For Those Left Behind Leftovers
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Reviewing these lyrics unearthed a few new opinions about this era that surprised me quite a bit.
Although there were still some duds, I’m actually a bit shocked at how many good things didn’t make the cut here. Truth be told, I could’ve justifiably included at least eight things in these leftovers but save some for the Fireteddy National Library. (These might be the first sessions that get uploaded actually.)
As for these lyrics specifically, Flirting With Mortality is something I didn’t finish on time for Hard Fought Defeat and Drown In My Doubts is some unused material from my Seasons In Colour side hustle. Both were also a part of a concept for the next grouping that ultimately got scrapped. It was going to be called Love Terrors and focus on the ugly/imperfect aspects of love. It worked for a few things but quickly ran its course and became too restrictive.
Our Defeat is about the Charleston church shooting and Ribbons In Red was inspired by the launch of Mothers Against Drunk Driving’s red ribbon campaign that year. Re-reading both things (and another in the library,) it’s made me wonder if I should’ve taken a different approach with For Those Left Behind. It ended up focusing mostly on people who get left behind, but that only carried it so far. In retrospect, using that concept to explore more subjects and situations outside of my own would’ve been a lot more interesting. Our Defeat and Ribbons Of Red would’ve fit in perfectly along with some other things that didn’t make the cut. Set This Down would’ve felt a lot less out of place if I’d done this too.
In the end, For Those Left Behind and its leftovers are almost like the lyrics that got away. Being crafted from something so personal, this realization actually feels a bit weird.
Lyrics Content
03. Our Defeat
04. Ribbons Of Red
Flirting With Mortality
Man wasn’t made to reach for the sky
So he built himself a rocket and learnt how to fly
Now we’ve got a million different ways to get high
But I haven’t tried a single one
Well maybe in the end, there’s a lesson to learn
As the saints all ascend and every sinner gets burned
While somewhere in between, I’ve been trying to discern
If faith can be earned as I run
When everyone’s life is imperfect
In their death lies a grim absolute
With so much to explain I’can make one last claim
I won’t ever stop waiting for you
Man wasn’t born to sink to the depths
So he built himself a raft and came out of the wreck
Rising with the sun while burning off some regret
Now a mission’s been set here in stone
Though somewhere in darkness love can show us the way
As two hearts both unite for another escape
Eventually we’ll all be departing someday
But a piece will stay with you to hold
When everyone’s life is imperfect
In their death lies a grim absolute
With so much to explain, I can make one last claim
I won’t ever stop waiting for you
So come and find me by the hanging tree
Where innocence and romance meet
Always flirting with mortality
It’s never where you want to be
It’s what you need, it’s what you need
When everyone’s life is imperfect
In their death lies a grim absolute
With so much to explain, I can make one last claim
I won’t ever stop waiting for you
I won’t ever stop waiting for you
I will never stop waiting for you
Man wasn’t made to reach for the sky
So he built himself a rocket and learnt how to fly
Now we’ve got a million different ways to get high
And there’s nothing else I’d rather do
There’s nothing else I’d rather do
Drown In My Doubts
See it in plain view, a house on the hill
With white picket fences and gardens to fill
Nothing outlandish, a suburbanite’s dream
Can’t remember the past but it’s not what it seems
So even before I open my mouth
I already know that the words will go south
Been lining up my antidotes but nothing comes out
So I’ll drown in my doubts, yeah I’ll drown in my doubts!
Nothing to rise from will come without fear
With wasted ideals that have all disappeared
If life is decided with nowhere to steer
What are we doing here? What are we doing?
Brighter horizons, a life up in flames
Excuses to foster and addictions to claim
All things repugnant, every shot in the dark
Can’t skip to the future when there’s nowhere to start
So even before I open my mouth
I already know that the words will go south
Been lining up my antidotes but nothing comes out
So I’ll drown in my doubts, yeah I’ll drown in my doubts!
