From the hands it came down
From the side it came down
From the feet it came down
And ran to the ground
Between heaven and hell
A teardrop fell In the deep crimson dew
The tree of life grew
And the blood gave life
To the branches of the tree
And the blood was the price
That set the captives free
And the numbers that came
Through the fire and the flood Clung to the tree
And were redeemed by the blood
From the tree streamed a light
That started the fight 'Round the tree grew a vine
On whose fruit I could dine
My old friend Lucifer came
Fought to keep me in chains
But I saw through the tricks
Of six-sixty-six
And the blood gave life
To the branches of the tree
And the blood was the price
That set the captives free
And the numbers that came
Through the fire and the flood Clung to the tree
And were redeemed by the blood
From his hands it came down
From his side it came down
From his feet it came down
And ran to the ground
And a small inner voice Said "You do have a choice."
The vine engrafted me
Hahahahaha!
(Thug Life bitch, goin out like that)
Once again! Hahaha!
Once again! Hahaha!
(Thug Life bitch)
[2Pac] Y'all can't kill me!
(Goin out like that)
Hahahaha!
[2Pac] Y'all can't kill me! *lower pitch*
[2Pac] Y'all can't kill me! *lower pitch*
[2Pac] Open fire on you niggaz
(Thug Life bitch)
[2Pac] Y'all can't kill me! Hahahaha
(Goin out like that)
Once again! Hahaha!
Once again! Hahaha!
(Thug Life bitch, goin out like that)
[2Pac] Open fire on you niggaz *lower pitch*
[2Pac] Y'all can't kill me! *lower pitch*
Once again! Hahaha!
(Thug Life bitch, goin out like that)
(Thug Life bitch, goin out like that)
[2Pac] Y'all can't kill me!
Once again! Hahaha!
[2Pac] Open fire on you niggaz *lower pitch* [repeats in background]
Once again! Hahaha!
[2Pac] Y'all can't kill me!
[2Pac] Y'all can't kill me! Hahahaha
[2Pac] Y'all can't kill me! *lower pitch*
(Thug Life bitch, goin out like that)
Hahahahaha!
(Thug Life bitch, goin out like that)
Once again! Hahaha!
Once again! Hahaha!
(Thug Life bitch)
Y'all can't kill me!
(Goin out like that)
Hahahaha!
Y'all can't kill me! *lower pitch*
Y'all can't kill me! *lower pitch*
Open fire on you niggaz
(Thug Life bitch)
Y'all can't kill me! Hahahaha
(Goin out like that)
Once again! Hahaha!
Once again! Hahaha!
(Thug Life bitch, goin out like that)
Open fire on you niggaz *lower pitch*
Y'all can't kill me! *lower pitch*
Once again! Hahaha!
(Thug Life bitch, goin out like that)
(Thug Life bitch, goin out like that)
Y'all can't kill me!
Once again! Hahaha!
Open fire on you niggaz *lower pitch* [repeats in background]
Once again! Hahaha!
Y'all can't kill me!
Y'all can't kill me! Hahahaha
Y'all can't kill me! *lower pitch*
From the hands it came down
From the side it came down
From the feet it came down
And ran to the ground
Between heaven and hell
A teardrop fell In the deep crimson dew
The tree of life grew
And the blood gave life
To the branches of the tree
And the blood was the price
That set the captives free
And the numbers that came
Through the fire and the flood Clung to the tree
And were redeemed by the blood
From the tree streamed a light
That started the fight 'Round the tree grew a vine
On whose fruit I could dine
My old friend Lucifer came
Fought to keep me in chains
But I saw through the tricks
Of six-sixty-six
And the blood gave life
To the branches of the tree
And the blood was the price
That set the captives free
And the numbers that came
Through the fire and the flood Clung to the tree
And were redeemed by the blood
From his hands it came down
From his side it came down
From his feet it came down
And ran to the ground
And a small inner voice Said 'You do have a choice.'
The vine engrafted me
And I clung to the tree
White painted walls
Are all that you can see in your room
While you're waiting for redemption
Your mind is full of questions
No one can give you an answer
You're here all alone
No light and no hope
Surrounded by coldness
Your heart's full of guilt
What have you done?
What's your destination?
You are lost in a world
A world without understanding
You hide yourself
Taking what they will feed you
Ingesting lies they claim as true
Reflection, desperation
You pave the path that you tread
Traveling at Light Speed
Manipulation, fueled by Greed
Social Discontent and Hate,
Population regulate
Search and you'll find the answers
To be the change that you want to see
A mind as narrow as the road I walk
Always upright but always wrong
They foresee violation of the law and suicide of remorse
Unreflecting human kind, justification for the crime
Reaction against control
The corporate stranglehold
Tear down their walls of fallacy
Be willing to surrender what you are
For what you could become
Altering your destiny
Traveling at Light Speed
Manipulation, fueled by Greed
Social Discontent and Hate,
Population regulate
Evangelize the simple minds
Tithing from the weak and blind
Arrogate through media
Instigate acedia
Search and you'll find the answers
To be the change that you want to see
Grant the serenity reclaiming honor and dignity
Can't you see what's going wrong?
Don't you feel it growing strong?
Don't let go, keep holding on
Working forces kneel you down
Authority and power ruling out
Mass regimentation
A phenomenon of industrialization
Reaction against control
Striving to attain a common goal
Search and you'll find the answers
To be the change that you want to see
Grant the serenity reclaiming honor and dignity
A mind as narrow as the road I walk
Always upright but always wrong
Working forces kneel you down
Authority and power ruling out
Always upright but always wrong
Always upright but always wrong
Always upright but always wrong
Written by Marty Stuart
Sometimes the only thing to do is turn around and go back home
When every way there is to turn has vanished and is gone
I've used up every trick that I had hidden up my sleeve
Think it's time I reconcile with what I had to leave
In a little country graveyard, in the middle of the night
I'm kneeling by the memory of the one who gave me life
She always knew me better than I'll ever know myself
I keep hearing her and Jesus say "Surrender son and rest"
Redemption, like the moon tonight, hangs pretty, soft and low
And how it's been up until now don't matter anymore
In the middle of this darkness, I see a light that shines
Like a beacon of forgiveness saying "Pilgrim, all is fine"
There's one more journey left for me, that's all that's left to do
And in the dirt he wrote a simple note that said, "momma I love you"
We made it to a strange town
Going down the wrong road
Like any story retold
Couldn't find a common ending
We're way gone, be gone, looking for our own way
We needed a distraction
You said you were redemption
We knew it as a wrong turn
We couldn't know the things we'd gain
When we reach the other border
We look out way down past the road we came from
We're looking for redemption
It was hidden in the landscape
Of loss and love and fire and rain
Never would have come this way
Looking for redemption
We were looking out past the road we came from
Looking at redemption
Hidden in the landscape
Of loss and love and fire and rain
Never would have come this way
Looking for redemption
In the eyes of sorrow, eyes of rage
What a sordid histories they played
The drama of redemption
Four A.M., two hours to go
I'm wearing out a lonely glow
I miss you more than I can know
Here I am, here I am
Won't you keep me?
I've got my hands at redemption's side
Whose scars are bigger than these doubts of mine
I'll fit all of these monstrosities inside
It'll come alive, come alive
With my fist down at your feet
I was running out of mysteries
Insecure and incomplete
Here I am, here I am
Won't you get me?
I've got my hands at redemption's side
Whose scars are bigger than these doubts of mine
I'll fit all of these monstrosities inside
It'll come alive, come alive, alive, come alive
My fears have worn me out
My fears have worn me out
And my fears have worn me out
My fears have worn me, worn me out
I've got my hands at redemption's side
Whose scars are bigger than these doubts of mine
I'll fit all of these monstrosities inside
It'll come alive
I've got my hands at redemption's side
Whose scars are bigger than these doubts of mine
I'll fit all of these monstrosities inside
It'll come alive, come alive
Sometimes the only thing to do is turn around and go back home
When every way there is to turn has vanished and is gone
I've used up every trick that I had hidden up my sleeve
Think it's time I reconcile with what I had to leave
In a little country graveyard, in the middle of the night
I'm kneeling by the memory of the one who gave me life
She always knew me better than I'll ever know myself
I keep hearing her and Jesus say, "Surrender son and rest"
Redemption, like the moon tonight, hangs pretty, soft and low
And how it's been up until now don't matter anymore
In the middle of this darkness, I see a light that shines
Like a beacon of forgiveness saying, "Pilgrim, all is fine"
There's one more journey left for me, that's all that's left to do
I gave up my life
To follow another destiny
To find the hidden sun
The source of spark and the flame
Now the universe is closed
Let the blackening, dissolution start
The aether shining, impurified
Let's burn out the vile from the dark
Vile from the dark
I kneel down and pray
The elements gather around me
Envision my destined path
I can no longer aviod
I see the...
Black sun rising
Fall, material god
Opus Magnum
Seize Redemption
My uprising
Find the sun and the moon
Absolution
Seize Redemption
Unification, the spiritualized
will unlock the gate be unlimited
Unification of man and his god
will limit your life lock the gate
Now the elements are at peace
Come the reddening, gaze upon the sky
Seven planets, silver and gold
The seven metals aligned
And now the...
Black sun rising
Fall, material god
Opus Magnum
Seize Redemption
My uprising
Find the sun and the moon
Absolution
Seize Redemption
Black sun rising
Fall, material god
Opus Magnum
Seize Redemption
My uprising
Find the sun and the moon
Absolution
Intimidation, I stand before you now
Hold my crown, you won't strike me down
A validation of all the blood I spill
Survival of my will
(Pre Chorus)
There's nothing left to say
Yourself you have betrayed
We must try to seize the day
(Chorus)
All the world will hear you
Our voices can't be bound
All the world will hear you
Redemption in the power of the sound
(2nd Verse)
Interpretation of all the thoughts I share
Draw you near, creating all your fear
A brand new nation for those who perservere
The future is so clear
There's nothing left to say
Yourself you have betrayed
We must try to seize the day
All the world will hear you
Our voices can't be bound
All the world will hear you
Redemption in the power of the sound
Sound...the Sound!
(Guitar Solo)
A validation of all the blood I spilled
A validation
All your blood spilt
All the world will hear you
Our voices can't be bound
All the world will hear you
You walked in and drop the bomb you're tellin' me
You got sacked today
Gambled away the money that I put aside
And that Jill is having your baby
Now you're sorry and you want to come clean,
Well thank you anyway
So go ahead now and shoot me redemption
Redemption from you
Did I ever tell you your mother is a bitch
For giving birth to someone like you
Now you're stuck with me
How come you never please me
Tellin' me lies makin' me analyse
Can I have a minute here hey hello
I'm here to tell you bye
See you fuck you
Oh there goes my bell I am going away
I'm gonna get laid but not by you
I'm through with you
I'm goin' away I'm gonna get laid but not by you
I'm through with you
Come on come on
Hold your fucking horses
You can have what is yours
I will slit it cut life short
Ain't nobody's wife no more
My bitch for life if you might come back
You will find me dead bleeding on your floor
Are you sure
You're about to slit your wrists could you first listen to me
So you wanne leave it all behind but then
Always someone's gonna miss you
There is always someone who needs you here so put the knife down
Take a gun instead
So go ahead now and shoot me redemption
Redemption from you
This is what it's gonna be you ain't gonna change no more
That's something I can tell you that's for sure
All you ever say is c'est la vie I'm not gonna take it no more
Come on boy please me
Run away. It's time to break the silence.
You've been in decline for far to long
Seven days you lie awake at night
It's over when you reach the other side.
