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1. |
Keep It Simple
03:36
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Let’s keep it simple, just for once
You never gave a damn about my eloquence
I haven't half as much to say as I pretend
Mostly, I just lie awake and think of you
My friend
Let's keep it simple, if we must
If I am still enough, will that inspire your trust?
I keep expectations, low as I can bear
But I cling onto hope as fiercely as I dare
Keep it simple
Cause it’s not your fault
That I'm still falling,
Turning somersaults
To keep from calling you
Keep it simple
Let's keep it simple, if we can
I’ll neither press my suit, nor iron out my plans
But if by any chance, that last line made you smile
Forgive me if I lie awake and picture that awhile.
Keep it simple
Keep it simple
Keep it simple
Keep it simple
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2. |
Maybe
04:12
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She burst through the door like someone had committed a crime
I cursed my luck and then leapt to the obvious rhyme
But maybe
Just maybe
I slide from my chair before courage sees fit to depart
My moves are legion, my patter is state-of-the-art
And maybe
Just maybe
Maybe she doesn’t hear shit like that all of the time
Maybe I’ll say something clever that changes her mind
Maybe
She enters a room, full of predators coiled to strike
I move through the crowd like I’ve just fallen off of my bike
But maybe
Just maybe
Maybe she’ll see that I’m not like of the rest of these guys
Maybe I want her, but I’m still prepared to play nice
Maybe
Maybe we’ll make it and grow old together
Joined at the hip in a single endeavour
Her frame draped in cotton, when it’s not in leather
A blade dulled until these ties cannot be severed
I grab her shoulder and unpack her deepest desires
My grip is tighter than she’d like, or I realise
But maybe
Just maybe
She stumbles back and I grind to a disinclined halt
Her friend lands a punch and cautions against counter assault
But maybe
Just maybe
Maybe I’ll come to my senses and turn on my heel
Maybe I won’t tear a strip off what I tried to steal
Maybe
Just maybe
Maybe
Just maybe
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3. |
Mediocre Mile
03:50
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Franklin was a drifter
Cause he was shit with money
Carried a guitar case full of laundry
Couldn’t carry a tune
Hannah was a waitress
From the land of milk and honey
But she took her coffee black and let her sting dull too soon
Charter members of the rank and file
Lining that crowded stretch called Mediocre Mile
Mediocre Mile
Frank’s father told him whisky
Would make him manly, would put hair on his chest
So he dates a lot of barmaids
And his torso looks just like a sweater vest
Hannah's mother warned her about men like Franklin
Time and time again
But Hannah had a weak spot for the way a bastard bothers to pretend
Charter members of the rank and file
Lining that crowded stretch called Mediocre Mile
Mediocre Mile
Wasn’t a romance was for the ages
The sex was hardly worth the sweat
A coffee stain on history’s pages
A night they were both willing to forget
Franklin was a drifter
Cause he was good for nothing
Carried contraceptives in their wallet
Till they left a faded ring
Hannah didn’t bother calling
She assumed that he was bluffing
When he told her he’d be back this way come the spring
Charter members of the rank and file
Lining that crowded stretch called Mediocre Mile
Mediocre Mile
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4. |
Whatever This Is
03:21
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I’m certain that this isn’t love
Although it shares its sadness and its shame
Between craving and hunger,
I’m not crying but I’m drawn towards the rain
But it’s not what you think, whatever this is
Won’t cut to the kink, or compete for the kiss
I’m back on the drink and I’ve worn out my wrist
Here on the brink of whatever this is
I know it’s going to hurt
I’m certain if I write it down,
It’ll turn around and bite me in the ass
But if I wait until I’m sober,
I know that the moment’s going to pass
But it’s not what you think, whatever this is
Won’t pass out the trinkets, or push for the tryst
I’m missing the link between broken and bliss
Here on the brink of whatever this is
I know it’s going to hurt
And if that’s our epitaph
Let’s save time and lead with that
Whatever works
I’m certain that you’d rather that
I keep my big mouth shut and my head down
At least you’re in no danger,
Your resistance rallies when I come around
And it’s not what you think, whatever this is
Won’t cut to the kink, or compete for the kiss
I’m back on the drink and I’ve worn out my wrist
Here on the brink of whatever this is
I know it’s going to hurt
I know it’s going to hurt…
I like it when it hurts.
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5. |
It's Not Over Yet
03:30
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It’s not over yet
It’s not even close
I’ll swallow down my safety net,
And hope I don’t overdose
Trying to forget
We both know that’s a joke
So catch me as I pirouette
Between laissez-faire and lachrymose
And if that all sounds like bravado
Held aloft by a broken vibrato
You may as well collect the set
Cause it’s not over yet
It’s not over yet
Don’t rip up what we’ve sewn
Or you will find a dangling thread,
In between the stitches and the roan
The guns move en barbette
As the embrasure’s overthrown
But there below the parapet
They’re fixing bayonets and rolling bones
As I argue for our survival
At the pitch of a gospel revival
You cameo in silhouette
Cause it’s not over yet
Of course, I might be mistaken
And what stirs me, might leave you shaken
Still, I’ll double down on that bet
Whatever the outcome, it’s not over yet
No, it’s not over yet
Though we’ve reversed into repose
And bowed before those wiser heads
That we prevailed upon to diagnose
And if this all sounds like denial
The emergency number’s on file
It’s either cure or the curette
Cause it’s not over yet
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6. |
Careful How You Go
03:26
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I know you wake up feeling twice as tired
Prepared for the world to thwart your hearts’ desires.
