1. |
Underdressed
03:26
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Don’t push me in the water
I’ve got my phone in my pocket
I won’t push my luck
I know I’d be so damn lost without it
Help myself to a glass of cheap champagne
She walks in beauty but I’m feeling rather plain
And just who?
Who are you trying to impress?
on the sidelines of a red-carpet event
It’s the premiere showing
And I’m stuck on the screen test
A dose of the Monday blues
In my Sunday best
I’m telling white lies
At the black-tie affair
If you’re looking for me
You can find me upstairs
In a second-floor
at a house party
Taking a look in the mirror
And peeling the label off
An empty bottle of beer
And just who?
Who are you trying to impress?
What about you is of any interest?
step out in the cold
just to see my breath
a dose of those big city blues
in the small town midwest
My ties a full Windsor
My stomachs half in knots
Brave all the beautiful people
To get to the table for shots
My cell phone ringtone plays
“Nearer My God to Thee”
And I’m not sure what
This frat boy is trying to tell me
And just who
Who do are you trying to impress?
With all those things you try to suppress
Measure yourself against the others
To find you’re lower than the rest
With their immaculate clothes
And me underdressed
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2. |
Certainly Lake Street
04:06
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I keep pictures on the shelf to remind myself
And I drink whiskey to forget
And there’s a happy balance between the two of them
But I still haven’t found it yet
My neck’s in a noose
But my head’s in the clouds
I’ve got nothing on my mind
And I’m thinking aloud
I’m living like an old man in art school
Doing it long after it was cool
Sorry A long island’s not really my cup of tea
Sorry about that drunk girl, she’s with me
There’s a chip on my shoulder But I’ve got an ace up my sleeve
Go alone to the movies there’s something I wanted to see
I’ll show up early for the trailers and be the last to leave
Tap my foot to the music as the credits roll by the screen
So comrades fill a glass for me
And when we drink the toast will be
To the night and our festivities
And to boast of our abilities
A long island’s not really my cup of tea
Sorry about that drunk girl, she’s with me
Go get me, my suit and my tie
And the cheapest liquor that money can buy
Tonight, we rob the gods of fire
In the morning I’ll take my breakfast behind enemy lines
The cheapest drinks in town
Are served in my room
Call the restaurant
cancel reservations for two
Got no dancing partner
But I can swing a broom
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3. |
West of You
02:51
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Hey man, you better get in here,
they’re playing your song
“Man, I still can’t believe you
took Sergeui to see Swans”
but I’m just glad to be here tonight
on your journey to the end of the bar
I'm not sure I’m doin’ it right
but it’s worked out alright so far
it’s nobodies dream
to drive all day just to sleep on your floor
but if you want to feel the lightning
you have to endure the storm
But I’m a long way from Bangkok now,
and a long way from First Avenue
finding something to hold onto somehow
I’m East of the Eden
And I’m West of you
Hey man, you better get in here,
This wont take long,
I’m just glad to be somewhere new
because that's exactly where I belong
But it’s been a long time since Belgium now,
Stuck in my own personal Waterloo
There must be some other way out
I’m east of Eden
And I’m West of You
I've been writing postcards to my lover,
To the dreamer and the drunkard
I’m just passing through,
I’ll be gone before the end of summer
When I get back in town, you know just what I want to do
I hope you know I’m gone that I often think of
But I’m a long way from Scotland now,
Far from anything they taught me in school
is this what all the fuss was about
I’m East of Eden
And I’m West of you
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4. |
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At night when I have dreams,
I lose almost every time
I'm being betrayed,
Or I’m losing the game
Or I’m being left behind,
But I still find ways to remain
graceful in all of my defeats
Like Conrad's apostle, I am lost at sea
I am coming unraveled, I do concede
As I’m dying in the Al Gore suite
We’re living through strange times,
as hard as any time I’ve ever known
it seems like it’s the curse of humankind
we’re all in this together and go at it alone
but I have lived one hundred nights
Unsure if I’d make it until the day
And when met with the cold first light
I think to myself "How can a man fall this way?"
There are times when I have dreams,
and they cling to my mind
they hang over the day
like some honest mistake
Which follows the rest of my life
but I’m running out of ways to explain
that I’m making good use of my useless degree
like some great novel that I was forced to read
I’m writing a bad story, but my handwriting’s neat
As I’m dying in the Al Gore suite
Looking for an immediate release
In a sea of slow-burning fires
You can’t choose what you need the most
and you can't ignore your deepest desires
A man depressed stays depressed
Unless moved by an outside force
And in his darkest hours, he thinks
about maybe enrolling in a local business course
There was a time when I had dreams
But now it looks like I’m falling behind
There’s no one to blame,
I’m late to the game
And I’m running out of time
So, I’m still finding ways to embrace it
Writing sad songs with cliche motifs
Like my own brand of false modesty
I’m coming undone,
under scrutiny
As I’m dying in the Al Gore suite
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5. |
That Night
03:45
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I came to a place where a path diverged in a wood
Two men blocked my way, on each respective path they stood
“One of us can tell only truth and the other only lies”
But I could tell the deceitful one just by looking in his eyes
How could I tell I asked myself, they are identical the two
It was then I realized the deceitful one reminded me of you
If it wasn’t for that night you know I wouldn’t think twice about you
I find it’s alright it’s important that I do
I find it’s alright it’s important that I do
Because certain things have come to light that I just wish weren’t true
With your velvet glove and silver tongue, you were oh so well-rehearsed
I found myself holding on enchanted by each word
I know I’m not the last and I’m certainly not the first
All your lies are repeated now some of them verbatim
The guy that you’re with now I don’t know him but I hate him
If it wasn’t for that night you know I wouldn’t think twice about you
I find it’s alright it’s important that I do
I find it’s alright it’s important that I do
Because certain things have come to light that I just wish weren’t true
You’re a Midwestern, midair collision, midsummer night’s dream
You’re a precision-guided stranger and you’re aimed straight at me
You must have known that I’d figure you out sooner or later
The person who you really are I don’t know her but I hate her
If it wasn’t for that night you know I wouldn’t think twice about you
I find it’s alright it’s important that I do
I find it’s alright it’s important that I do
Because I’m hopelessly in love with the person who I thought was you.