Don't wait around for someone to leave behind the weight you had to carry
That day may never come.
It's not to late to save you now.
you'll have to make it on your own.
Run away this time,
not a fear inside you will survive,
hope will set you free
Don't wait around for someone to leave behind the weight you had to carry
That day may never come.
It's not to late to save you now.
you'll have to make it on your own.
Can you dig a tunnel through the wall? help yourself find a way out.
Can you dig a tunnel through the wall? help yourself find a way out.
Can you dig a tunnel through the wall? help yourself find a way out.
Can you dig a tunnel through the wall? help yourself find a way out.
find a way out.
Can you dig a tunnel through the wall? Sing the song of redemption.
Don't wait around for someone to leave behind the weight you had to carry
That day may never come.
It's not to late to save you now.
[Music: T.Gustafsson]
[Lyrics: E. Rundqvist, U.Dalegren]
Sometimes I sit and think about all the times I never gave a damn, how =
my actions affected those around, I never stopped to think that anybody =
ever cared about me. I wonder if it is a bit too late to reverse the =
feelings of their hate, I want to say that I apologize, I'm trying to =
redeem myself but I still want to keep my pride. When I think of =
yesterday I can see there's nothing more for me, I want to think about =
tomorrow, time just fades the pages from my book of memories, I want to =
think about tomorrow. The brutal things I said and all the people hurt, =
I hope they forgive me, the brutal things I said and all the people =
hurt, I'm glad those days are gone.
You scratch the surface
I take the plunge
You say it's started
I say it's done
Is this another mountain?
Is this another wall?
Is this another precipice
For me to take a fall?
Should I call surrender?
Should I call to arms?
It's just another question
I can't resolve
I really need a Savior
I need a shining star
I need someone bigger than this
To take hold of my heart
Redeem me...
Falling across forgotten landscapes
Transcending all time and space
Well I've read from this book before but through different lips
Turned by different fingertips
I never learn the lesson until I learn the lesson too late I fold and I start again
Rise up and over and collapsing in
MY SOUL IS RECYCLABLE
Dying and rotting away
To wake up and start a brand new day
Like a bottle brought back then thrown away
My soul's in the process in the cycle of change
MY SOUL IS RECYCLABLE
I've learned these lessons before but I'll be damned
I have forgotten them
I've read from this book before
Falling across forgotten landscapes
Transcending all time and space
Well I've read from this book before but through different lips
Turned by different fingertips
I never learn the lesson until I learn the lesson too late I fold and I start again
Rise up and over and collapsing in
MY SOUL IS RECYCLABLE
Dying and rotting away
To wake up and start a brand new day
Like a bottle brought back then thrown away
My soul's in the process in the cycle of change
MY SOUL IS RECYCLABLE
I've learned these lessons before but I'll be damned
I have forgotten them
They cant stop us
They cant stop us
They cant stop us
They cant stop us
They cant stop us
They cant stop us
They cant stop us
They cant stop
This is my redemption
Nothing left but to forgive you
After all the shit thats happened
My heart is broken my head is confused
But I will, I will keep marchin on
A phoenix rising up to heaven
So I guess I'll see you around
Its the begging a redemption
So god can you hear me
All my people can you hear me
All my haters can you hear me
You cant stop me oh no no no no
Nothing can stop me
So don't let it stop you
Negativity and hate have tried to take me down
But I rise above
Like a phoenix rising
I will rise above
Like a poor man crying
I'm gonna change my luck
No one No one can tell you how to live your life
Baby and no one no one could ever phantom all the strife
Yea oh
So god can you hear me
Mom and daddy can you hear me
All my lovers can you hear me
They couldn't stop me oh no no no no
Oh no no no no
Oh no no no no
They cant stop me
They cant stop you
No hey
So god can you hear me
All my people can you hear me
All my haters can you hear me
You cant stop me oh no no no no
Theres a light at the end of that tunnel
With good vibrations
The happiness, success
Thats whats headed for you
You cant stop me now
st-st-st-stop me now
st-st-st-stop me now
You cant stop me now
st-st-st-stop me now
st-st-st-stop me now
Redemption
And the story has reached the heavens/ And my soul returned to me
Great bards have sung my memory / And my story reached thee.
Alma, your eyes are diamonds in the night
Alma, your heart is running to the light.
And say goodbye, and say goodbye to the magic sword
And return her to the forest of the elven lord.
I thank you mighty sorcerer for the words that saved my mind
I thank you for your guidance, your eyes when I was blind
And the story has reached the heavens/ And my soul returned to me
Toil and labor on the Ark, Noah, God meant it
Scorn and pity's all the world around, you'll ever know
Rain and thunder in the dark, Noah, God sent it
Sing redemption everywhere you go
Praise the Lord, he has led you, Noah
Thirst and hunger on the rock, Moses, God gave you
Pain and sorrows all the world around, you'll ever know
Fire and fury in the cloud, Moses, God save you
Sing redemption everywhere you go
Praise the Lord, he has led you, Moses
Cold and lonely in the ground, Joseph, God left you
Greed and hatred's all the world around, you'll ever know
Pull your coat of colors round, Joseph, God blessed you
Sing redemption everywhere you go
Praise the Lord, he has led you, Joseph
In this cold dark city
Nothing for sure
Ain't nothing for free
The situation's a pity
Everything failing
Just existing
Ventured into places
Where you should not tread
One day you'll wind up missing
And they'll find you dead
It's time you figured out
Sometimes you're not allowed
When it all comes down
Face your conviction
Make you presence felt
They cannot speak for themselves
You were lost and found
Now you preach your religion
A witness to the dead
On the lonely road to redemption
Through this whole situation
Running for cover into the night
Endless confrontation
Something's missing
Something ain't right
Always call to question
Motives meant to pressure
Always take the hard road
Nothing's worth taking
Without a fight
Your judgement is in doubt
This time you're going down
When it all comes down
Face your conviction
Make you presence felt
They cannot speak for themselves
You were lost and found
Now you preach your religion
A witness to the dead
On the lonely road to redemption
It's time you figured out
This time you're going down
When it all comes down
Face your conviction
Never turn around
They welcome resistance
You were lost and found
Now you preach your religion
I trust in you for life to live, and air to breath.
Purity fills my lungs.
I no longer live in solitude.
No longer bound.
My heart beats with great devotion.
This is the start to a new beginning.
On my knees praying for mercy.
Hands raised high, humble and broken. Wanting your grace.
Wanting your security.
Memories of laying facedown, motionless, with such a hollow feeling inside.
Soon I would end this life I was living.
I am just a man with a heart and sinful hands.
I am a fallen victim.
Lord, show me the way. I ask of you Father, let my words be your words.
Let my thoughts be your thoughts.
To you, I give my praise.
Show me the way. Take me in your arms. Never let me go.
Lord, show me the way, as I give myself to you.
Never let me go.
Ive seen things that would make your blood run cold--a raging vigilante brings forth terror--reborn soldier, controlled
Operation--combat ready, blood cold, for protection--armed and hostile, life or death, confrontation--motive lethal, kill you,
For redemption--two hundred dead one thousand wounded--more lambs to the slaughter, human carnage--squeezing off rounds at
Someone with hatred--his head blown off for threatening your life--black hills, red skies, conflict, warfare tactics--increase
Driven hunger, joining forces--chaos, noble hunter, indignation--justice, anger, menace, infiltration--reborn, soldier,
Controlled, operation--combat ready, blood cold, for protection--armed and hostile, life or death, confrontation-- motive lethal,
I should take what's left of this for myself
I've had the pieces stripped
By long hands feeding small minds
And I never thought that this could come back
I failed to do it right
And took long strides into the firing line
And the less I feel alive the less I feel alive
Who lifts the sin from the man?
From the corner of the ring we gave up
The optimist had died, leaving the black side to tow the line
[solo]
Who is the sin from the man, who is the sin?
I've seen the shadows
Of the corners of my mind
And I go there all the time
Am I missing what I might like
I've tasted sin
And it knocked my off my feet
Like a girl I should not meet
But, oh it tasted sweet
To me
And it turned me around
Now I can't hear the sound of my soul
Right where I am
I'm going crazy
Right where I am
I've gone too far
Right where I stand
I plead my case to you
I need redemption
I felt the darkness
Of the places I have been
Things I should not have seen
Now there's nothing left to believe
My innocence
Is something of my past
Guess I knew it would not last
I was chosen by this path
To live
And it turned me around
Now I can't hear the cry of my soul
Right where I am
I hope you'll save me
Right where I am
Have I gone too far
Right where I stand
I hide my face from you
I need redemption
Right where I am
I can't explain how
I got where I am
I am not so proud
Right where I stand
I need to face this truth
I need redemption
I've seen the end
Of all my tears
I'll waste not another day on this
And in the end
I've seen the shadows
Of the corners of my mind
Now I can't hear the cry
Right where I am
I'm going crazy
Right where I am
I've gone too far
Right where I stand
I plead my case to you
I need redemption
Right where I am
I'm going crazy
Right where I am
I've gone too far
Right where I am
I can't stand the look on your face
Don't you know what you've done to me
You'll never take a breath in their presence
As long as I shall live.
You've been dragging me down so long
Rest assured redemptions on its way
We all know you're wrong, so wrong
Tell me why did you think this would fade away.
I've seen that look in your eyes
You're showing all of the signs
You tried so hard
You've been caught red handed.
You led them with false words
And then you left them for dead
And now they're rotting to pieces
You led them with false words
And then we gathered the helpless
Now it's time for redemption.
You had it planned all the lives that you take
To take control is all you crave.
One by one I've gathered
All the problems you made
Pieced them back together
These are the souls to be saved
Now we're marching nails in hand
To reverse the damage
That you've presented to me.
I've seen that look in your eyes
You're showing all of the signs
You tried so hard
You've been caught red handed.
You led them with false words
And then you left them for dead
And now they're rotting to pieces
You led them with false words
And then we gathered the helpless
Now it's time for redemption.
Now we tamed the beast, pierced his hands
They're dripping blood, you've been caught red handed
The burning truth is so clear now
You're wrong, so wrong, and I can't stand it.
You've been dragging me down so long
Redemption's here today.