As you paper over cracks and put out fires
But you’re not alone
And whether you’re in Tokyo or in Hoboken
I know you’ve borne the words they should have left unspoken
Day devours night and bruises bleed to broken
But you’re not alone
So steal a look through someone else’s eyes
I'm sure you'll see some things you recognise
So, careful how you go
No one’s singing solo so careful how you go
I know it’s hard now to remain untainted
By the demon in the corner your subconscious painted
Hope twitched the curtain back and promptly fainted
But you’re not alone
So steal a leaf from someone else’s book
You’ll find their prints upon the path you took
And if you find it hard
To set your pain aide
Just ask yourself where you were at
The last time somebody else cried
No one’s advocating for the ease of kindness
Or the martyrdom of self that might as well be blindness
But cast your net a little wider and you’ll find this:
You’re not alone
(You're not alone)
So steal a moment to be someone new
You’ll find that one and one falls short of two
So
Be careful how you go
No one’s singing solo so careful how you go
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7. |
I Wish I Had A City
04:00
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She met me standing on the corner
Kicking devils from the dust
Her licence plate said California
Her tattoos read “In God We Trust”
She said, “Get in boy, but I warn you.”
“I’ll drop this pedal ‘fore it rusts”
We pooled the contents of her ashtray
To keep the tank from running dry
She asked if I was going her way
And I just grunted my reply
“I’ll follow any wheel that’s turning.”
“Cause if I don’t, I’m going to die”
Because I wish I had a city
Worth a damn to sing about
Somewhere's that slick, urbane and witty
Where it’s worth breathing in and out
Cause all I got here is the pity
Of everybody who got out
She slammed the brakes and hit the shoulder
Like I’d come at her with a knife
In the rearview, her eyes seemed older
As she reflected on my life
“Now what you really running from, son?”
“You got a job, a kid, a wife?”
Hell, I don't even have a city
Worth a damn to sing about
I ain’t exactly young and pretty
And all my dreams have headed south
I'm getting tired of the pity
Of everybody who got out
Then she grew quiet and I could feel the flame guttering
The window we’d opened, she was rapidly shuttering
She gunned the engine, to stop it from stuttering
And drown out the curse she found herself muttering
We found a motel on the highway
And played pretend till break of dawn
I knew that when I woke, I’d learn her
Name from a note that said she’d gone
But she was waiting on the corner
Said, "Time that we were moving on.”
Cause everybody needs a city
Worth a damn to sing about
And so I’m forming this committee
And I’m appointing you my scout
I got no time for people’s pity
So you and me are breaking out
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8. |
Going Too Far
03:23
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This is how it always ends:
In relief that we can still be friends
As we're chalking up the dividends of not going too far
Looks that linger, blows that glance
All the faltering steps of an awkward dance
As we no longer leave fate to chance,
Lest this thing go too far
But between fever and frustration
The choice seems obvious
So why divert our destination?
We gambled on flowers and bells
Built a picket fence round a cheap motel
And we burned so bright, we displaced hell
When this thing went too far
Now the risk of once again,
Living through the heartache at the end
Makes the appetites we apprehend
Feel like going too far
But between heat and hesitation
The choice seems obvious
So why enjoin our exploration?
I know it’s not just doubt that's weighing you down
I won’t go to war with the peace that you’ve found
But I’ll undertake while I’m still above ground
Not to wander too far
I’ll admit the road is tight
Between wise and witless, wrong and right
And it feels if you put up a fight
Then you’re going to go far
But sometimes the greatest sin
Is not giving up and giving in
To the long shot of a foolish whim
That you let go too far
Between control and consolation
The choice seems obvious
So, why refute this reformation?
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9. |
The One That Got Away
03:00
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(Got away)
(Got away)
(Got away)
(She got away)
The one that got away was a cashier at the grocery store
The one that got away looked like everyone that came before
But somewhere in her heart there lurked a secret
Something deep inside that she knew she had to lock away
And all I wanted was to help her keep it
I'm sure she'll see that when she's looking back on this, some day
So here's to the one that got away
The one that got away fought back until she was black and blue
The one that got away had some issues we were working through
But there were nights exhausted by emotion
And her face stained by every tear I'd wiped away
When I could see she understood the notion
That if she'd let me, I could keep the whole damned world at bay
So here's to the one that got away
When she stabbed me in the back
I half-expected it
Still, I'd have had her heart
If she hadn't protected it
(Huh!)
