1. |
Holding Smoke
01:42
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We flew into the woods
You followed us, the best you could
We were smoke right through your hands
You’ll never know or understand what we are
We are at war
We put down flowers
She stayed asleep
You asked for this
An enemy
My enemy.
(Lyrics by James McCurley)
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2. |
Temperance
03:54
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The streets are empty
And everyone is looking up
Into their dreams
I know you’ve seen too much
But don’t be afraid
Don’t let the sirens scare you, sweet runaway
I’ll keep you close
In the end you’ll always know, there is hope
There is hope
You will lose all direction
Your heart will break
Feel the mist as it eclipses
And Evaporates
There is something else
Power underneath
In the end
You will have me
So don’t be afraid
Don’t let the sirens scare you, sweet runaway
I’ll keep you close
In the end you’ll always know, there is hope
There is hope
What’s wrong?
Couldn’t sleep
Neither could I
So I see
No dreams…
Do you miss it?
Only on nights like this
It’s hard to breath, to be
Unafraid
Don’t let the sirens scare you, sweet runaway
I’ll keep you close
In the end you’ll always know, there is hope
There is hope
What’s wrong?
Couldn’t sleep
Neither could I
So I see
No dreams…
Do you miss it?
Only on nights like this
It’s hard to breath, to be
(Lyrics by James McCurley)
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3. |
Ghost Of Summer
04:16
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In the morning I don’t owe you anything
In the quiet you can make no demands
These moments are waves of old innocence
That baptize these weakened hands
I am slowly, losing color
Gone by autumn, ghost of summer
Gone without saying goodbye
Fire in my lungs
The earth moves and I run
Miles away from half -wasted days
Too short to learn from
I am slowly, losing color
Gone by autumn, ghost of summer
Gone without saying goodbye
They said to pick the right poison
Well I can’t keep all of it down
The kids who took pills still look terribly ill
They say that they’re scared of themselves
I am slowly, losing color
Gone by autumn, ghost of summer
Gone without saying goodbye
Love, I miss you most
You’re my favorite ghost
(Lyrics by James McCurley)
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4. |
Always
03:17
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Living used to be so simple
Way before the darker days
Moments like the world would stand still
Trees speaking in the sweetest ways
And always I long to go back
Always I wish to go home
How long is this rain gonna last?
And who could even know?
When I think too much my hands shake
When the sun comes up I’m free
And always I long to go back
Always I wish to go home
How long is this rain gonna last?
And who could even know?
I dried my eyes but wept again
I’m finding my forgotten sins
Only you can see my hands
Clean again…
And always I long to go back
Always I wish to go home
How long is this rain gonna last?
And who could even know?
(Lyrics by James McCurley)
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5. |
Obsidian
03:00
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She wore a bright black dress
Eyes like a night full of stars
I’d like to say I kept my head
But I’ll confess, I’m disarmed
Those clouds don’t look so good
We brought this storm on ourselves
We always knew it would
Cost us heaven, to get through hell
(Lyrics by James McCurley)
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6. |
You've Been Warned
02:52
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The girl on the computer says I look so good today
That it hurts for her to even look away
The boy on the commercial knows I’m lonely now and then
But for a reasonable price I could pretend
The person on the pamphlet says the country needs my hands
And they will keep my future safely in command
The movement on the water says there’s more to life than me
But I go back to watching my T.V.
They are trying to kill you
You’ve been warned
You say it’s complicated, it seems simple to me
You’re lashing out because you’re right where I need you to be
You’re so close but so close isn’t quiet there
I can see it in your eyes, you’re scared
You’ve been warned
The information is a drug
You’re too scared to pull the plug
Feels like you’ll never get enough
The information is a drug
You’ve been warned.
(Lyrics by James McCurley)
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7. |
The Wind Has Teeth
03:10
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With your sleeves pulled up, does the cold wind bite?
Pale skin riddled, with thin red lines
On the gravel road, as a car goes by
I will wave to you as you say goodbye
As you asked me then, I will ask you now
How did it get so difficult?
And I know that I can’t change it
I just want you to be weightless
With the spring in bloom
Things are growing from the frozen blue
Warmer winds are drifting through
And you look so ready to love again
Sometimes we miss our mark
Unsure of how to play our parts
But missing isn’t who we really are
Not in our hearts and heads
I just want you to see this
To let go of all your secrets
I just want you to feel painless
And eve though the wind has teeth
It would sing for you
If only you would ask it to
If only you would tell the truth
Won’t you?
I know that I can’t change it
I just want you to be weightless
(Lyrics by James McCurley)
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8. |
Believing & Pretending
03:18
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Do I look ready?
