[3D SOUNDSTAGE] [Verse 1] The empathy box is ringing again Another broadcast from the mouths of men Who swear they're bleeding real I dial the mood I need to feel Six for recognition, three for the doubt The chemical sequence maps it out [RIFF] [Verse 2] My neighbor keeps a synthetic dove Feeds it wire seeds and calls it love The animal bounty hunters know Which heartbeats pulse and which ones glow False beneath the skin they wear We're all performing authenticity somewhere [Chorus] Are we awake or just agreeing to be? The broadcast tells us what to see Reality's a rental we can barely keep Do we dream when androids sleep? [Verse 3] Mercerism at the appointed hour Grip the handles, share the shower Of stones that may or may not fall On a prophet who may not exist at all But the pain is real enough to sell And kipple fills every cell [EXTENDED RIFF] [Bridge] The specials hide below in radioactive prayer While we ascend the stairs to thinner air Measuring our souls in baseline tests Six questions to separate the rest From the rest from the rest from the— [Chorus] Are we awake or just agreeing to be? The broadcast tells us what to see Reality's a rental we can barely keep Do we dream when androids sleep? [MUSIC INTENSIFIES] [Outro] I'll take the gray I'll take the fray Where nothing's certain But the decay The decay The beautiful decay [RIFF CLIMAX AND FADE OUT]