The one that got away suffered only superficial wounds
The one that got away said I kept her in a cold, dark room
But though she gave an accurate description
To the nice policeman with the coffee on the plastic tray
She turned down every offer of prescriptions
You tell me why she wouldn't give those memories away
So here's to the one that got away
(Got away)
(Got away)
Here's to the one that got away
(Got away)
(Got away)
Here's to the one...
That got away
(Got away)
(Got away)
(Got away)
(She got away)
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10. |
Unaccompanied
03:01
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It’s been a while since I’ve been anyone’s
They tell me I should be out somewhere, chasing the setting sun
And getting my head spun
I think I’d rather sit here quietly
Between my books and all these memories
I never want for a heart to haunt
So one, two, three
Repeat after me
I’m content to be
Unaccompanied
I don’t know why, but everybody seems to think I need
A hit of methadone to dampen the withdrawal from you and me
But I’m clean, can’t you see?
Don’t get me wrong now, I’m not saying that
If you should ever snap and want me back
I wouldn’t come
Babe, I’m damaged, not dumb
Until then, one, two, three
Repeat after me
I’m content to be
Unaccompanied
I know I’m supposed to say
I’m happier this way
But that lie just won’t fit my mouth
I’ve just learned to live without
It’s been while since I felt anything
I doused those flames, but I kept them smouldering
I think there’s a chance
I may still want to dance
Until then, one, two, three
Repeat after me
I’m content to be
Unaccompanied
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11. |
Put Up With Me
03:39
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She was the kind of woman that you'd sketch if you could draw
A mind to keep you on your toes, a heart inclined to thaw
She made the boys all fall in love till they were raw
When she chose me it must have stuck right in their craws
It kills them by degrees
That she puts up with me
Now I'm the kind of guy that tends to stumble at first base
The spectacles I used to wear at school still haunt my face
I keep my action figures in a display case
She keeps a toothbrush and spare knickers at my place
Down on bended knee
Cause she puts up with me
And I shouldn't really brag
About something so sacred
But it must be a drag
Knowing I've seen her naked
It's all you ever imagined and more...
A year into the marriage and the mood is turning mean
We used to be "Love Story" now we're "Freebie and the Bean"
She says she's seen me staring where the grass seems awfully green
I tell her that she's crazy, ask her not to make a scene
She must be easily pleased
Cause she puts up with me
And now she's packing everything her suitcase will permit
As I wander round in circles looking for something to hit
She says that she's a prisoner and she's being tied to fit
And I don't have the courage left to ask her not to quit
Cause I can't quite believe
That she puts up with me
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12. |
Dumb As A Brick
04:29
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How do you get someone out of your head
If they’ve been drunk or mad enough to share your bed
Is there a book I'm supposed to have read
That explains it all?
Should I stride down the street with a confident gait?
With my heart set to stone and my tongue to berate?
Puffed up with pride and relying on fate
To cushion my fall
Cause I know that I'm just as dumb as a brick
Cause I'm too old to be feeling this dizzy and sick
And I know I might have made a damned fool of myself
But darling you helped
How do you get someone out of your heart
When the ending’s commenced before anything starts
Is there a way we can skip to the part
Where this all makes sense?
Cause I know that I'm just as dumb as a brick
Cause I'm too old to be feeling this dizzy and sick
And I know I might have made a damned fool of myself
But darling you helped
Am I making this harder, than it needs to be?
I could play it much smarter
But that wouldn’t be me.
Oh and I know that I'm just as dumb as a brick
And I'm too old to be feeling this dizzy and sick
And I know I might have made a damned fool of myself
But darling you helped
Oh and I know that I'm just as dumb as a brick
Cause I'm too old to be feeling this dizzy and sick
And I know I might have made a damned fool of myself
But darling you helped
Darling you helped.
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13. |
That's More Like It
02:50
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I feel useless
And insecure
And I'm not sure I want to do this anymore
I'd rather be right than
Be left out of the war
And ignorant is better than ignored
That’s more like it
That’s more like it
That's the man I recognise
That’s more like it
That’s more like it
Help me off with this disguise
I may disagree with everything you say
But I wouldn’t want any other way
How else could I be sure whom I'm supposed to blame
When I expose the truth, don’t say my name
That’s more like it
That’s more like it
That's the man I recognise
That’s more like it
That’s more like it
Help me off with this disguise
I'm so tired of being kind
And understanding
It hasn’t brought me peace of mind
Or improved my standing
Cruelty helps me unwind
I'm just keeping my hand in
I didn’t come here to explore or to explain
If I seem defensive, it's all part of the campaign
I bruise so easily, but I pass on the pain
I don’t need your leave to remain
That’s more like it
That’s more like it
That's the man I recognise
That’s more like it
That’s more like it
Help me off with this disguise
Help me off with this disguise
Help me off with this disguise
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14. |
FFS
04:12
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You say your life is complicated
And you need to take a break
From all of your responsibilities
Oh, for fuck’s sake
You say nothing worked out quite the way you planned
And sometimes you feel like such a fake
Daddy’s more to blame than you are
Oh, for fuck’s sake
You say that you’re just trying to do your best
Guess we’d better pin a medal on your chest
You say that the world has gone to Hell
And it’s up to you to set it straight
‘Cause some hippie came a cropper for your sins
For fuck’s sake
You stand up for “family values”, so
I guess you must have earned the right to hate
The countless things that you don’t understand
Oh, for fuck’s sake
You must sleep soundly, knowing God is on your side
Eyes shut tightly as you’re taken for a ride
Did it never occur to you not to be
Such ludicrous, pointless non-entities?