Nothing to rise from will come without fear
With wasted ideals that have all disappeared
If life is decided with nowhere to steer
What are we doing here? What the hell are we doing?
I’ll keep biting my tongue, never holding my breath
As I choke down each word that this silence misread
Breaking these habits, I’ve learnt to move past them instead
Even before I open my mouth
I already know that the words will go south
Been lining up my antidotes but nothing comes out
So I’ll drown in my doubts, yeah I’ll drown in my doubts!
Nothing to rise from will come without fear
With wasted ideals that have all disappeared
If life is decided with nowhere to steer
What are we doing here? What are we doing here?
What are we doing here? What are we doing?
Our Defeat
Somewhere in an alley underneath the pouring rain
In the shadows with a gun, he thinks the world has gone insane
We’ve got terrorists and anarchists but nothing can compare
To the right man with a wrong thought and the means to get him there
One by one they all go down
Like turning horses on a merry-go-round
Running through these backdoors to the latest tragedies
We’re still trapped in finding reasons to protect the enemy
Now with every senseless massacre, there’s a vigil on the street
So we can bask in our defeat, yeah we can bask in our defeat
His nerves have left him twitching with a plot inside his mind
It’s unending like the nightmares that you hope you’ll never find
Screw the racist, mental illness is the colour of the week
Now they’ll paint a perfect picture made in blood red casualties
One by one, we all pretend
Like herded cattle as the slaughter begins
Running through these backdoors to the latest tragedies
We’re still trapped in finding reasons to protect the enemy
Now with every senseless massacre, there’s a vigil on the street
So we can bask in our defeat, yeah we can bask in our defeat
First comes love and then comes hate
Blurring some ideals but they’re never erased
Next comes numbers, counting 21
Discriminating colours and he’s given a gun
We can take down targets from so far away
Yet there’s still no stopping the NRA
Now 7 good people have died for his sins
But there’s no use fighting when the devil’s within
No one gives a shit, just give them a pill
Don’t we always take care of the mentally ill?
Looking for a scapegoat, it’s a perfect excuse
Now hunters are the victims in this gross abuse
Why deal with the problem when it’s easy to run?
We can always change the focus if we’re under the gun
Ban a flag, kill our children but the ending’s the same
It’s funny how there’s always something different to blame
They say a bad man with a loaded gun
It’s a bad thing, so you better run
But a good man with the right idea
Can protect himself, he’s the victim here
Though the victims here, they no longer speak
Because they’re in the ground, so if you ask me
Is this freedom now? Well it’s hard to see
When the price you pay is never free
Until there’s nothing left to see
It’s like a terminal disease
You know there’s nothing left to see
Until there’s something to agree on, I’ll concede
Ribbons Of Red
White lights, so bright
That it feels you’re drowning in
Cold nights, you might
Never really surface from
I’ve heard no words
That can ever seem to speak
In part for hearts
Broken by such tragedies
Red light, lost sight
Of what we’re truly living for
In time, you’ll find
It doesn’t matter anymore
I’ve seen these dreams
Swallowed up and taken whole
Though blind, I’m mindful
Of the ones who lost it all
Wrapped in ribbons of red
We’ll honour memories instead
For every one in this room
Attached to those gone too soon
I know it’s not what they meant
But choices aren’t accidents
Let’s learn to learn from mistakes
Take care and try to stay safe
What made them think that they knew better then?
Made them think that they were better men?
Too wise to then repeat
Well that’s the problem with this proving ground
Losing arguments are never sound
No odds on the deceased
But when you say that you’re all in
And there’s nothing left to win
You play for keeps
Wrapped in ribbons of red
We’ll honour memories instead
For every one in this room
Attached to those gone too soon
I know it’s not what they meant
But choices aren’t accidents
Let’s learn to learn from mistakes
Take care and try to stay safe
Take care and try to stay safe
Take care and live to stay safe