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6. |
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Youmna didn’t it all end so soon?
I can’t even recall the things
that had us so consumed
dreaming of tomorrow smelling of
yesterday's perfume
Youmna, isn’t history cruel?
They should have headed the warnings
before they opened up that tomb
Youmna, didn’t it all end so soon?
Workin' smart for so long
and still treated like a fool
At the Halloween party
wearing last year’s costume
Youmna, it seems that no one’s immune
it's the will of the gods
and you know the gods they can be cruel
Youmna, didn't it all end so soon?
cause all the seeds we've planted
have already lost their bloom
the year we were going to start dancing
but ended up stuck in our rooms
Youmna, I hope to see you soon
I got your well wishes
but I let go of that balloon
Youmna, Didn't it all end so soon?
Awake until dawn but still up at high noon
cause their ain't room enough for both of us
in this here saloon.
Youmna, didn't all go by so fast?
It's only from this distance you'll see you've mastered
your craft.
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7. |
Tomorrow, Today
05:10
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Far and away now
this is one of the worst days I’ve had
I’m not used to showing it
but I’m used to feeling bad
No more chasing feelings
from way back when
There’s nothing I can say now
it’s out of my hands
If you’re painting my portrait,
You're gonna need some grey,
cause I’m giving up on tomorrow, today
In a stormy sea, I wander
My ships sinkin' fast,
It’s taking on water
And I’m tied to the mast
Been lost for so long,
I don’t know which way to turn
Only one bridge to cross now
and that bridge is it is burned
And if you’re thinking of leaving
I won’t ask you to stay
I’m giving up on tomorrow, today.
There’s one skill, in which I have no equal
I can get anyone to believe in me
and I let down all those people
In this world, I was born
And in this world, I was raised
they give me their scorn
but they won't find me no place
if you’re saying some prayers tonight
send some my way
I’m giving up on tomorrow, today.
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8. |
Ophelia
03:18
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I am the good son of the bad king
I am your long-lost love and just a minor fling
I am well-rehearsed, poorly defined
I’m thinking of calling you
Somewhere down the line
Just to say
Ophelia, I feel ya
going out on a limb going for a midnight swim yeah
Ophelia, I'll meet ya
I'll meet ya beneath your window it’s not a hint it’s innuendo
I saw the movie but I prefer the book
but then on second thought, it deserves a second look
Because it all looks good on paper It all works in theory
Everything works out in the end but you’ll find that out later
Ophelia,I need ya,
to balance on breaking branches swing for the fences.
Ophelia, I hear ya
you said he was boring in the sack and you will never take him back
Oh, so how did it come to this?
It all ends with a goodbye kiss
Goodnight
goodnight
I whispered to her softly and
said This is where you lost me
Ophelia, I believe ya
It doesn’t bear repeating so keep reading what your’re reading ya hear me?
Ophelia, the real ya
Wouldn’t say a thing like that cause you can never take it back
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9. |
Edinburgh
05:22
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In the morning, I hear echoes
Coming from the rooftops above
For once I am living in the moment,
And unsure if it is enough
I’ll say it now as
I’ve said it before
Beat it with great force
I'll nail it to the monastery door
I am like the good son
I am restless at night
there's a sad and silent presence
it is waiting for me outside
I felt it grab hold of me
like some kind of force
a changing in the atmosphere
before the coming of the storm
it stands outside my door
waiting for me to fall
This anxious feeling grips me
like something eternal
you are like that lone dove,
You are weightless in flight
I see your likeness in
Image of Christ crucified
There are times I think of you
And I think of every little mistake
I am carried through these moments
by a fleeting and formless strength
The days are getting shorter
and the night’s stay dark
But there is some light within me
and I feel it flicker and spark
You are under different constellations
yes, I am miles from where you are
But we reach our destinations
Directed by the same set of stars
There is something that moves me
and I follow it down
With quickening pace
to the other side of town
I could feel it approaching,
like some kind of storm
The internal cataclysm about
Which all History had warned
I am like the good son,
I am restless at night
It’s as if all that’s dear
and precious is waiting to collide
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New Seven Minneapolis, Minnesota
Lyrically driven Americana from Minnesota.
New Seven recommends:
A great songwriter from Minneapolis. This album has some great Americana leaning songs with lyrics that stick with you.
go to album
the little bastard boombox that couldn't or how to write a book of vanishing poems
by ezra triste
This is a haunting record I listen to quite often. You can hear the whirr of the cassette recorder as Ezra Triste lays you low with this short collection of outstanding songs.
go to album
Not all the best songwriters out there sing in English ya know. This is a great, folky EP that is moving even if you don’t understand French.
go to albumIf you like New Seven, you may also like:
Downey to Lubbock
by Dave Alvin
Soulful guitar interplay form the heart of this lovely Americana collaboration from Dave Alvin and Jimmie Dale Gilmore.
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Echo Dancing
by Alejandro Escovedo
The legendary Alejandro Escovedo returns with another country-rock scorcher.
go to album
Play It On The Tannoys
by Stranger The Horse
Rich and carefully-sculpted songs that cross-wire country and roots music with jazz, samba, and more.
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