You led them with false words
And then you left them for dead
And now they're rotting to pieces
You led them with false words
And then we gathered the helpless
I met him at the state store, he was tryin' ta holla
I ain't care if he was old enough to be my father
I knew his wife and went to school with his daughter
He was the boss that I knew went harder
Gave me my first taste bud, I had to take it farther
I mean I had to go harder
I started callin' up his crib just to get him
And I ain't even care, asked his wife if she was with him
Came home late and he got into a fight
And he called me that night
He said he never want to see me on the block
I said, "I don't need you but I need that rock"
I couldn't take it so I had to go see him
Stole my momma car and drove around all evening
And when I found him, I thought that he would lace me
I ain't got no money but you know I'll let you taste me
He pulled his gun out and told me I was stupid
I started crying, prayed to God, he wouldn't do it
Help please, Lord, I plead, just save me
(If you're really there)
Hear the sinner's prayer
(This is my redemption song)
Redemption song
I met this chick in Philly who said she like to sing
I ain't mean it but I said that it was good she had a dream
My daddy used to beat my momma, saw it everyday
So when I got with her I did the same thing
He always used to say, you gotta keep a bitch tamed
So I never let her sing
And every chance I got I told her if she ever left me
I'll kill her, that's how I made her respect me
Forget me, never, made her believe, it don't get no better
I told her it was crazy out there
She said she don't care but she can't stay here
The last time I hit her, she went into the kitchen
I ain't pay her no mind, ain't even know that she was missing
She came out bleeding with her eyes all black
I looked and saw she had something behind her back
She pulled a gun out and told me I was stupid
Dropped to my knees and prayed to god she wouldn't do it
Help please, Lord, I plead, just save me
(If you're really there)
Hear the sinner's prayer
(This is my redemption song)
Redemption song
I really need to know if you are there
If you could just, just hear a sinner's prayer
You could remake me
(Remake me)
Oh, just save me
(Just save me)
I promise if you get me through this, I'll change
I need to be set free
Help please, Lord, I plead, just save me
(If you're really there)
Hear the sinner's prayer
(This is my redemption song)
Redemption song
Forgive me, Father
(Forgive me, Father)
I know I've done wrong
(I know I've done wrong)
But I have nowhere else to turn
(But I have no where else to turn)
So hear me
(So hear me)
And save me
(And save me)
Hey all you people out there
The sun is burning colder
Keep a light on if you're scared
The night is almost over
There will be laughter
When the morning falls on our face
We will be captured
And these chains will melt away
So hey all you angels out there
Forgive me when I forget you
There's a light I hope we share
There are moments when I feel you
Well I hope you listen
To the songs the wounded sing
The sound of redemption
In this broken offering
Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah
Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah
There will be laughter
Hallelujah Hallelujah
The sound of redemption
Hallelujah Hallelujah
I hear the laughter in the songs the wounded sing
Oh my god you came into my life
And turned my world around
I was lost i couldnt see my sight
So i couldnt find my home
So you know Ive smoked some weed
And took some pills and even sniffed some blow
And so i repent
Cus all the blessings ive recieved i know that heavens sent
I never knew when i spit this shit
That every rapper in the world be on some wicked shit
Its like the first time i hit this shit
Say you get the shit but wont admit the shit
You saw me shine the sun lit this shit
On my knees at night askin should i quit this shit
When i first started we were total opposites
I took a stand so you can see all the hypocrites
Salvation for all of my sins through Jesus sacrifice
We live in wicked nation
Im sayin amen cus i dont wanna die
**chorus**
Its all about redemption
Everything i did and what i said
Its all about redemption
If we can forgive we can forget
Its all about redemption
It was him the devil in disguise
With a gun standin right before my eyes
He wanted my life
The wicked shit i speak was never meant for the weak
I'm runnin out of time
Goin out of my mind dodgin demons in the streets
God please give me a sign
Inherit the earth only the children of the meek
So if you realy wanna see my soul in hell
This spittin wicked shit i told the golden tale
My concious catchin heat its gettin old and stale
Its hard to embrace when i hold this hell
If you walk the bloody trail then bring your holy grail
The devil went after my soul but god closed the cell
Even though the wicked shit knows me well
You wont find me on the wagon when it goes to hell
Believe me hell is lonely
Believe me i was there my soul was spared
And dont nobody know me
And only he cares thats why im there
Its raining diamonds
I am scarred from the actions of others
I am scarred from the actions of self
I am scarred by the times
That I held back the storm
With no one to turn to
Nobody else
I have risen beyond what I used to be
I have fought hard to gain what I lacked
But I stil hear the footsteps
Of my failures on my heels
And everything I thought Ieft behind Is clinging to my
back
I've made myself a fortress
In pursuit of all my dreams
But it's built upon my self doubt
And more fragile than it seems
I can struggle to forget
That I've always felt alone
But I can't escape the consequence
Of standing on my own
I've been broken
Nothing can make me whole again
I've been fighting
Battles that can't be won
Drowning in a sea of self-hate
Searching for an answer that never was
I've spent half of my life trying to kill my demons
And I'm frightened that the process
May have turned me into one of them
I've looked into the darkness of my personal abyss
But I feel it staring back
And it sees right through me
I am beaten but unbroken
I am bloodied but unbowed
And these years have left me shattered
But I'll make it through somehow
I think that's probably why
I've been alone all my life
I think that's probably why
I am lost and I'm scared that I can't find my way
I've spent half of my life trying to kill my demons
And I'm frightened that the process
May have turned me into one of them
I've looked into the darkness of my personal abyss
But I feel it staring back
And it sees right through me
Now I struggle to forget
That I've always felt alone
And I can't escape the consequence
Of being on my own
I've been broken
Nothing can make me whole again
I've been fighting
Battles that can't be won
I've been tortured
Shaped into what I am
Scars I've hidden
Through my entiore life
Searching for what
Never was
Drowning in an
Lying here surrounded
By the pieces of my life
Would it all be easier
If I lay be down to die
Dreams piled high
On the back of this broken man
Is this all? Born to fall?
Or to rise again?
So much pain and disillusionment
Everything I once felt sure about
We're all lost if we don't know
It's all a game that we are playing
The motions of all our counterparts
A piece of sinsiter scheme
The puppet that's broken has reason to smile
They can no longer force him to dance on their strings
Why shrug off the chains? If you wrap them about
You'll be sunk to the bottom and drowning
The clockwork behind their smiles
Wound by hands that were made to harm
Just release yourself
Cause they can't rape the willing
Or take waht you have if there's nothing else
Tired of life and filled with despair
And covered with blood from the crosses I bear
But I'm still standing
SHould I make myself crawl?
Seems so counter to our nature
Accepting with grace the things we can't change
But when all's said and done and you're wronged and
deceived
Then it matters tha most what you choose to believe
Should I fight against fate
Or should I just lay down and die?
The puppet that's broken has reason to smile
But the strings can't control you if you walk away
No more tears of disillusionment
I'l be a puppet no longer
The hands that I thought had held me
THe clockwork behind their smiles
They'll not have control over me
I'll stand up and leave them behind
Just release yourself
Cause they can't rape the willing
Or take what you have if there's nothing else
Tired of life and filled with despair
And covered with blood from the crosses I bear
But I'm still standing
Should I make myself crawl?
Just release yourelf
When you're wounded by no one else
Rise above pain, most past my despair
And put down the cross that I've made myself bear
Now I'm still standing
Look at you
You haven't seen anything
Your eyes so white and pure
Without a trace of red
No signs of self-abuse there
And no tears have yet been shed
Just pure
Pure white eyes
Look at you
You don't know anything
Not what the towers looked like
On September tenth
And words like hate and death and politics
Mean nothing yet
They're sounds
They're only sounds
Once, long ago I was young
And I saw the world through innocent eyes
Like a child
But those memories are faded now
And all that I can see is our despair
Look at you
You don't fear anything
Not loss of job, or loss of faith
Or loss of self, you're not afraid
You're not afraid of anything
Not even death itself
Look at you
You haven't learned anything
Not all that people do
In every single way
To hurt each other, harm each other, kill each other
every day
But you will
And nothing I can say or do will stop you
Once, long ago
We were young
And we saw the world through innocent eyes
Like a child
But those memories are faded now
And all that we can see is our despair
And now I finally understand
Why we're told to suffer the little children
They're what we were before we fell
Sweet unruined innocence
And now I finally understand
Why we're told to suffer the little children
They're what we were before we fell
I still remember the sound of your voice calling out my
name
And I still remember my face examining itself, knowing
things would never be the same
I still remember your smiling face across a crowded
room
And I still remember, through the weathering of time,
that first embrace that sealed our doom
Your eyes stare at me, from every storefront
And your voice calls to me from every restaurant
And your laughter pierces me as I stand beneath the
open sky
And your absence murders me as I sleep perchance to die
Seems like to escape is what I ought to do
But every road I take brings me back to you
I am frozen in the moment
clinging to your memory
And I don’t want the ignorance that a spotless mind
would bring
But I’m scared my dying breath may be your name
It’s just like I sang to you – everyone knows that we
live in a world
Where people give bad names to beautiful things
And if it’s really true that people should leave once
they’ve
Got what they came for, I certainly hope that you’re
holding it close to you now
I am frozen in the moment
clinging to your memory
And I don’t want the ignorance that a spotless mind
would bring
But I’m scared my dying breath may be your name
I still remember the sunlight on your face that warm
November day
And I still remember, my heartbeat quickened by desire,
unaware of prices I would pay
I still remember the closing door the night we said
goodbye
And I still remember losing you for good and knowing
that a part of me had died
Seems like to escape is what I ought to do
But every road I take brings me back to you
I am frozen in the moment
(Please do not forget me)
clinging to your memory
('Cause I will not forget you)
And I don’t want the ignorance that a spotless mind
would bring
But I’m scared my dying breath may be your name
Please let me be frozen in the moment
Let me hold on to those memories
And I pray that things will be alright
and I pray you’ll think of me tonight
And I know somehow I’ll be alright
And I hope that you’re the same…
("The truth is, there is something terribly wrong with
this country.")
Leviathan rises
From the ocean of our fear
Falling to our knees we cower
Bequeathing to this edifice
A monopoly of force
This parasitic beast is drunk with power
We've let our fears destroy
Our dignity and freedom
And turned our backs on all
The principles we once held dear
("How did this happen? Who's to blame?
If you're looking for the guilty, you need only look
into a mirror.")
Behemoth rises
From the soils of jealousy
Equality enforced on pain of death
Mistaking mankind's progress
For a dialectic truth
And smothering the spirit that's behind it
From each according to ability we'll give away
To each according to his need
Until the gears grind to dust
Cast off the chains we've made
And refuse to dig our graves
Stand up, the lives we save
Will be our own
Reclaiming liberty
We'll starve the beast
("Fairness, justice, and freedom are more than words,
they are perspectives.")
We've let our fears destroy
Our dignity and freedom
And placed ourselves beneath the heel
Of our own entitlement
Cast off the chains we've made
And refuse to dig our graves
Stand up, the lives we save
Seems only just yesterday
I held you, and sang a song about your eyes
So perfect, and innocent, now failing
My god I'd rather die
Than live with you in pain
Resilient, transcendent, and fearless
I hope you realize just how strong you are
But I'm weak
I just don't know how I'll make it too far
For you I'll have to try
For you I'd give my life
And though it seems I can't go on
For you I'll be strong
Every day
I used to pray
For a miracle
Faith, now giving out
But for you I
Must keep on breathing
Every night
I'll hold you tight
Be sure that you feel me there
Though sometimes I want to give up, for you
I'll keep on breathing
I'll be there at your side
Your strength's my inspiration
For all you'll ever need
I promise I'll be there
Don't you be afraid
You're stronger than you know
You will be all right
You've already won
I'll be there at your side
Your strength's my inspiration
I'll breath for you
And I love you
Thrust your hand into my chest
And pull out a fistful of sand
Cast it down upon the ground
And watch as it blows away
The world keeps spinning ever-on
And dark hair turns to gray
The ticking clock cannot be stopped
And so goes another day
Falling down
Spirit broken
Hollowed out
Never to return
Dig your hand into my eyes
And pull out a fistful of sand
I only see betrayal now
So I'm better blind
It didn't have to be this way
But I can't reclaim my yesterdays
And so I'll let the string play out
As I lie crushed by my self-doubt
Fallen down
Spirit broken
Hollowed out
Never to return
Words mean nothing
Promises were lies
And my life's hourglass
Empties out before my eyes
One life
One chance
A single invitation to the dance
Choose wise
Choose well
Good intentions pave the road to hell
Words mean nothing
Promises were lies
And my life's hourglass
There’ll come a time when love outlasts my insecurities
And I’ll be unafraid that you’re not here with me
I hold on
And I face another day
I hold on urgently to you
I let go
And my fears begin to fade
and now with pride we watch you make your way
Clouds overhead
lightning strikes and the thunder roars and I can only
hope
I’ve given you some shelter
you know it’s a stormful world and rain will fall on
Run faster now
don’t look back ‘till you’re far away
the hands that
Harm will try to drag you into shadow
you know it’s a sunless world and darkness falls on you
It’s getting close to midnight and soon you’ll have to
leave the haven of our comforting arms
I can feel you searching in the darkness and I hear you
calling out my name
Search yourself for the part of me still with you
My presence there will never fade
Walls tumble down
you can hide but you know they’ll find you, and I can’t
There every moment for protection
you know it’s a hostile world and hate may follow you
Outcomes an never be certain, but life is a
Chance that you take, and all that I
Can do is help you brace for it
Light overhead
storm clouds part and the darkness fades and in the
stillness of a
New dawn you’re still standing
you know it’s a frightening world and it’s a confusing
World, but you know that I have to believe you will
find the goodness in it
with your heart
And soul as compass I will pray you find your way and
that happiness will follow close behind… and peace will
[m/l van Dyk]
Johnny knows why he was spared in Vietnam
God has a reason for his sacrifice
Johnny knows David thinks it all will fall on him
But the message is clear and he knows he has a purpose
The writer descends into the heart of the mine
Down to the bottom of the well of souls
Falling through darkness, bloodied and broken
He spreads the explosives as death takes hold
Johnny stands a final time as his life slips away
Tak screams in anger and commands that he stop
But the heart of the unformed can no longer sway him
And he finishes his life's last task
God can be everything, God can be cruel
Sometimes He makes us live
Carrying a burden for thirty three years
They are no longer his sins to forgive
With the smoke of the ini rising up in the sky
Destroyed by the power of daylight
The four survivors leave the nightmare behind them
And head toward the open highway
In the back of the car sits a folder of photos
Materializ4ed out of nowhere
The handwritten label says they're from David's school
But the writing is in Johnny's hand
Two different lives. somehow intertwined
Two vantage points of a parallax view
Heaven and Earth, somehow connected
Giving a glimpse of the eternal truth
As he opened the folder, and pulls out the picture
Young David Carver's astonished
The picture's of Johnny and David's dead sister
Although they have never met
In the picture they're standing on the very street
Where David's friend Brian lay dying in his arms
Written at their feet, are the words First John 4/8
And Mary asks David what it means.