I mean, for fuck’s sake, just look what you’ve done to me
I fight the good fight valiantly
I’ve always got my little point to make
If they would only pay attention to me,
Oh, for fuck’s sake
I’m such a goddamn visionary
I rant and I pontificate
If only I had just been laid more often
Oh, for fuck’s sake
If there’s a grip to get, it’s probably round my throat
At least I’m confident you’ll find the time to gloat
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15. |
My Turn
04:32
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Do you have a moment for me?
I’ve been stockpiling my words
I know sometimes you think I’m dangerous
But we both know that I’m absurd
And though it’s all too much for me today
Don’t hold my head against my heart
I won’t pretend that I’ll be okay
But it’s not my turn to fall apart
And if a friend should just chance to see you
If you should meet her on the street
And pass my best wishes along
And she asks if I'm on my feet
I’ve asked them not to make it obvious
Just smile and tell her I'm alright
I’ve been a mess since you’ve been gone
She needn’t know about the nights
Because it’s all too much for me today
Making this bruised second-hand start
And I don’t know if you’ve re-joined the fray
But it’s not my turn to fall apart
Do you keep a picture of me?
Or have I slipped out of the frame?
Have I been consigned to memory?
Or to the purifying flame?
Because it’s all too much for me today
My sweetest vices have grown tart
And though I know my fears won’t be allayed
It’s not my turn to fall
It’s not my turn to fall
It’s not my turn to fall apart
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16. |
Now You Know
03:23
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I've been trying to parse my parlez-vous
But I have been defeated
With every word I fail to use
My sentence is completed
Should I be so bold
As to lay it on the line?
Cause there’s a truth I'm told
That is emblazoned on your spine
I’d like to double your entendre
And tack two letters onto fond
So now you know
I have been struck dumb
By this fantasy I'm nursing
Cause somewhere between cats and tongues
Lies the poetry of cursing
I don’t want to make
Us the talk of the town
But that’s a risk I'll take
To hear your breath catch on that sound
I'll ply my linguistics with guile
And part your lips into a smile
So now you know
I might be imperfect
I might make you tense
I might be leaning too hard
On this tortured eloquence
But I am more than willing
To provide hard evidence
Is any of this making sense?
These days I am more at ease
With set-ups than denouements
So steer me through the silence please
I'll say whatever you want
Now I've made it clear
I hope you're more moved than disturbed
Because I need you here
With your noun up against my verb
I'll put the moan back into mime
And turn you on a paradigm
So now you know
What you gonna do about it, now you know?
(So now you know)
(Now you know, now you know, now you know, now you know)
What you gonna do about it, now you know?
(So now you know)
(Now you know, now you know, now you know, now you know)
What you gonna do about it, now you know?
(So now you know)
(Now you know, now you know, now you know, now you know)
What you gonna do about it, now you know?
(So now you know)
(Now you know, now you know, now you know, now you know)
|
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17. |
I Like You Best
03:14
|
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I have this conversation with you, even when I’m on my own
In which you will me happy and I seem too keen to die alone
You trade gestures with the clock’s hands
And raise your causes for alarm
And then you hold affection
And the end of one extended arm
But I like you best
That’s all I’m really trying to say
I like you best
And I wished you’d stayed
Do you imagine, I don’t get the same damn speech from all my friends
I have a bingo card that’s marked from “Que sera” to “All good things must end”
I resist romanticising, sepia’s out and basic black’s back in
And I don’t need reminding of what I’m not meant to be missing
Cause I like you best
That’s all I’m really trying to say
I like you best
And I wished you’d stayed
I know that it's no use
This is nothing that you haven’t heard
But if I stand accused – let it be for
Finally keeping my word
I promise that I’m listening
I get the message loud and clear
But it would be a shoddy love
That required you to be here
But I like you best
That’s all I’m really trying to say
I like you best
And I wished you’d stayed
|
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18. |
||||
We used to strut like peacocks
Wearing our best shit-eating grins
Used to dance along the tightrope between sentiment and sin
With one eye on the calendar and one eye on the gin
Now we’re not talking much at all
Our friends all played Cassandra
Warned us how badly we’d get burned
Still we sealed ourselves inside your room
And watched as the world turned
Still, it’s no big secret – borrowed time must be returned
And we’re talking much at all
Do those memories fade?
Behind these barricades?
With dialogue by Oscar
And a plot conceived by Proust
It’s damn near impossible to locate les mots juste
Now all of these inconvenient truths have come home to roost
And we’re not talking much at all
Do those memories fade?
