When the Black Wheat Grows

[When the Black Wheat Grows-A dark folk / gothic rock ballad from Hollowvale] The crows flew low at the edge of dawn, Their wings like ash in the rain. Old Mara crossed herself three times, Said the fields had learned our names. There’s a church bell buried under mud, Still ringing soft below… And every year the soil turns dark When the black wheat grows. [Chorus] Ohhh— Don’t follow lanterns in the hollow, Don’t drink where the dead creek flows. Keep your children from the windowlight When the black wheat grows. The scarecrows bow like grieving saints, Their mouths stitched shut with crows. And every sin this valley buried Comes back when the black wheat grows. The miller’s son went missing first, Just boots beside the well. Then preacher Vale stopped speaking names And locked himself in hell. There’s something moving in the amber sea, Beneath the frost and cinder snow… You can hear it breathing after dusk When the black wheat grows. [Chorus] Ohhh— Don’t follow singing through the thicket, Don’t trust the rabbit roads. There are teeth beneath the harvest moon When the black wheat grows. The widows leave their doors unlatched, The dogs refuse to go. And the fields remember every grave When the black wheat grows. [Bridge] Mama said the earth was hungry… Papa said the town was cursed… But the old ones in the candle smoke Whispered something worse. “It wasn’t born beneath the valley…” “No… we carried it home.” Now the sky hangs crooked over Hollowvale, And the barns all creak like bones. The wheat stands tall as funeral veils Where no clean thing has grown. And if you hear your own voice calling From the fields beyond the stones… Do not answer. Do not turn. That’s how the black wheat sows. [Final Chorus] Ohhh— Ring the iron bells at midnight, Burn the rows in fire and clove. Pray your name ain’t written in the roots When the black wheat grows. The valley keeps what wanders in, No soul escapes the rows… And Hollowvale will feed again When the black wheat grows.