God is Love
God can be everything, God can be cruel
Sometimes He makes us live
Carrying a burden for thirty three years
They are no longer his sins to forgive
God can be everything, God can be cruel
Sometimes He makes us live
Carrying a burden for thirty three years
[m/l van Dyk]
Hiding in the theater, listening to Tom
Telling whitewashed lies about the China Pit
Whatever has happened, started when they opened it
And brought out the carvings from the deepest part
David leaves the others and falls asleep while praying
A vision of sister then appears to him
Sent by God to show him, the truth of what transpired
And what the few survivors have to do
The Chinese came, and were made slaves
Deep in the mine they broke through, to the
Pirin Moh, the home of Tak
The Heart of the Unformed
The red eye of Ini, where its evil lies
Smoke from it drove the men mad
And they murdered each other, except for two brothers
Who caused the cave-in as they escaped?
Blamed for the cave in, and hung by the town
But Tak is one of them and swears his revenge
A hundred years later, the mine is reopened
And the madness begins again
Bodies wear out, but the souls must survive
Evil and good are eternal
The path of the truth is much crueler than lies
But it sacrifices us in the end
Mary hears a voice, and goes to seek it out
She thinks that she hears Ellen Carver somewhere near
But Ellen's rotting body is the vessel now for Tak
Who captures her and takes her back to the mine
David explains the truth to the others
Tak from the well of souls, another dimension
Took Collie's body, the evil awakened
And now the must destroy this affront to God
Bodies wear out, but the souls must survive
Evil and good are eternal
The path of the truth is much crueler than lies
But it sacrifices us in the end
Johnny now recalls, what really happened in Nam
Tak was in the Vietcong that planned the bomb
Could have warned the others were he less concerned with stealth
But he sprinted from the building and only saved himself
Deep inside the author knows
The boy is right and their path is clear
He finds a God he never knew
Closes his eyes and prays
Bodies wear out, but the souls must survive
Evil and good are eternal
The path of the truth is much crueler than lies
But it sacrifices us in the end
Bodies wear out, but the souls must survive
Evil and good are eternal
The path of the truth is much crueler than lies
[m/l van Dyk]
Years of writing books
Long behind him now
A nihilistic confidence and a smile upon his face
Johnny Marinville and his Harley through the desert
One last ride to make him feel young again
He came back from Vietnam
Only one to escape the bomb
That tore apart the bar in which he drank with hi friends.
Living with the question
Of why he was the sole survivor
Fighting the dreams that plague him
And wondering when they'll end
This cynic smiles and feels the wind
As he speeds by the policeman on the road
He stopped and beaten, thrown in the cell
With the others the bleeding cop has found
Collie takes the one
The boy's mom Ellie
And drags her screaming away
Young David Prays to the God he found
When his friend, run-down, lie dying in his arms
And with his faith, the boys escapes
And frees the desert's other captives
The stumble across
David's dead sister
And they bury her with tears in their eyes
Only boy, only a man
Drawn together in God's plan
In the desert, purposes emerge
All are here to love and serve
All across this desert town
They see the butchered bodies of the dead
What could have caused this hell on earth?
Just what evil made this madness happen?
As even as they hide
Tak returns
[m/l van Dyk]
Peter and Mary, drive cross-country
Entering Desperation, Nevada
Red lights flash and their destines changed
As the patrol car pulls behind them
Collie Etrangian, arm of the law
Stops them and searches the back of their car
There in the trunk, some drugs in a bag
And they find themselves arrested
Pulled them over, to the side of the road
With a body that's bloated and bursting; too old
"We'll get this sorted out in Desperation
Tak!
Hated is burning, under his skin
And an evil power that eats from within
He bleeds from his eyes as he drives them by
The biggest mine in North America
Technology working anew in the depths
The soul of the mine now disturbed from its rest
Answers will be found in Desperation
There's a little dead girl, lying on the steps of the jail
And Collie guns down Peter as he stares into her eyes
The Carver family hears the shot from the cell
And wonders why their daughter had to die
Ralph and Ellie Carter, and their son, David, too
Staring from within the cell like animals in a zoo
Something brought them here to Desperation
With them is Tom, the only one from the town
His alcoholic's spirit is beaten and worn down
Bind to me – keep me in the shadows of your life
Terrified – frightened I might step into the light
Drinking deep from wells of bitterness within your soul
Holding fast to self-deluding visions of control
You’re convinced that when you’re done and the day is
through
The applause was just for you
Paranoid – jealousy is all you’ve come to know
Pettiness – make a friend into another foe
And now everything is done, and the day is through
Now there’s no one left for you
Twist the blade inside of me and bleed me dry
‘Cause there’s nothing you can say to me to make things
how they used to be again
I have built a better life without your lies – and I
will not be broken
I don’t need your blessing now
I don’t need your fantasies
All your fictions don’t sustain me anymore
Breaking bonds, I’m setting myself free
Blind to yourself and to see you pushed away
Empty-handed and alone now at the end of the day
All of your misguided claims are dead to me – did you
think I’d let
Another day dies in the world I've made
It's a tragic and unsung passing
The zero sum game of the time I've left
Claims another victim
Looking at all of the things I broke
And the verses of songs unsung
Thinking that things could be different
If I'd only tried
Hands trembling
Sweat breaking on this brow
Exhausted now but the
Nightmares just won't let me sleep
Another night falls on the world you've made
And it's as black as a hate-filled heart
Strangle the love and reject the call
To rebuild this place
Encourage the strong to deny the weak
As you callously play your part
Devour the pain of the ones you've hurt
And spit it in their face
Hands shaking
Tears welling in these eyes
I turn away but the
Visions still presist
How far we've strayed
From supposed to be
We've chosen black instead of light
There's something else here for you and me
If we're prepared to fight
A new day dawns on the world we've made
And its filled with fear and wonder
The way it plays out will be up to us
And somehow, I'm still hopeful
Still standing
Resolve within my heart
Take these broken arms
And build
How far we've strayed
How far we've strayed
There's something else
Pile the bodies higher
Climb to the top so the world can see
The depth of your sympathy
Worn as it is upon your sleeve
Where's the true compassion
In this vapid, sickly cult
Of worshipping celebrity?
Struck with my mortality
Dazed by the reality
Forced upon my eyes
Dying from the time we're born
But few are prepared
To be told it's time
Tell my friends I fought
Tell my friends I struggled
Tell my friends I gave it all I had
There won't be any tickets to this funeral
(The curtain is falling)
There won't be any story in the news (silenced)
No voyeurs masquerading as mourners
There won't be any tickets left for you
A single one's a tragedy
A million a statistic
Reflection
A mirror held upon a life
As the minutes turn to hours
Hours blurring into days
Attention
To all the things left undone
To the words we were too afraid to say
As each passing second slips away
Let it rain
Wash away the poison
The stains of past misdeeds subside
Let the water bring life
In a world of second chances
No surrender to the plague inside
Asking just to start anew
Contemplating irony
A body fed with venom
Seeking life from death
Searching
Searching for the meaning
Can the lessons learned unburden the struggle
For one fortunate enough to have the chance
Fortunate enough to start again
The road unfolds before us all
But where it leads no one can see
So walk without regret and without fear
But never lose your empathy
I'm seeing what I can only hope
Is light ahead
I'm standing, with an ever-growing faith
That now is not my time
My eyes grow tired
Of trying to focus
On lines that always change with time
Blurred into nothing
Words that have no meaning
Another careless failure
Comes to pass
This pressure won't let me go
It's buried inside
No home to run to
Nowhere to hide
Redemption means everything
But it's out of my reach
No way to hold on
And no way to leave.
My eyes grow tired
Of trying to focus
On words that always fall apart
Burned down to nothing
Broken dreams that won't be
Another careless failure
Comes to pass
My mind grows tired
Of trying to focus
On dreams that always change with time
Turned into nothing
Thoughts that have no feeling
Another careless failure
The stresses of all these years
Their toll is manifest
Never felt
But now revealed
As I'm put to the test
This manufactured world of pain
Brings shock to the system
That rearranges DNA
Into a code of death
Evidence now introduced
The provenance is clear
Carelessness brings changes
If one is cavalier
If everything's in balance
Our bodies respond
Bur challenges emerge as life goes on
Women cry as children become men
And all that I can do is try to set things right again
Fear and doubt, confronted by our end
But all that we can do is try to become whole again
Witness the parallels
Between life and cells
Under stress to divide
Trying to conform
To what might seem the norm
This could be anything
This could be everything
Don't let a fantasy
Keep you from being free
We all dream of how things could be
(Dream of how things could be)
But the wise make peace with reality
Girl, we're just wasting time
Come and see what we find
On the other side
We all dream of how things could be
(Dream of how things could be)
But the wise make peace with reality
We should devour life
Suck the marrow from each day
But so many times
We stand in our own way
And make the perfect the enemy of the good
Perfect
We all dream of how things could be
(Dream of how things could be)
But the wise will embrace the good
We all dream of how things could be
(Dream of how things could be)
[m. van Dyk: l. van Dyk/Schooling]
As I lay dying I saw the eyes
The eyes of God. Thy kingdom come
A force so strong pulled me along
As I lay dying
As I lay dying I laughed as I
Had never laughed before
At circumstance and the evened score
As I lay dying
As I lay dying I touched the air
Felt the chill, the blinding stare
Of my mind's eye, began to cry
As I lay dying
As I lay dying I felt so strange
Although I bleed, I feel no pain
And just like life it seems insane
But now I'm dying
Look at your soul in the mirror
Every choice you've made is etched upon its face
Epitaph carved by your actions
Are we searching for a different state of grace?