Behind these barricades?
|
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19. |
Don't Take My Picture
04:40
|
|||
There is a face, that used to wear my name
Now it’s held in place, by amber and cellophane
Eyes so bright and bold and yet so easily deceived
With a certainty of which they soon will be relieved
So don’t
Don’t take my picture
Cause I’m not sure that I would ever live it down
No don’t
Don’t take my picture
Remember me the way I was when you first found me.
This is the place, where I will stake my claim
Carefully lit and bordered with a frame
A kiss that lingered, just this side of need
A thought that fought to keep up with the shutter speed.
So don’t
Don’t take my picture
Cause I’m not sure that I would ever live it down
No don’t
Don’t take my picture
Remember me the way I was when you first found me
Dim the lights and dip the strips in turpentine
Avert your eyes, I promise there is nothing left round here
For you to find
This is the grace that I have tried to tame
The prudence I transformed into a waiting game
Lies so crass and cold and yet so easily believed
A portrait of the blow about to be received
So don’t
Don’t take my picture
Cause I don’t think that I’d ever live it down
No, don’t
Don’t take my picture
Remember the way I was
When you first found me
So don’t
Don’t take my picture
Cause I don’t think that I’d ever live it down
No, don’t
Don’t take my picture
Remember the way I was
When you first found me
|
||||
20. |
Charlotte
04:12
|
|||
Charlotte, I didn't do a goddamn thing
I stepped from all the noise and answered on the second ring
Charlotte, I was where I said I'd be
And I think you've got a nerve to say it's you that can't trust me
Cause it's you who always bails
When the wind vacates our sails
And your friends start telling tales
Charlotte, you're taking the...
Pistol that you load with such distaste
And firing it at random targets, backasswardly saving face
Charlotte, still your lips and use your ears
I'm drunk enough to tell the truth and taste the glycerin in your tears
Cause it's you who always bails
When the wind vacates our sails
And your friends start telling tales
Charlotte, you're taking the...
Mystery and the thrills that we once prized
And twisting them into cheap alibis
You dream up all these other girls
From beneath those other guys
Charlotte, I loved you once
But I've forgotten why
Charlotte, kindly stop wasting my time
I can't decide which to suggest that you grow first: heart, brain or spine
Charlotte, there's a line drawn in the sand
If you're so desperate to step over, I'd quite gladly lend a hand
Cause it's you who always bails
When the wind vacates our sails
And your friends start telling tales
Charlotte, you're taking the piss
Charlotte, you're taking the piss
Charlotte, you're taking the piss
Charlotte, you're taking the piss
Charlotte, you're taking the piss
|
||||
21. |
Baby, Wait
04:08
|
|||
Everything’s polished and pristine
I keep myself under control and I keep my nose clean
Your finger trails in search of dust
But nothing as small as the truth could ever replace trust, and...
All I want you to say
Is as much as you hate me
You’re going to stay
Baby, wait
A line of bottles on the curb
That used to carry me tween distilled and disturbed
May rattle empty in the breeze
Still you’re convinced that you'll catch wind of a reprise, and...
All I want you to say
Is as much as you hate me
You’re going to stay
Baby, wait
We were consumed by hunger
Till I extinguished it with thirst
Still something has to give
Just say the word and I'll surrender first
For all the tears I made you cry
I know now how much more it hurt
When they finally ran dry
You say that people never change
That may be true but I'm prepared to rearrange and
All I want you to say
Is as much as you hate me
You’re going to stay
Baby, wait
|
||||
22. |
She Sang
04:24
|
|||
It wasn't even raining
The night the bulb blew
There wasn't even wine upon her breath
No adolescent fumbling
At the buttons on her coat
Just silence and the opposite of death
But she sang
Oh, she sang
She sang in the shadows
Yes, she sang
Oh how she sang
She sang in the shadows
It was the beginning
Of a story to replace
The one who's final page had been torn out
No sorrow underpinning
The resumption of regret
No stirrings in the souls of the devout
Still she sang
Oh, she sang
She sang in the shadows
Yes, she sang
Oh, how she sang
She sang in the shadows
Perfect
And private
And stolen
This lack
Of anyone
To whom she is beholden
It wasn't really anything
That she'd write home about
There would be too many details to redact
But it was what she needed
And she found it in
The breath between the impulse and the act
When she sang
Oh, how she sang
She sang in the shadows
Yes, she sang
Oh, how she sang
She sang in the shadows
Yes, she sang
Oh, how she sang
She sang in the shadows
Yes, she sang
Oh, how she sang
She sang in the shadows
|
||||
23. |
||||
This is a hard one to call
Usually I'd argue you never existed at all
Tonight you just seem lost and small
My darling, decisions were made
Hard at the time, even harder once the price was paid
Would you be with me now if I'd stayed?
