything is fair It’s a paradox we call reality So keeping it real will make you casualty of abnormal normality Killers Born Naturally like, Micky and Mallory Not knowing the ways’ll get you capped like an NBA salary Some cats be emceeing to illustrate what we be seeing Hard to be a spiritual being when shit is shakin what you believe in For trees to grow in Brooklyn, seeds need to be planted I’m asking if y’all feel me AND THE CROWD LEFT ME STRANDED My blood pressure boiled and rose, cause New York niggaz Actin spoiled at shows, to the winners the spoils go I take the L, transfer to the 2, head to the gates New York life type trife the Roman Empire state
So much on my mind I just can’t recline Blasting holes in the night til she bled sunshine Breathe in, inhale vapors from bright stars that shine Breathe out, weed smoke retrace the skyline Yo don’t the bass ride out like an ancient mating call I can’t take it y’all, I can feel the city breathin Chest heaving, against the flesh of the evening Sigh before we die like the last train leaving
Escuchela, respirando ?
Yo, on The Amen, Corner I stood looking at my former hood Felt the spirit in the wind, knew my friend was gone for good Threw dirt on the casket, the hurt, I couldn’t mask it Mixing down emotions, struggle I hadn’t mastered I choreograph seven steps to heaven And hell, waiting to exhale and make the bread leavened Veteran of a cold war It’s Chica-I-go for What I know or, what’s known So some days I take the bus home, just to touch home From the crib I spend months gone Sat by the window with a clutched dome listening to shorties cuss long Young girls with weak minds, but they butt strong Tried to call, or at least beep the Lord, but didn’t have a touch-tone It’s a dog-eat-dog world, you gotta mush on Some of this land I must own Outta the city, they want us gone Tearing down the ‘jects creating plush homes My circumstance is between Cabrini and Love Jones Surrounded by hate, yet I love home Ask my God how he thought traveling the world sound Found it hard to imagine he hadn’t been past downtown It’s deep, I heard the city breathe in its sleep Of reality I touch, but for me it’s hard to keep Deep, I heard my man breathe in his sleep Of reality I touch, but for me it’s hard to keep
So much on my mind I just can’t recline Blasting holes in the night til she bled sunshine Breathe in, inhale vapors from bright stars that shine Breathe out, weed smoke retrace the skyline Yo how the bass ride out like an ancient mating call I can’t take it y’all, I can feel the city breathing Chest heaving, against the flesh of the evening Kiss the Ide’s goodbye, I’m on the last train leaving
Looking for some great music? Why not checkout the Song of the Day (BLM) Spotify playlist?
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Scruffy Theory 