No one is sure of the answer
Is this just a waiting room for something else?
How can you measure life?
Is it something we must lose to find ourselves?
Will it just go on
After I am gone?
I saw above my heaven
And beneath as well
The threat of hell
When the dying's over
When the last tear falls
When the empty wells overflow
To fill us all
We'll see it with our very own eyes
Very own eyes and we'll realize
We're alive for the very first time
The very first time
Burdens we have carried
Melt away like snow
Loved ones gone before us
Welcome us home
We'll see it with our very own eyes
Very own eyes and we'll realize
We're alive for the very first time
The very first time
Someday we will remember how to fly
Then we will rise like embers burning bright
Everything broken will be whole again
We are the ransomed
We are the redeemed
We are the bride and shall forever be
Loved from the start without end
It will not end
We'll see it with our very own eyes
Very own eyes and we'll realize
We're alive for the very first time
We can find that we have wandered so far from the path
We can find that we've lost sight of all of the things we really had
Now I've reached this destination, but I wonder where I've come
Where's the goal that I once dreamed of at a time when I was young?
As the earth gives way beneath my feet
And I stumble blindly all alone
Through an isolated plane of fear
Haunted by the dreams that I disowned
When the hourglass seems out of sand
And nothingness seems close at hand
You'll remember all you really had
And it brings things into focus
I can put aside the phantoms
Conjured by the sirens' songs
I can strive to find the meaning
And learn I knew it all along
I can look back to the life I had
And the things I wanted for myself
I can turn and try to walk the path
And ignore the search for something else
But if all we have is just one try
I want to live before I die
Does there have to be a reason why?
Would it bring things into focus?
So if all I have is just one try
I have to live before I die
I'm not sure I need a reason why
Just to bring things into focus?
But the hourglass seems out of sand
And nothingness seems close at hand
And I think of all I really had
Lately when I sleep perchance to dream
I'm driven to the brink of madness
By the things I've seen
With perfect clarity I see
From all the chapters of my life
Faces staring at me
Mocking me with laughter full of spite
Falling deeper into this sea of doubt
My lungs are filling up
And it seems there's no way out
When I wake and I reflect on what I've dreamt
I can't shake the penetrating
Stares that haunt me with contempt
I've been judged and been found wanting
By a jury of my fears
And this feeling of such worthlessness
Is tearing me to pieces
Falling deeper into this sea of doubt
My lungs are filling up
And it seems there's no way out
I never saw the thread as it was sewn
Connecting all those faces I had known
But somehow now they all respond in kind
I'm struck down like a child
And I'm afraid I'll lose my mind
Please release me
I don't want to feel this any more
I'm terrified that this could be
A glimpse of what's in store
At Peter's Gate
I can't shake it
I've been judged and been found wanting
And I'm worthless
Falling deeper into this sea of doubt
My lungs are filling up
And it seems there's no way out
Falling deeper into this pit of dreams
The nightmares stay with me
[m. van Dyk: l. Boyarsky]
There's a kid who sees the world
A selfish kid: a good kid: a good kid
By his own means he knew the price of life
By his own means he knew the price for you
He must reveal it now, but to who?
A cluttered world. A damaged world
A lost world he lives in
He stammers for the door but it is shut
Get out of the bars young one
Reach for the stars young one
Reach for the stars and be free
Seek shelter in voices you hear in the night
Rid yourself of the world that surrounds you
They didn't care
Now you should go
Seek to find all that is
Reach high for life
"I'll search for answer and I'll search for friend
And I'll search for you 'til I'm gone.
Now I must go be free."
Climb towards the sun and burn your fingers on life
If you're lucky you'll burn your body and soul
Remember the dreams, remember the visions
Remember the morals and values you had
And never forget the view from above
"Shatter me true 'til I'm gone and alone;
heal me 'til I'm whole"
See her lying there in the shade
Listening to the sounds of the green
Wishing, waiting, wanting so bad
She seeks the knowledge of the dream you once had
And wonders if you can recall that day
You stood in the park while it got dark
And conversed among the souls of the dead
One hundred billion people sifting through the sands
Looking for love and searching for truth
How misguided they've become since their youth
Become since their youth
Twisted and rotting and smelling of death
Their minds lie wasted and yearning for breath
And wanting and wanting some air
They crumble and fall onto the ground in despair
And the gods look from the heavens
And the men look from their graves
And the gods cry "Damn!" and a light flashes forth
Silence is fallen all over the land
And a black void settles over the night
From the filth and the blood and the crowd does emerge
An angry young man with a poem in hand
A prayer in his head
A blessing in heart
And an answer to all on the tip of his tongue
"Let the smoke clear
Look upwards my friends
See the beginning of life
See life's tragic ends
And never forget the boys who have died
For a cause not their own but of the wise"
We still survive but the sun has been lost and it falls to blaze
Lost in pollution's excretion of haze
Individuals do emerge but so few and apart
They are unseen by the evil and stark
And the landscape that bears the immortals who share
Who give of themselves and receive only care
The care of one hundred trillion people in space
And the care of one hundred billion who live on the place
The ones far out and the ones who discover
Are the ones who inspire a man and his lover
From the dawn of time to the reaches of space
Companionship and trust are the keys to fate
We want to fear all of the knowledge that we lust
Why do we work? Why do we play?
Why do we kill? Why do we live?
I want to be happy and I want to know sad
I want to have knowledge and I want to be dumb
I wish for the day, and it will come
That I know all the answers
And I know what to be and I know what to search for
And I know where to achieve
And there it shall lie
My corpse in the gutter
With knowledge and love
And the taste of the better
I don’t know how to finish what’s begun
Or how long I might wonder if it’s done
Windows open when the doors are all closed
But if you step through them, you might forget the way
back home
I was drawn, I was taken over Rubicons
All the while never realized I was gone
Windows opened when the doors were all closed
I stepped through and now I forget the way back home
Someone introduce me to the man I used to be
I can feel him struggling deep inside of me
I swear if it takes me until my dying day
That somehow I will find my way again
I have faltered, I have sacrificed, everything I once
held dear
Windows opened when the doors were all closed
I stepped through them and lost my way
Somehow I know I’ll be back again – I know I can save
myself
I will find I’m back again
the man I used to be
I will
Find I’m reconciled with what I’ve hoped to be
I’ll build a bridge to what I’ve lost and I will find
my way
You and I alone
Standing on shaky ground
Wondering what became of yesterday
Everything seemed simple then
We fit together hand in glove
But now everything has changed
Somewhere in our past we
Strayed and lost our way
Now I search for us
But we're not here
Looking at you now
You're so far away
Our connection's lost
Looking at me now
I can't recognize myself
I can't count the cost
Somewhere up ahead perhaps our
Roads will cross again
Somewhere maybe hope is still alive
There's an emptiness within
And an isolation here
That I never thought I'd feel
With you beside me
There's a coldness to your touch
And there's nothing in my heart
And the life we made is hanging by a thread
There's an emptiness within
And an isolation here
That I never thought I'd feel
With you beside me
There's a coldness to your touch
And there's nothing in my heart
[I. Rage:]
Struck down by the persons that I trusted
Robbed of dignity and left for dead
I can feel unmeasurable anger building in me
Emptiness and rage begin to burn inside my head
Once I was a person withoug malice
Once my heart bled red instead of black
Friends with one hand held behind their backs carried
knives
Didn't see the blades 'till tehy were buried in my back
Sleep with one eye open
Knowing that I'm watching you
Listen for my footsteps on every darkened street
Like a call for help unanswered
You can scream but no one hears your voice
No one there to save you
As I take my just revenge
I can hear your laughter
I can see you think you've won
But I don't know how you live
With no remorse for waht you have done
You claimed you were my friend
All the while you planned to murder me
You claimed that I imagined all the things you'd done to
You'll pay for being so destructive
Youll beg for compassion
[III. Release:]
Lying here surrounded
By the pieces of my life
Would it all be easier
If I lay be down to die
Dreams piled high
On the back of this broken man
Is this all? Born to fall?
Or to rise again?
So much pain and disillusionment
Everything I once felt sure about
We're all lost if we don't know
It's all a game that we are playing
The motions of all our counterparts
A piece of sinsiter scheme
The puppet that's broken has reason to smile
They can no longer force him to dance on their strings
Why shrug off the chains? If you wrap them about
You'll be sunk to the bottom and drowning
The clockwork behind their smiles
Wound by hands that were made to harm
Just release yourself
Cause they can't rape the willing
Or take waht you have if there's nothing else
Tired of life and filled with despair
And covered with blood from the crosses I bear
But I'm still standing
Should I make myself crawl?
Seems so counter to our nature
Accepting with grace the things we can't change
But when all's said and done and you're wronged and
deceived
Then it matters tha most what you choose to believe
Should I fight against fate
Or should I just lay down and die?
The puppet that's broken has reason to smile
But the strings can't control you if you walk away
No more tears of disillusionment
I'l be a puppet no longer
The hands that I thought had held me
THe clockwork behind their smiles
They'll not have control over me
I'll stand up and leave them behind
Just release yourself
Cause they can't rape the willing
Or take what you have if there's nothing else
Tired of life and filled with despair
And covered with blood from the crosses I bear
But I'm still standing
Should I make myself crawl?
Just release yourelf
When you're wounded by no one else
Rise above pain, most past my despair
And put down the cross that I've made myself bear
Now I'm still standing
[II. Despair:]
Left now
Alone with your betrayal
There's no way to feel secure
Anymore
Broken
Crushed in soul and spirit
With no way to set things right again
Gone
You have stolen everything I ever had
And I'm left with nothing more than pain
And I know I'll never trust the way that I once did
You have taken all my dreams
And turned them to ashes in my mouth
Starving
Searching for some comfort
Left to choke on my despair
Blinded
My faith and friendship shattered
The road I've walked for my whole life
Has brought me to this crossroads
And I'm standing here beside you.
I know you've never been someone
To take things on a leap of faith
Please trust me once and never cry again.
Hold my hand
We can this slowly
And see where it might lead
Going into
Going into
Going into
Going into you
And everything seemed to make sense
The first time that things seemed to fall in place
Just for a little while
And now my hopes and dreams
Are falling down.
Claw out my eyes, I'd rather be blind
Than to see you turn around and walk away from me
Tear off my ears, I'd rather be deaf
Than hear you say goodbye.
The lucky ones will never
Share what we've shared
For I'm damned to know exactly
just what might have been
Can't somebody stop this?
I feel like I'm drowning
And everywhere I turn
The water's deeper.
It would tear out my heart
To be nothing more to you
Than a smile that occasionally
Crosses your face
Twentyfive years from now
What will we have?
A pile of ash
Of what could have been
Treasures can slip through your fingertips
And sapphires melt in your hand
As I gaze in your jaded eyes
I pray that this world isn't ending
Walking down this road
I thought I felt you hold my hand
But looking I can see my palm is empty.
How can you turn from me?
All that I wanted
Was to catch the stars and lay them at your feet.
It would tear out my heart
To be nothing more to you
Than a smile that occasionally crosses your face
Treasures can slip through your fingertips
And sapphires melt in your hands
You turn to me with your jaded eyes
And I'm scared that I know how this ends.
And everything fell into place
But now it is falling apart
I'm trying to hold on
But I can see you fading.
Be quick
Or you missed it
Sometimes when our backs are turned
A choice is made
Once in a lifetime
If you didn't see it coming
Then you're much too late
This self-constructed prison
Is comfortable and warm
But I can't escape the feeling
That there must be something more.
