[Intro — deep, resonant feline purr beneath the winter wind] [Pizzicato cellos begin a creeping, syncopated melody] [Bassoon answers with an eerie descending phrase] [Detuned celesta, trembling violins] [Sudden low brass pounce] [Heavy distorted guitars and driving drums burst into a crooked gothic groove] [Verse 1 — sly, nimble female vocals] The chimneys purred, the gutters bent A shadow took the moon and went The baker hid beneath his coat The mayor couldn't clear his throat A single pawprint crushed the tiles The bells rang out across the miles The windows glowed with stitching light The needles raced against the night [Pre-Chorus — creeping bassoon, rising pizzicato strings] One scratch along the weather vane One slow purr against the pane The scissors stop The candles sway The whole roof seems To lean our way! [Chorus — enormous, dark melodic hook, heavy guitars and full orchestra] STITCH BY STITCH! HEM BY HEM! SHE'S WALKING ON THE ROOFS AGAIN! BLACK AS NIGHT! EYES LIKE GOLD! SHE KNOWS WHO'S LEFT OUT IN THE COLD! THE CAT TAKES MEASURE! THE CAT TAKES MEASURE! DON'T LET THE NEEDLE STOP! [Post-Chorus — eerie female harmonies, bouncing strings] DON'T LET THE NEEDLE STOP! [Instrumental — stalking cello motif, mischievous bassoon and distorted guitar riff] [Verse 2 — nimble, increasingly frantic rhythmic singing] The seamstress dressed the whole damn street And kept no coat against the sleet Her own two sleeves had split and frayed While every neighbor's coat was made I tore the velvet from the drapes Stole red silk ribbon from a wreath I kept the needle moving fast And held the thread between my teeth [Pre-Chorus — agitated violins, sudden brass accents] One scratch along the weather vane One slow purr against the pane The scissors stop The candles sway The whole roof seems To lean our way! [Chorus — bigger guitars, frantic orchestral counterpoint] STITCH BY STITCH! HEM BY HEM! SHE'S WALKING ON THE ROOFS AGAIN! BLACK AS NIGHT! EYES LIKE GOLD! SHE KNOWS WHO'S LEFT OUT IN THE COLD! THE CAT TAKES MEASURE! THE CAT TAKES MEASURE! DON'T LET THE NEEDLE STOP! [Post-Chorus — haunting harmonies, deep rhythmic bass] DON'T LET THE NEEDLE STOP! [Instrumental — quick harpsichord and pizzicato flourishes] [Breakdown — pounding drums, heavy syncopated guitar riff, tempo unchanged] THE RAFTERS BOW! THE WINDOWS FREEZE! A GOLDEN EYE AMONG THE EAVES! I LIFT THE COAT! HER WHISKERS TWITCH! THE WORLD HOLDS STILL FOR ONE LAST STITCH! [Sudden orchestral silence] [Single needle click] [Enormous low-brass and distorted guitar hit] [Extended Instrumental — frantic gothic orchestral-metal solo] [Pizzicato cellos race against snarling bassoons] [Violins scatter through rapid chromatic runs] [Distorted guitar interrupts with an aggressive melodic riff] [Sinister brass announces the recurring feline motif] [Celesta plays the melody in increasingly unsettling harmony] [Full orchestra and guitars lock into a powerful driving rhythm] [Massive drum fill] [Final Chorus — triumphant but sinister, soaring female vocals] STITCH BY STITCH! HEM BY HEM! SHE'S WALKING ON THE ROOFS AGAIN! BLACK AS NIGHT! EYES LIKE GOLD! NOT ONE LEFT OUT IN THE COLD! THE CAT TAKES MEASURE! THE CAT TAKES MEASURE! DON'T LET THE NEEDLE STOP! [Final Refrain — infectious layered female harmonies, full orchestra] STITCH BY STITCH! HEM BY HEM! THE CAT TAKES MEASURE ONCE AGAIN! BLACK AS NIGHT! EYES LIKE GOLD! [Full-band rhythmic stop] [Final melodic female vocal] SHE BLINKS... AND LETS US GO! [Instrumental — frantic reprise of the prowling guitar-and-bassoon motif] [Outro — distorted guitars fade, eerie pizzicato cello continues] One pawprint by the northern gate Too large to fill, too deep to fake The mountains waited, pale and still And something purred Beyond the hill [Low bassoon plays the original feline motif] [A single distant metallic chime] [Silence]