I ask and you ignore
You still looked unsteady
Like the boat we tied to shore
Pella looked over the bottle
She looked weaker than before
She said “I thought it’d kill the nerves
But know I just feel out of sorts”
Someone else came along
They’re not you but they were hear at the right time
I know it seems wrong
But you were gone and I didn’t know why
Someone else will burn this down
If we leave it standing
We are always in between
Believing and pretending
Can you hear the words that I’m sending?
Can you feel the wounds that life’s not mending?
Someone else came along
They’re not you but they were hear at the right time
I know it seems wrong
But you were gone and I didn’t know why
(Lyrics by James McCurley)
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9. |
The Furthest Place
03:33
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You were so quick to smile
So fast to be kind
You said I could reveal what I head to hide
With my hands on the window
And my heels in the grass
Tapping patterns
And moving to make you laugh
And then you left, you said you never would
And after this, I swear I’m gone for good
Because I can’t seem, to let go like I should
You don’t want this, to be haunted
I could tell you I’m better
That I learned from the time
I could always tell you
Anything except a lie
People always tell me that it’s wrong to live alone
But people are the reason that I’m always on my own
I want to show you who I am but there’s nothing to see
Just a shadow of a doubt of who I’m trying to be
I let it guide my hands to the furthest place
Away from all these haunted days
Why would anyone wait for me?
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10. |
Open Water
03:31
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You can lie to them, but I can see your bones
You get lonely now and then, but you’re never quite alone
Did they forget your name, when they threw you to the wolves?
All you ever wanted was to just go home
Like open water, you take me further
Drifting away, I’m caught under the wave
It’s the worst parts of me, for the worst of…
You’re in the other room, but I can hear what you said
That I’ve got potential, but I’m losing my head
People say I’m crazy, well maybe I am
But don’t you ever want to feel alive again?
Like open water, you take me further
Drifting away, this ocean is my grave
It’s the worst parts of me, for the worst of you
Sick from the sleeplessness
Counting my weaknesses
Out of my element
Soaked in these old regrets
I need to let this go
Like open water, you take me further
Drifting away, I’m caught under the wave
It’s the worst parts of me, for the worst of you
(Lyrics by James McCurley)
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11. |
Pearl
02:50
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Eyes the way I’d only seen
In movie screens and magazines
I can’t seem to shake the way you get to me
The autumn wind is here again
Let’s dance awhile to clear our heads
The kissing tree turned crimson red
I don’t know what to call it
All I know is that you’ve got it
It’s desolation, it’s revelation…
But this distant call and response
Can’t be the love that you want
We need to settle the silence
And just move on
Lush wind in silver storms
Over all the fields it rained
In the eye we shared our warmth
We stood right there for days
Lush wind in silver storms
We stepped and swayed in time
When you smiled I could’ve sworn
That I saw the love of Christ
(Lyrics by James McCurley)
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12. |
||||
I’m not so clean like I used to be
I’m not so clean like I was
But I’ve got my eyes on the remedy
And I’ve got my back to the cause
In the deadlands, honey these are darker days
Love caught fire but it burned away
And all you see is all we have left
One last chance to resurrect
The southern moon and the western sun
The summer months are gonna come on strong
It won’t be long
It’s just a matter of time, until the river is dry
Holding my own
Is harder than it looks this far from home
I want the Blue Ridge winter to remember my name
And how it’s teeth broke trying wildly to send me back to where I came from
In the deadlands, honey these are darker days
Love caught fire but it burned away
And all you see is all we have left
One last chance to resurrect
The southern moon and the western sun
The summer months are gonna come on strong
It won’t be long
It’s just a matter of time, until the river is dry
Won’t you feel it like thunder in the distance, in the summer?
You said that if I could find your love than I could keep it
But all you ever wanted was to know my secrets
(Lyrics by James McCurley)
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13. |
Go North
04:49
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I knew a girl on the northern side
Cold as a coffin and half the size
With a flaring gaze of her amber eyes
She said I’m gonna make it out one day
I knew a boy in the Alaska wild
Heart of gold and a winsome smile
Days like these go on for miles
But I’m gonna make it out one day
Did you know I would fall?
Did you notice the devil in my ways?
You’re such an honest soul
You’re not alone in the smooth Virginia breeze
You bring me home again
My truest friend, without you where would I be?
I’ve tried for all my life
To lay this down in sacrifice
But sometimes it gets hard to see the light
I’ll pay the debts you owe
Lift you up when you get low
When you can’t seem to get it right
Did you know I would fall?
Did you notice the devil in my ways?
You’re such an honest soul
You’re not alone in the smooth Virginia breeze
You bring me home again
My truest friend, without you where would I be?
Love I’ve missed you most
You’re my favorite ghost.
(Lyrics by James McCurley)
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Vertica Richmond, Virginia
Vertica is a four-piece collective from all over the east coast. Our sound is primarily a mixture of ambient and heavy rock, with some industrial influence. "The Haunted South" is a 13 song concept record, driven by deeply layered arrangements and cinematic themes. ... more
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