Everything we've been through
Has made us who we are
Has brought us here
And now the choice is ours to make
I'm begging you
I'm pleading on my knees
I can't believe that this was just a big mistake.
From jewl gem-stoned memories
To jaded guarded energies
To just gentle victory
I know we couldn't last
Tell me what I've got to do
Tell me what I've got to do
To get inside your heart.
Where do we go
When there are no more conspiracies?
When there's only you and only me
Seeing each other for the very first time.
I pledge myself
If you stumble I will carry you
And wipe away your tears
If you were mine.
And I'm holding out for a miracle
But I'm scared to let go of the blood in my hand
And afraid that I've run out of time for a second chance.
I wanna drown myself in your eyes
I wanna drown myself
I wanna believe
But I'm scared that your lying.
Please tell me there's hope
For the ghost of a second chance
For the ghost of a second chance.
Chances are meant
Meant to be taken
But my life's so fragile
And it's breaking into pieces.
Somebody help me
I feel like I'm dying
And I reaching for your hand
But it's not there.
And I pray that we know what we're missing
And we'll never imagine what might have been
But twenty five years from now
I'll still hold on
To a fading dream of me and you
Of me and you.
Treasures have slipped through my fingertips
And the sapphires melted from my hand
I'll never forget the look in your eyes
When you lied and said this wasn't ending
Treasures have slipped through my fingertips
And the sapphires melted from my hand
I say goodbye to your jaded eyes
I've been peeling away the layers
Digging to the center
Trying to find some common thread to follow
Turning to face the mirrors
In deepening reflection
But all the answers seem to be so hollow
Face buried
Hands clawing at the sand
I've built myself this fortress
But now the walls are cracking
I've been sifting through the pieces
Searching for a pattern
Trying to find some hidden sense of purpose
Going down blind alleys
Has me putting out my eyes
'cause I don't have the will to see what's there
Face covered
I'm shutting out the world
Retreating in this shell
And waiting for the blackness
Would I know peace of mind?
Is it true?
Would you know what you'd find
If you searched for it, too?
What you do depends on you
So explore
What I'll be depends on me
And what's there at the core
I look into my eyes
And nothing gazes back
Shadows without substance
[m. Versailles/Roy/van Dyk: l. Roy/van Dyk]
When we enter its domain
Will the answers follow
Or will the wind and rain
Predict tomorrow
Or will they combine
And dictate our fears
Feeding our minds
The violence here
We can end the apathy
Nocturnal
When we enter the darkness
Will our heart lead the way
In the land of thoughtless
Or will you just fan the flames
Or will they combine
And dictate our fears
Feeding our minds
The violence here
We can end the apathy
Nocturnal
We can end the apathy
Nocturnal
The blackest night before the dawn
Look at me – deep into weathered eyes that have
Seen too much of the world and far too many
Failings in myself
Look at me – deep into bones of glass
Shards of mirrors reflecting all the dark events of my
life
If something doesn’t kill us, it just might make us
stronger
But I don’t think I can make myself
Hold on for too much longer
Look inside – deep in the heart of one who is close to
losing faith
But praying that his faith will see him through
Look inside – deep in a mind reviewing unanswerable
questions
About what lies ahead
Am I falling away from what really matters,
And teetering on the brink of disaster
At a moment in time if we turn the other way
Every summer leads to fall
And we give your hearts
Hoping there's no chain of consequence
And there's nothing I can do
To change my past mistakes
That built up these barriers between us
I know the truth is something we can't run from
But I know you do your best
I feel you running every day
So many things you don't want to believe in
And all I'm left with knowing
Is eventually, love kills us all
Seems so strange to think of
A time before we met
Before I knew the meaning
Of love or of regret
You're hiding, I'm searching
I'm holding out my heart for you to take
I'm losing, but I'm fighting
Because I know our future is at stake
Can you live your life in one day
Cause I don't know what more I've got to offer
A transient connection
Just a flash and then it's gone
And only I remain
Snow fell on the platform
Of that train on Boxing Day
Falling into your arms
Is where I'd hoped to stay
Your heart protected
And I've got only emptiness inside
Now I've lived my life in one day
I don't know what more I have to wait for
An element reacting
Just a flash and then it's gone
And only I remain
Something stirred the embers
In this long dead heart
Beautiful and simple
But much too far apart
We only had a moment
But this I know is true:
If you close your eyes - remember it
I'll be there with you
Won't you take my hand for just one day
I'll give you everything I've got to offer
A transient reaction
Just a flash and then it's gone
A solitary moment
But the memory still lingers on
And I would go through anything
Just to feel that way again
Can you see past this place
Where our failings took us unaware?
I have dreams of a future brighter than the past
Faith sustain me
Take away my fear
Hope reclaim me
Wipe these sins away
Love renew me
Give me strength to cross the gap between
Denial and the truth that burns so bright
It blinds my eyes
I have been to a darker place
Than I had thought I’d ever go
Your voice calling out to me
And now I know
Oh it's been too many times and I can't go back
Night bars, guitars, rundown motels like shacks
What it mounts up to I don't want it at all
Lost you and I want you today
Misty green and blue
Love to love to love you
Misty green and blue
Love to love to love you
To be something, to be near you
Don't say that you'll never know
Love to love to love you
Half the time it could seem funny
The other half is just too sad
This west bound moon's they rise and fall
Lost you and I want you today
Misty green and blue
Love to love to love you
Misty green and blue
Love to love to love you
To be something, to be near you
I don't know where I'm goin' to
I've tried and I need you to stay
Push the needle in my arm and give me poison
I can take whatever comes, I will not bow
This is just another battle in the war
And I will scratch and claw with everything I have
And I won't pay the ferryman -- I won't be taken to the other side
And you have to know (your threats have all become so hollow)
I am so much stronger now (like strawmen falling apart)
And I have the will (birth has always been a terminal condition)
To fight until the final beat of blood escapes this heart
(I am steeled, spirit strong with resolve in my heart)
Pull the marrow from my bones and then destroy it
I can will myself to overcome this all
Give me everything you've got, I defy you
I will break you and will laugh as you go down
And I will not gently to the night
Death where is your victory
I've struck you down
The truth for all to see
You tried to kill me...but I've killed you
And you have to know
I am so much stronger now
And I have the will
To fight until the final beat of blood
And you have to know
I am so much stronger now
And I have the will
To fight until I've crushed you
I am steeled; spirit strong
I can't believe my ears
I can't believe my eyes
The silent beast within
Is this my time to die?
Was it something that I did?
Or that I left undone?
Did the hand of fate
Just strike me down
There's nowhere I can run
As I'm told what I must do
And what they'll do to me
I'm not sure I can take this
But I have no choice
Sprinting towards the cliff
Closer to the edge
Death itself gives chase
And I can't find my voice
Find my voice
Everything's changed now
No matter the outcome
It can't be the same again
No way to go back
All I ever knew
Laid waste in an instant
In the blink of an eye
Life can pass you by
Oh no, here it comes again
The wheel comes 'round
[Japanese edition track]
[Tori Amos cover]
So I ran faster
But you caught me here
Yes my loyalties turned
Like my ankle
In the seventh grade
Running after Billy
Running after the rain
These precious things
Let them bleed
Let them wash away
These precious things let them break
Their hold over me
He said you're really an ugly girl
But I like the way you play
And I died
But I thanked him
Can you believe that
Sick, sick, holding on to his picture
Dressing up every day
I wanna smash the faces of those beautiful boys
Those Christian boys
So you can made me cum
That doesn't make you Jesus
I remember
Yes in my peach party dress
No one dared
No one cared
To tell me where the pretty girls are
Those demigods
With their nine-inch nails
And little fascist panties
Tucked inside the heart
Of ever nice girl
These precious things
Let them bleed
Let them wash away
These precious things
Let them break
I swear this room is empty
But I can hear the voice
And eyes are crawling on me just like flies
Calling into question
Every thought and choice
Telling me that all I know is lies
Dejected and disgusted,
I'm inclined to give it up
What's the use? Why go on? It all means nothing
I'm starting to think I've been deceived
And there's no reason to believe
And all has failed, there's no relief
The tempting whispered thoughts of the Noonday Devil
Am I beyond redemption?
Sick beyond repair?
Is all this just a futile exercise?
If everything's a failure
Then it's more than I can bear
To stumble on in search of some false prize
Tear me down, use me up
Break my will, and watch me fall
Wear me out, let me go – the flesh...the flesh is weak
No! I refuse
No! I can do this
No! I will fortify my will
Into an iron tower
I'll put those thoughts out of my head
I won't be given up for dead
I'll focus on the road ahead
Get behind me now
Faith deserts us all sometimes
And demons infiltrate our minds
But I'm not gonna lose this time
Emerging into the light
A thousand empty pages
Left to me to write
And I won't subjugate my dreams to mortality
I won't live every day I have as if it is my last
But I'll live each to the full
The poison stops, its work is done
I'm half surprised that I'm still standing
I've returned to the road
That I was on before this happened
Seems so long ago
The pale horse skulks away
Its rider empty-handed
It's not about some act of courage
I only did what I was forced to
My will to live was stronger than
The will to die that I once had
But that I have let go
Never to return
The preciousness of life
The lesson that I've learned
That I've learned, that you've learned
And that we all are learning still
(Where is your victory? where is your sting?)
I've looked death in the eye
Turned and walked away
There's nothing left to fear
I have stood in the path of the tornado
Where life goes by in the blink of an eye
And they won't be selling tickets to my funeral, no tickets
I've dreamt them, I've dreamt them, the nightmares from the pit
I have broken the back of the noonday devil
I've crushed the skull of the devil
Let it rain, keep raining now, keep raining now,
Keep raining now, keep raining now
I've have brought my life in focus, I've brought my life in focus
And it's perfect enough for me, it's perfect enough for me,
It's perfect enough me
I will begin again, I will begin again
I'm stronger than death
What will you say about me?
Will you say I was a good man?
That you felt my love and that you loved me too
What will you say about me?
Will you say that it was perfect
Or it wasn't worth the pain I put you through?
Seems so strange
We just let this slip away
One day in the arms of another
When you're close enough to share
The dreams you'd wished would be
What will you say about me?
What will you tell him about me?
Will you say that we were soulmates
And you knew our lives were meant to be as one?
What will you think about
When you've a family all your own?
Will you wonder where your other half has gone?
Happines
Slips like sand between our fingers
Never to return
One day in the arms of another
When you're close enough to share
The dreams you'd wished would be
What will you say about me?
One day (one day)
Far apart from each other
Will you think about the chance for love you threw
away?
What will you say?
We had more than most have dreamed
And I cannot conceive
The reasons that you couldn't let it be
And as the years go by
And we live out our lives
I'll always wonder why
You wouldn't spend yours here with me
One day in the arms of another
When you're close enough to share
The dreams you'd wished would be
What will you say about me?
One day (one day)
Far apart from each other
Will you think about the chance for love you threw
away?
Will you think about the mistakes you made along the
way?
Will you think about the place that we might be today?
Fifteen hours I've been staring at these walls
Waiting for the call that never comes
I thought I had it figured out
Giving you the benefit of doubt
Every day you build the wall
And I'm trying to break through
Brick by brick I'll tear it down
Until I reach the other side and you
You've made us prisoners
And I'm trying to set us free
But the final stones between us
Could be the very ones placed there by me
Fifteen months I've been staring at the wall
Waiting for the day that never comes
I placed my faith in someone else
What did you promise to yourself?