Cause I think you would have liked it here
I think you would have liked it here
Mothers and fathers will fight
Especially when one of them walks out
On their vows one night
And all that love turns to spite
Harsh words were spoken, it's true
Tell myself now I'd have tempered them if I knew
That there was a chance of you
Cause I think you would have liked it here
I think you would have liked it here
You have two sisters now
You could have bossed around
They’d have looked up to you
We would have muddled through
It’s not something on which I dwell
But now that I'm older, I know what I missed far too well
There’s nobody left to tell
Nothing to put in a frame
No one to forgive me or
Tell me I wasn’t to blame
You’d have had my eyes and his name
whichever makes more sense to you)
And I think you would have liked it here
I think you would have liked it here
I think you would have liked it here
|
||||
24. |
Act III
02:40
|
|||
Was this how it was meant to be?
Weren’t we supposed to get our shit together in Act Three?
Instead, they’re spreading rumours on the grand marquee
As inside, someone else’s name goes crawling up the screen
Now wind it back
Wind it back
Was this the line I chose to toe?
I jumped the queue, then hit the bar and missed the show
We used to strike our bargains in the dark, back row
But the second it felt real, the second reel began to slow
So wind it back
(Let me take that line again, with less volume and more attack)
Wind it back
(We’re burning daylight. Gotta get this schedule back on track)
And if it seems the same old story:
The camera lied
Was this who I was meant to be?
The archetypal misfit, wrestling his mortality?
I could have called for rewrites on that tired old scene
But I sacrificed the narrative for continuity
Now wind it back
Wind it back
Wind it back
Wind it back
|
||||
25. |
||||
You looked so handsome in
Your top hat and tails
And I felt beautiful
Behind my mother's veil
The men all proudly pressed the flesh
As the women cried for England
Your friends all wore their uniforms
And their Italian suntans
The world had barely caught its breath
So they rode the coattails of our joy
You'd been to war and cheated death
Unlike so many brave young boys
But as the music ebbs away
And the well-wishers gather round
I feel my heart sink in my chest
I know I'm going to let you down
Cause I'm not built for that nonsense
You were so patient then
As life had ceased to be
Hauled your kit aboard the train
And headed overseas
Laid there alone and thought of me
Through all those years of blood and gore
As your friends shed their uniforms
And danced with Italian whores
And now I try to catch my breath
Long enough for me to explain
I'm still the same girl that you left
But I fear you've waited in vain
For though I love with all my heart
My body feels deaf, dumb and blind
There is a passion in your eyes
I have tried and failed to find
Cause I'm not built for that nonsense
I can't even pretend that I understand it
Though I know you ache for it so
Darling, I can't stand the thought of your hands on me
But I'd die if you were to go
You look so handsome in
That suit, once saved for Sundays
Out in the garden where
Our children used to play
The man who proudly pressed the flesh
While I thought of England
We all have duties to perform
And I did mine at your command
For all these years I've held my breath
And hope you didn't see the signs
I even faked those little deaths
As you redrew that battle lines
It's not a choice that I regret
You've always been so good to me
At least our generation kept
Our secrets off the TV
Cause I'm not built for that nonsense
No, I'm not built for that nonsense
I said, no, I'm not built for that nonsense
No, I'm not built for that nonsense
No, I'm not built for that nonsense
No, I'm not built for that nonsense
|
||||
26. |
Tell Me One More Time
03:41
|
|||
I never learned to behave
At all conscientiously
I’ve been a fool and a knave
Seditious and sedentary
I wouldn’t say I’m afraid
I just know I’m not brave
So tell me one more time
I can do anything
Except lose my mind
Tell me I need to survive
Tell me I need to survive
I could have sworn that you said
This wasn’t forever
And now I can’t get out of bed
I’m more fulcrum than lever
It’s probably all in my head
Either that or I’m dead
So tell me one more time
I can do anything
Except lose my mind
Tell me I need to survive
Tell me I need to survive the night
Even if by rote
I’ll put up a fight
If you will hold my coat
I sidled up to the edge
To watch the storm rolling in
I gave you my solemn pledge
I was in control of him
Now I’m out here on the ledge
With no bet left to hedge
So tell me one more time
I can do anything
Except lose my mind
Tell me I need to survive
Tell me I need to survive
Tell me I need to survive
Tell me I need to survive
|
||||
27. |
Second Drum
04:41
|
|||
I used to think that this would be the death of me
Being right ain’t all that it’s cracked up to be
And, so, as I slip from fortunate and bold
To overtaxed and undersold
I’m listening for a distant hum
And waiting on a second drum
To tell me I’m in time
Sometimes, I think my grasp has overshot my reach
Trying to catch the rhythm of another rousing speech
So, if I tend to repeat myself these days
It’s more memory loss than it’s malaise
Cause I’m just listening for the distant hum
(Distant hum)
And waiting on a second drum
(Second drum)
To tell me I’m in time
I keep hope on the periphery
Shimmering in the corner of my eye
Because there’s so little mystery
In an old man’s suicide
There was a moment there, when I thought I was done
That’ll teach me to stare directly at the sun
For now, I’ll blink and miss you, but this much remains true
I still don’t know what else to do
Except listen for the distant hum
(Distant hum)
And wait upon a second drum
(Second drum)
To tell me I’m in time
Second drum
Second drum
The bruise that followed the punchline
(Tell me I’m in time)
Concealed badly, by design
(Tell me I’m in time)
Has seeped beneath my skin like wine
(Tell me I’m in time)
Cause I’m no quitter, just resigned
Tell me I’m in time
Tell me I’m in time
Tell me I’m in time
Tell me I'm in time
|
||||
28. |
Sweet
04:41
|
|||
He left broken glasses drying
There on the side of the sink
As the party ended
Cause he’d had too much to drink
He told her what he’d been thinking
Without giving it a thought
She said she’d be home tomorrow
It’s tomorrow, and she’s not
There’s nothing to learn here
That he couldn’t learn on the street
And nothing left to say, dear
But wasn’t the best of it sweet
Now he’s standing on the corner
Trying to gather enough rope
He knows he’s become a cliché
He was aiming for a trope
Despite the distance that he’s fallen
He can’t seem to pick up speed
But he knows a guy who’s good for
A little bourbon and some weed
There’s nothing to learn here
To sweep her back off her feet
And nothing left to say, dear
But wasn’t the best of it sweet
Come the dawn, he’ll start to wonder
Could it have gone another way?
