[Intro] Shambala, remember the river? It carried our names through the green. We built our small homes by the water, And left every doorway unsealed. [Verse 1] Now gold weighs down every window, The market has swallowed the square. A horned judge keeps count of the hungry; His clerks sell the breath from the air. You knew every child by their footsteps, You kept a warm bowl by the flame. Now bargains are carved into doorways, And no one says anyone’s name. [Pre-Chorus] Hold still—hear the old bells strain. The drums fall away; the stones remember rain. You take my hand where the black gates stand— We were a home before this land was bought. [Chorus] Shambala, city of greed, city of demons, What have they done to the garden we knew? Paradise of love, we were breathing together— I’ll tear through the lie to get back to you. Shambala, hear us beneath all the thunder, The lost still remember the promise we made. Your name in my mouth is a match in the darkness; We won’t let the last good thing be betrayed. [Verse 2] The old flute is locked in the tower, Its note still can slip through the stone. I hear it beneath all the engines, A tune that can lead us back home. The demons wear silk at the council, Their smiles have a price and a seam. You tell me the orchard is waiting— I tell you I still know the way. [Pre-Chorus] Hold still—hear the old bells strain. The drums fall away; the stones remember rain. You take my hand where the black gates stand— We were a home before this land was bought. [Chorus] Shambala, city of greed, city of demons, What have they done to the garden we knew? Paradise of love, we were breathing together— I’ll tear through the lie to get back to you. Shambala, hear us beneath all the thunder, The lost still remember the promise we made. Your name in my mouth is a match in the darkness; We won’t let the last good thing be betrayed. [Bridge] You—behind the iron procession. Me—at the edge of the square. One word, and the frightened remember The love that was living there. No throne can own a river. No seal can purchase the spring. We open the gates for each other. We give back the names they took. [Breakdown] Greed in the hall! Fear in the street! You are not theirs! We still believe! [Final Chorus] Shambala, city of greed, city of demons, We bring back the garden they buried from view. Paradise of love, we are breathing together— The road through the ruin comes leading to you. Shambala, hear us; the old bells are ringing, The lost raise their voices, the locked gates give way. Your name in my mouth is a match in the darkness; We won’t let the last good thing be betrayed. [Outro] You set the bowl by the doorway. The river still knows our names.