It's turned to dust
Did you build it just to see
Who cared enough to try to tear it down?
Fifteen years I've been trapped behind this wall
Waiting for the change that never comes
Still I try to open up the door
But it's been oh so long,
I can't recall the other side anymore
I'll be waiting
I will wait for you
I'll be waiting
You haven't drawn a breath
But I know you
Still unformed, and yet
The flame burns true
And I can't stop what's already begun
Where can I go when nowhere else exists to run
You haven't scarred me yet
But I feel you
Not yet manifest
But the pain burns true
And I can't hide from what's about to come
Inevitably everything will be undone
Someday I'll find the life I gave for you
One day in time and I will start anew
One life to live, and now it's up to me
To take back what was lost
When all of this came to be
I've never seen your face
But I know you
A disembodied voice
But the words ring true
Fate doesn't ask permission
But I won't give in
I'm charging through my weakness
And you can't slow me down
My will is much too strong
For me to fail without a fight
I don't know what to feel
With everything unreal
I won't go quietly
Something’s going on here – the object is unspoken
But I can see the makings of a sinister design
The bristles of the tightening noose are scratching at
my throat
And in Shadows, whispered voices plot to take from me
what’s mine
The tension’s ever-mounting, and the dam’s about to
break
Something’s going wrong here – the lines have all been
broken
In the shelter of our silence conflicts keep upon
themselves
We both have our agendas, if only we would voice them
But the gulf between us widens as we keep them to
ourselves
The tension’s ever-mounting, and the dam’s about to
break
In the suffocating silence
attended by our dreams
this emptiness devours
In the darkness of desire
where nothing’s as it seems
our demons lie in wait
For you and me
Subconscious acts replace the spoken word and we
express with cruelty what we neglect to say
And everybody’s shouting, but no one can hear
and our desperate ringing fills my ears
And we all know that words can kill
but their absence is more lethal still
In the suffocating silence
attended by our dreams
this emptiness devours
In the darkness of desire
where nothing’s as it seems
our demons lie in wait
For you and me
Something’s going on here… sinister design
The tension’s ever mounting, the dam’s about to break
Hand on heart, head in hands
The light is fading now, it cannot pierce the darkness
Nothing left to build upon
Except my mounting fear that none of this was worth it
Hand on pen, pen to page
Focus though I may, my words have failed me
Emptiness consuming me
The shadows of my broken hope play in the dying light
Tears in eyes, eyes wide open
Staring at the glass
The face I see knows everything
-words I’ve written
-letters never sent
…only signposts marking out
The smoke has finally cleared
And I can see the wreckage of my past that lies about
It's all become so clear to me
And I have learned the
Truth behind the lies and the lies behind the truth
Everything in context finally makes sense
I see the paths I walked
Some I paved myself
Some where I went gladly
Some against my will
Can leave behind the fear and doubt
And cast aside the shackles and the chains
Of flawed assumptions I learned as a child
I can't let them distract me
So I'm putting aside the memories
Of the things I never had but thought I always wanted
My notions of what makes relationships have a new light
I have gained an understanding
No more false facades
Covering my feelings
Preventing a connection
Solo: Bernie
I've been spending my whole life pursuing those who
built this cell
Lamenting all the hateful things that happened to me
Never thought to look at how I might have played a part
in what I am
Or what it means to lose the game before it starts
Now I know that I cannot turn back and change the past
And that the only choice to save myself
Is changing what I carry from it
Everything I did to myself
Everything that's been done to me
I'll turn my back on that and walk away
And left with only me
At last I see the answer
And what I need to be
Letting go
I destroy my shell
Embrace my heart
And free myself
The choir
The point of the search, may not be the answer
The value of a want, is not always a need
Still I stand, I'm not going to crawl
Now I know, I've got to believe
Once I was a person without malice
Once my heart bled red instead of black
Openness and introspection now show me the way
To reclaim all I've lost and take it back
You may have taken everything I ever had
But you cannot take my future
Just release yourself (x4)
All I was and
All I'll ever be
Finally are integrated
And I am whole again
Now I know the reason for this suffering
I'm a better person for having known the pain
Wipe out all the wonder from creation
Replace it all with fractals
And synthesize the beauty and design
Pulling wings off spiritual flies
So smug and oh so certain
That yours is the enlightened state of mind
Your soul will contemplate its emptiness
Mired in the figures and equations in your head
Embrace the black
Turn away from civilized society
Wrap yourself in ignorance
And force us to accept on pain of death
Marry myths with superstitious nonsense
And damn the nonbelievers
Salvation’s yours, to hell with all the rest
No absolutes are so self-evident
Twisted by your hate, the very word of God
And instrument of death
And who can say which to path to take?
Or bind another’s fate?
A billion-fold extremists’ point of view create or hell
Each must be entitled to the conscience of the King
There’s nothing left to wait but for the tolling of the
[m/l van Dyk]
[Part I: Arrivals]
October's a rare month for boys
When life is simple, pure and sweet
And the foolish youth can overlook
The wolf outside the door
Come hear a tale of Halloween
And one October not long past
Jim Nightshade and Will Halloway
Would never be quite so young anymore
Fury, the seller of lightning rods, foretells the coming storm
The light's on in the library, beneath the black'ning sky
Charles Halloway sits deep inside, surrounded by his books
A serious, lonely and sad old man whose youth has passed him by
And Jim and Will conspire
To ride the carousel
Could set their souls afire
Could send them straight to Hell
[Part II: Torments]
Far away, but much too close for comfort
Carnival's calliope is playing
Halloway sits in the darkened library
Thinking dark thoughts
Son at home he doesn't really know
Fifty-four years seems so very old
Throws the carnival's ad in the fire
Flames grow higher
Long after midnight, children awake
Journeys await them, chances to take
Run through the streets to the carnival grounds
Hoping to ride the merry-go-round
Three AM is midnight for the soul
Never is a man so close to death
The house of temptation is at hand
Souls are damned
What's the purpose of a life of virtue?
What you don't know certainly can hurt you
Every step he made he second-guessed
Life of regret
Ride's out of order, no one's around
Hardly a whisper, hardly a sound
Thinking that they're alone, but they're not
Gloved hands encircle, now they are caught
[Part III: The Carnival]
Late that night the boys returned
Watched the carousel spin 'round
Turning old man into young
Bringing darkness to town
Carousel turns and turns
Years can scorch and time can burn
Dark's accomplice, age reversed
Now becomes a boy accursed
Jim and Will stumble in
To this whirling world of sin
Forward spins the carousel
Cooger ages, dies and goes to hell
Mister Dark knows at once
That the boys have seen too much
As they call for the police
He and the witch wait
For their plan to be unleashed
Boys return with the law
Try to tell them what they saw
The witch throws her voice and the old, dead man
Seems to come to life again
The ruse has worked, no one believes the
Tales of what the boys have seen
The witch locks eyes; they fear her most;
She wishes them a "short sad life for both!"
[Part IV: Pursuits]
Late that night the witch takes to the sky above the town
Searching for the boys who know the secret of the carousel
A black parade of circus freaks, and led by Mister Dark,
Scours every street for the boys to drag them down to hell
The boys have seen too much
And now their death will be their silence
The freaks have caskets fashioned for the little boys who hid
And Mister Dark halts the procession, seeing the librarian,
He asks him who the boys are; fills with rage as the old man lies
[Part V: The Autumn People]
Late that night inside the town's old library
Circled by arcane and evil books
Scouring them for any hint of knowledge.
Charles, Jim and Will
A father's son who doesn't know his dad
Suddenly he wishes that he had
As he sees that this old lonely man
Could be they the only hope they have
The Carnival has been here many times
Its history is found between the lines
Comes by every forty years or so
Since more than two hundred years ago
They feast upon the sins and fears of men
Promise you just what you want and then
When they're through they'll steal your very soul
Entomb you in their sideshow
And as the church bell rings
They hear the opening door
The boys hide for their lives
As Mister Dark arrives
[Part VI: Temptations]
Temptation
Tearing at his soul
To take a second chance
To right the wrongs
To live again
No more
Regrets
No more living as a
Man to old to know his son
Resistance
He turns the offer down
Not willing to exchange his soul
For what he wants the most
Mister Dark
Crushes Charles' hand
And tells the witch to give the man
A taste of precious death
(old man) Hear your breathing
(old man) Feel your hurt
(old man) See you're bleeding
(old man) Stop your heart
[Part VII: Confrontations]
(Halloway) ten lifetimes closer to death
(Somehow) finding the courage to laugh
(Laughter) searing in the witch's face
(Laughter) burning her wicked soul
(Standing), knowing he's beaten her back
(Smiling), knowing the time is now
(Striding) purposefully into the street
(Knowing) that he can save them somehow
(Mister Dark) leads the boys into the streets
(Will to be) made into a toy for freaks
(Nightshade) to be his partner for life
(After the) carnival's over tonight
(Carnival): one last attraction to see
(Shoot the witch): gypsy who cannot die
(Mister Dark) gazes out over the crowd for a
(Volunteer): someone to give it a try
(Halloway) calls out from deep in the crowd
(Mister Dark) cannot believe his eyes
(Halloway) his good hand picks up the gun
(To steady it) he calls for the help of his son
[Part VIII: Departures]
Far away, trapped in the mirror maze
The whole town calls his name
And Will awakes the spell
The dust witch placed upon his head
Halloway: father and son
Standing as one
As Mister Dark gives them the bullet and
Charles carves into a crescent moon
Mister Dark stares at the bullet
He doesn't yet under stand
The meaning of what Charles has done
So he let's the game proceed
But the moon he carved isn't a moon at all
It's his smile the bullet carries
And this totem finds it's way
To the witch's heart
The gun cracks and the
Witch knows this and now is dead!
Chaos spreads, and Charles and Will
Run to the maze to rescue Jim
Charles walks in
Confronted by reflections of a million ancient men
Staring back and making him older
A lifetime full of regrets
A man who never knew his son
A man whose deeds were never done
Halloway rises from
The hall of shattered mirrors
He picks up his son and runs with him
Across the carnival grounds
Nightshade still upon the carousel
Charles and Will help him down
Another boy appears saying
Mister Dark's gone
And the four of us must give chase
Halloway looks at the strange young boy
He sees him for what he is
Mister Dark made younger again by the
Power of the carousel
Charles picks the boy up
Holds him close and feels his hatred
And with grave determination
Lets his heart fill with love
for his life and his son
And returns the boy's hate with this love and it
courses through
Dark's young body
And he withers and dies
As the carnival tents disappears
The three of them spring
laughing back to town
Two boys and one middle-aged man
No longer quite so old as he thought
Far away but much too close for comfort
Fear surrounds me
I struggle not to yield
Panic taking hold
Rising in my chest
Desperate, casting around
Searching for a foothold as I'm
Falling away, further each day
Slipping into the black
In the path of the whirlwind
No way back
No way home again
Pain engulfs me
I shut it off and focus but I'm
Helpless and left without an
Option I would choose
Disbelief -- I'd like to fill
Myself up with denial but I
Just have to face, I'm losing the race
Slipping into the black
In the path of the whirlwind
No way back
No way home again
All alone
When the walls come down
See the light
Oh so clean and oh so pure
The fever takes control of you
And please don't leave me on my knees
The last familiar place
To let me get away
A strong redemptive song
To help me ease the pain
If you feel
Endless sorrow
Just know you'll find a voice inside
The past is shared and both of us
To make the world a place
That's worthy of your face
To show you what's inside
A mind you silenced
And I've fallen from grace now
Like so many times before
All around me the shadows call me
As I try to cry out your name
But should I give into temptation
A sweet song to steal my breath away
Is this the last chance before I slip away
Oh so clean and oh so pure
The fever that takes control of you
Please don't leave me on my knees
The last familiar place
To let me get away
A strong redemptive song
I wandered in on my own that day.