Could he have been forgiven?
Would he even want to stay?
He finds broken glasses lurking
In the coat in which he slept
Finds himself seeking water
Though he’s drowning in the depths
The whole thing’s become a mystery
Without first or final page
Misery casts off companions
When you reach a certain age.
There’s nothing to learn here
To make him feel less incomplete
And nothing left to say, dear
But wasn’t the best of it sweet
|
||||
29. |
||||
He stumbles blindly to the water
Clutching a photograph of someone else’s daughter
He selects the perfect stone
Curls it in his fist
It skims the surface with
An innocence that he has missed
And I
Who lay by his side
Never doubting how hard he tried
Can’t hide
From the pull of that tide
She’s free to leave if she so chooses
He knows his business though, you never see the bruises
She writes the letter in
Terms he will understand
And hangs it underneath
The pencil tracing of a hand
And I
Who lay by her side
Never certain for whom she cried
Can’t hide
From the knot that she tied
Should I not have made promises
(Don't be afraid)
I was never entitled to keep?
(I'll keep you safe)
It never occurred to me honestly
(I won't be ashamed)
That they’d cheat
(To meet your gaze)
They know they’re too well-dressed for sleeping
But it’s their final chance, to look good before leaping
They drop the needle to
That weather-worn shellac
And disappear into
A strain that once had held them back
And I
Who lay by their side
Mistaking sated for satisfied
Can’t hide
From the cost of these lives
|
||||
30. |
I Used To Be Pretty
03:44
|
|||
I used to be pretty
I think that I... used to be pretty
There was a time, had I been inclined
I could have flaunted my visage with pride
But here past my prime
I'm unjustly maligned
Now my exterior fits my insides
Cause I used to be pretty
I think
I used to be wanted
I hope that I... used to be wanted
Sometimes it slips to the back of my mind
Those fingertips tracing the length of my spine
The pause at the tripwire
The leap to the mine
Lips stumbling over each quotable line
Because I used to be wanted
I hope
I used to be everything to someone else
Never cared too much for myself
I used to be someone
I swear that I used to be someone
But I grasped at a fame I was never allowed
Sidestepped the blame and reviled the crowd
Made my grand claims with my head in the clouds
Sullied the named that they’ve forgotten now
Because I used to be someone
I used to be wanted
And I used to be pretty
I think
|
||||
31. |
Belly of the Beautiful
03:21
|
|||
The streets seem unnaturally solemn
As the vigillers’ candles burn low
There’s blood on the newspaper columns
Suggesting it’s high time to go
In the belly of the beautiful
In the belly of the beautiful
With our faux army greatcoats and tramp bags
Filled with silver engraved with our names
We march past the skeletal Reichstag
From which they apportion the blame
In the belly of the beautiful
In the belly of the beautiful
There at half-mast
Flies a flag gone insane
Elect and electorate growing estranged
Now at the dockyard we shuffle our feet
To urge some warmth into our bones
History like TV is full of repeats
So we sail for a tolerant home
In the belly of the beautiful
In the belly of the beautiful
From the belly of the beautiful
In the belly of the beautiful
|
||||
32. |
We Have To Go
05:01
|
|||
I'm sorry to disturb your rest
I couldn't wait for the urge to pass
I should have called first, I guess
But there's a crack in my hourglass
Another motherfucker's set the world alight
And I don't have the luxury of being right
I don't care where we go
But baby we have to go now
There's no time left to take it slow
Baby, we have to go now
I've got the kids out in the car
They think we're going to Disneyland
I really doubt we'll get that far
But I think that they'll understand
Because I left the radio on
And they're old enough to figure out
What's going on
Shake that compass, roll those dice
Baby, we have to go now
We'll improvise the imprecise
Baby, we have to go now
We can bark and we can bite
We can fuss and we fight
Or we could just pack up tonight
And go
This is me casting my vote
I know we've wished each other well
And wrote off our mounting debts
But I can hear the peal of that cruel bell
As they dish out last cigarettes
We can't risk another knockout bout
So let's just run before our legs finally give out
I don't care where we go
But baby we have to go now
There's no time left to take it slow
Baby, we have to go now
Baby, we have to go now
Baby, we have to go now
Baby, we have to go...
|
||||
33. |
The X-Factory
04:18
|
|||
Tracey was a waitress
With two kids, a heroin habit, a husband who frequented prostitutes, so
She tried out for the talent show
Queued up alongside the hopeless and hopeful
Each of them desperate to dig themselves out of a hole
Tell the whole damned world where they can go
It’s all lapped up
By a bored, boring and indolent populace
Fill their cups, up
With lager, their papers with breasts
Won’t you give it a rest?