Now I'm exhausted from that miracle, Oh Yeah.
Excitement chills my veins.
Go through this all for who?
I'd do it all again.
And not think twice about going back to where I thought was home.
Don't find me on the other side again, don't find me on the other side.
There's still hope in one.
[Chorus]
Life as we once knew it is dead
Pick up the pieces, saying goodbye
Has never been so hard
Faces plastered with joyful gleam.
A look that speaks for itself I'm sure.
Say what you will but I'm OK. I will require
this explanation to kill my spirit and sting my pride.
So full of things to say my lips are sealed, what gives.
There's still hope in one.
[Chorus]
Life as we once knew it is dead
Pick up the pieces, saying goodbye
Oh my god you came into my life
And turned my world around
I was lost I couldn't see my sight
So I couldn't find my home
So you know I've smoked some weed
And took some pills and even sniffed some blow
And so I repent
Cuz all the blessings I've received I know that heavens sent
I never knew when I spit this shit
That every rapper in the world be on some wicked shit
Its like the first time I hit this shit
Say you get the shit but wont admit the shit
You saw me shine the sun lit this shit
On my knees at night askin should I quit this shit
When i first started we were total opposites
I took a stand so you can see all the hypocrites
Salvation for all of my sins through Jesus sacrifices
We live in wicked nation
I'm sayin Amen! cuz I don't wanna die
Its all about redemption
Everything I did and what I said
Its all about redemption
If we can forgive we can forget
Its all about redemption
It was him the devil in disguise
With a gun standin right before my eyes
He wanted my life
The wicked shit I speak was never meant for the weak
I'm runnin out of time
Goin out of my mind dodgin demons in the streets
God please give me a sign
Inherit the earth only the children of the meek
So if you really wanna see my soul in hell
This spittin wicked shit I told the golden tale
My conscious catchin heat its gettin old and stale
Its hard to embrace when I hold this hell
If you walk the bloody trail then bring your holy grail
The devil went after my soul but god closed the cell
Even though the wicked shit knows me well
You wont find me on the wagon when it goes to hell
Believe me hell is lonely
Believe me I was there my soul was spared
And don't nobody know me
And only he cares that's why I'm there
Its raining diamonds
Redemption (Redemption)
Everything I did and what I said
Its all about redemption (redemption)
If we can forgive we can forget
Its all about redemption
Fear and anger, leave me be
Behold a future, you and me
From dark past, to bright, bright light
Will we then be given insight
Hope will be my driving force
I will be the one to learn
From the thing that should not have been
That put me in the state I was in
Death and sorrow, let them be
Leave these ashes, leave them be
From these ruins, let me learn
As a phoenix, I'll return
Life and death, question I
Day by day, always why
How I am going to be
Shall I then be free and see
Hope will be my driving force
I will be the one to learn
Fate and faith, are then they
Life's true spirit, who is to say
Dare not speak the hopeless thought
Now Look at Me Bleeding
Thine Saviour so Blessed
A Shrine for the Lustful
So Scatheless My Wrists
For No Man I'd Suffer
A Thief, Liar Nor King
Nor Walk Upon Flames
Sing Dirges of Moarn
A Fiery Throat to Fall
For a Horde of the Traitors
Every Soul Shall Betray
And Every Soul Shall Be Betrayed
For Nothing I'd Suffer
Nor Cry Nameless in Vain
Your Tongue Filled with Poison
My Chalice Your Mouth
Thus Solace Has Drowneth
Now Look at Your Saviour
And His Body Grew Colder
Our Redemption Was Lust
For Nothing I'd Ask For
As I Bow Down My Head
Weary with Your Strife
I will grow my rage - defeat the pain
Pass the point of break - I shall prevail
On the day of deliverance - I'll live in grace
Release my entity - go with my race
You can die on time
As long as you live
Sacrifice your eyes
For those that will see endlessly
Come and enjoy
Survival grapes
Taste - raise - live moments of life to end
Weak souls - under symbols of death
I watched a man fall to his knees
He screamed out sufferings my name
So lonely and incomplete
The pinnacle of torment and pain
Don't wanna hear those lies anymore
How can he change those regrets?
He wants to stop wasting his life
He wants to leave the past behind
Then I saw this man run to me
Inching away from a life of shame
A man who hungers to receive
And receives a chance once again
Don't wanna hear those lies anymore
When will you forgive or forget?
He wants to stop wasting his life
He wants to leave the past behind
Why do I walk this road without an ending?
Why must you keep me feeling old and empty?
Who are you to choose my path of conception?
They think I'm fooled, of paying the price
Discarded tool, look I'm between the vice
An easy frame up if I ever have seen
Peer through the looking glass of life's extremes
Gain for power knows no boundaries of pain
You're just a fool, who's paying the price
Another tool, watch as we turn the vice
One final step and there's no more pain
Nothing to argue no one to blame
A peaceful end has come at last
Time has come to let the bad things pass
Don't wanna hear those lies anymore
How can he change those regrets
Don't wanna hear those lies anymore
I will forgive but I won't regret
I say goodbye
Where will you go?
Where will you go?
We've made a costly mistake tonight,
As we fed ourselves to the lion's den.
We lowered our guard and fell on our swords,
And you call this a war.
You've taken so much more than pride
(you've gotta be kidding me).
You've taken so much more than pride
(everything in time will burn).
This is do or die, look a promise in the eye,
I hope to God you're comfortable enough to live a lie.
This is do or die, look a promise in the eye,
I hope to God you're strong enough to live with compromise.
We've made a costly mistake tonight.
There's a heavy price for this treason.
So we covered our eyes and forgot our names,
And you call this a war.
You've taken so much more than pride
(you've gotta be kidding me).
You've taken so much more than pride
(everything in time will burn).
This is do or die, look a promise in the eye,
I hope to God you're comfortable enough to live a lie.
This is do or die, look a promise in the eye,
I hope to God you're strong enough to live with compromise.
What a disaster with no one at fault,
Everyone's screaming, "God save us all".
Come on courageous child,
You have to trust in this.
Find what you've always wanted,
You have to trust in this.
Come on courageous child,
You have to trust in this.
Find what you've always wanted,
You have to trust in this.
This is do or die, look a promise in the eye,
I hope to God you're comfortable enough to live a lie.
This is do or die, look a promise in the eye,
There's a picture on the table, broken glass on the floor
A cigarette in my hand I'm going off to war
Images of silhouettes plastered on my brain
Bitter taste on my tongue, familiar mixed with pain
I'm driving down the highway, shadows in headlights
Justice dressed in sheets of gray with trails of black and white
Chorus:
A man can be a diamond a man can be a steal
A man can be a poet and not have the words to feel
Mercy is a preacher held captive under fire
Redemption smells like gasoline and burns like desire
She steps out under cover, turns around and waves
I light up that cigarette and I watch her drive away
Doors can open easy but sometimes they close hard
I left him laying where I found him and I got back in my car
She's already gone to bed by the time that I get home
I make myself some coffee and I sit up alone
(Chorus)
The sunshine in the morning feels like water on my bones
I hear her through the walls as she screams into the phone
There's a picture on the table, broken glass on the floor
I heard your complaint
No one wouldn't hear
You made it clear
I remember very well
Every second of every minute
I'm already an eroded rock
We are in recess
But for me it's labor day
Notes around me
Bring back every song we've played
Please do not ignore me
It's not time to disregard the facts
You live in me
I'm you
Hold back
You know it's true
We're in the last day
And there is no afterlife
There's no use to pray
And no need for goodbye
Spare me from your metaphysical bullshit
There's no eternity or no reason to be
This one man dedicated his life
To change the face of history
To break into six milion pieces
The spirit of a nation
All on it's own
So hated and haunted
Yet so storng
No remorse for those
Who carried kain's mark
Redemption
No redemption for our brothers blood
Lately it seems like morality
Has been forgotten again
For we have already known
This kind of pain.
For this promised land
This holy soil
We pay a price in blood
In our mothers broken dreams
In our fathers grieving hearts.
In our mothers broken dreams
In our fathers grieving hearts
We allow this endless sins
In the name of our god
Our breed
The damned seed
[Instrumental]
"Where do we go now?"
"A dark forest."
"What's beyond the dark forest?"
"A house where someone waits."
"Who's waiting?
Mother?
Grandma?
REDEMPTION
REDEMPTION
REDEMPTION
REDEMPTION
for all those who gose through the pain
the pain makes you a hopeless slave
those who get close to lost everyday
in their heart nothing else
only hate
REDEMPTION
REDEMPTION
REDEMPTION
REDEMPTION
stuck in the swamp addiction and fear
suffocate from all to hear and see
it drags you down it makes you numb
take you to the edge
makes you fuck up
REDEMPTION
REDEMPTION
its time for change
its time for life
leave all the self destructive shit behind
take the chance before its to late
REDEMPTION
REDEMPTION
REDEMPTION
REDEMPTION
Would you let me take control
if i told you that i would never love another
build a prison for you soul
with the shelter i provide
surely we could live forever
feel addiction take control
i know no other way
reality its just fantasy again
if i could penetrate you soul
i'd help you find a way to make fantasy reality again
would you let me take you home fulfill my every need keep you
in this spell you're under
cause nows the time to let you know
if you only take my hand never will there be another
[chorus]
hold you down again
i wont let you breath
i see redemption in your eyes although i always seem to make you cry
so high off the pain that i give to you
hold you down till you cant breath you cant leave
or perceive that you're better off without me
i cut you down before you get a chance to doubt me
no love is sicker than the one we've found
keep a frown on you face so you'll never replace me
[chorus]
Workin so hard, 9 to 5.
Sick and tired, can't decide.
Try looking back a long, long time.
The music you made was so, so
Right, Now...Right...Now
It's not to late now, take the step.
No regrets, but do it today.
Look at yourself some years from now.
You wanna die old not knowing
How to live your life?
Right Now!
(Solo)
Now take the step, its not to late to make a...
Change will come, things will go your way.
Follow your heart, feel it inside,
Make up your mind...
Try to think when you were young and you
were free it was so long and you
Sang Hard, played loud now you
dream on when you see that crowd
Sing on! Sing on! Play Hard! Play Hard!
You gotta think about it baby put your head up high,
Flames over the cell
Burned by the rising sun
It's always the same
Breaking chains it's time to run
You feel...how in my life was I wrong
You give...me what I could never have
Now that I'm falling
Is it infinity?
Or...is it a trap
A memory breakdown? You feel
You feel...how in my life I was wrong
You give...me what I could never have
[Chorus]
Fight...we don't live to find answers
We are here just to question this life
This human life - illusion?
Fight...we can't find, find a key
Can we reach reality are we
Are we ghosts, dust in the wind?
Flames over the cell
I'm burned by the rising sun
It's always the same
Breaking chains it's time to run
You feel...how in my life was I wrong
You give...me what I could never have
There is no easy life
When this silence surrounds us
It's raining in my eyes
To live is now too much for me
Fight!
Five hundred and fifty-five
We don't live to find answers
We are just to question this life
This human life illusion?
Can we reach reality?
Are we ghosts?
Are we ghosts?.... Dust in the wind?
It's time for redemption!
When you're flying away to the stars...
[Instrumental]
Awaiting for your soul
to redeemed
no wealth
no good behavior
could be seen Lies and death
all around you
on your fingertips
there is no redemption
there is no fear This is not a vengeance