Interviewed half in tears by a presenter
Fresh from children’s telly, with fetishes for older men
And a good spanking now and then
Tracey tells stories ‘bout singing with hairbrushes
Plays Cinderella waiting for a ball to attend
Then she breaks down and cries again
Offering crumbs
Of a dream translated from the American
To those numb, from
Bankruptcy proceedings and pregnancy tests
Won’t you give it a rest?
And your fabled 15 minutes
Will be cut down for adverts, you’ll see
Rock ‘N’ Roll stardom in easy instalments
Musical instrument sold separately
Sandwiched between the beleaguered and bitter
‘Tween has beens and harridans,
Belt buckle under his chin, Quentin ushers our Tracey in
She throws her head back, lets loose a vibrato
That rattles his molars and notifies his next of kin
His tongue sharpens behind a grin
And we all get off
Though the punishment’s cruel and unusual
Turn and softly, cough
For the man that we love to detest
Won’t you give it a rest?
Tracey’s hysterical, as they berate her
Begs for another chance, to take her place in The Sun
And prove her worth to everyone
Quentin sees something he’ll maintain is moxie
Has more to do with the zipper he’s slyly undone
Let’s take a look at what she’s won
It’s been fun,
But within a year she’s descending the alphabet
Number one, spun
Into chances to watch her undress
Won’t you give it a rest?
|
||||
34. |
Signature Mistake
04:00
|
|||
I loved you fervently for as long as you let me
Now I’m troubled by the chilling thought that you’ll forget me
I can bear being apart
But not absent from your heart
So kindly reassure me you at least regret me and…
Let me be your signature mistake
Whatever other blunders you may make
Whatever other hearts you deign to break
Please just let me be your signature mistake
I saw it in your eyes at both ends of the story
This was only ever going to lead to guts or glory
But I am willing to make do
With somewhere in between the two
So tell me all the ways it costs you to ignore me and
Let me be your signature mistake
Whatever other blunders you may make
Whatever other hearts you deign to break
Please just let me be your signature mistake
If it can’t be forever
Then instead this lesser tether
Forged in the same flame where you can’t fake
Your signature mistake
I have no right to ask, no reason to expect it
But let me linger in the faint red light above the exit
I promise I won’t make a sound
But on the off-chance that you come round
And maybe stray beyond the boundaries I’ve respected then...
Let me be your signature mistake
Whatever other blunders you may make
Whatever other hearts you design to break
Please just let me be your signature mistake
Let me be your signature mistake
Let me be your signature mistake
|
||||
35. |
Sad Songs Say Fuck All
04:52
|
|||
I could tell you my heart's broken
And I don't think it'll ever mend
You'd just hear those cliches spoken
Off the cuff, time and time again
It's too late in the game
And the novelty's palled
Words are all that remain
And sad songs say fuck all
I could say I'm lost without you
As though I knew were I was before
You gave me no cause to doubt you
My faith was misplaced on the killing floor
I could make myself plane
Now the engines have stalled
My mood waxes and wanes
But sad songs say fuck all
At least if I'm singing
I'm not crying
That's something
We should all be grateful for
Now the beast has been tamed
And the tales have grown tall
They tell me it's time to refrain
But sad songs say fuck all
Sad songs say fuck all
You can't expect me to translate the best of me
Into the metre of doleful soliloquy
The sum of what we were, refuses to transfer
To internal rhymes or to dubious metaphor
Morose and sedentary, bronzing my memories
Grasping at my last relapse into melody
I should have said before, everything heretofore
Waited to open my mouth, 'til you shut the door
Major to minor, from public to personal
Try as you might, nothing softens the fall
Because sad songs say fuck all
|
||||
36. |
In Summation
01:33
|
|||
Now that all the big words have been said
Maybe it's high time we put this to bed
Trust me, nothing would please me more
But I have a set of particular skills
I'm good at rhyming and at overkill
And that's two for two, if you've been keeping score
In summation
I don't know what earthly good this will do
In summation
I just hope you know it was for you
|
Kenton Hall & The Necessary Measures Leicester, UK
Kenton Hall is a Canadian actor, author, director and musician.
For many years,
he was the lead singer of the band ist (istianity.bandcamp.com).
He also wrote and directed the feature film A Dozen Summers and his first book, Bisection, about living and parenting with bipolar disorder was published in 2019.
His first solo album Idiopath will be released in autumn 2022.
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