[Intro — warped calliope, wind, distant metal creaking] Come one, come all… The lights are dead. The rides still turn. And something remembers every name you said. [SFX: A rusted wheel groans] [Verse 1] At the edge of town where the tall grass grows, There’s a crooked gate that nobody knows. Paint flakes off in the pale moonlight, And the midway wakes when it falls to night. Old prize booths with their hollow eyes, A Ferris wheel cutting up the skies. No ticket man and no hands to wave, Just a thousand footsteps around an empty grave. [Pre-Chorus] The posters peel, but the smiles remain, The brass plays sweet through the summer rain. You hear your name from the carousel— One more ride, and you’ll never tell. [Chorus] Welcome back where the lost lights glow, Where the dead rides turn and the cold winds blow. SCP-097, hear the call, The old fairgrounds remember us all. Round and round till the stars burn black, Follow the music—you can’t turn back. No final bell, no morning sun, The carnival never closes when the night has begun. [Verse 2] The bumper cars are a rusted fleet, Like iron hearts with no pulse to beat. A cracked loudspeaker whispers low, “Step right up, there’s nowhere to go.” In the funhouse glass, I see my face, Then something else takes my place. A shadow moves where the bulbs went blind, And the tune keeps playing inside my mind. [Pre-Chorus] The ticket tears, but the mark stays on, The gate swings wide though the crowd is gone. Every prize has a price to pay, Every exit leads the same damn way. [Chorus] Welcome back where the lost lights glow, Where the dead rides turn and the cold winds blow. SCP-097, hear the call, The old fairgrounds remember us all. Round and round till the stars burn black, Follow the music—you can’t turn back. No final bell, no morning sun, The carnival never closes when the night has begun. [Bridge — music drops to music box and whispered vocals] Was it laughter, was it crying? Was that wheel just slowly dying? Was that figure standing there Always waiting at the fair? We came for lights. We came for fun. We left our shadows One by one. [Build — drums enter, guitars swell] Lock the gate! Kill the sound! Burn the posters to the ground! But beneath the ash and stone, Hear the calliope play on! [Breakdown — heavy guitars, distorted calliope] SCP-097! The old grounds call! SCP-097! There’s no escape at all! The rust still turns! The black weeds grow! The music plays Where no winds blow! [Final Chorus — huge theatrical vocals] Welcome back where the lost lights glow, Where the dead rides turn and the cold winds blow. SCP-097, hear the call, The old fairgrounds will outlast us all. Round and round till the stars burn black, Every lost soul leaves a track. No final bell, no rising sun, The carnival never closes— The carnival never closes— The carnival never closes When the night has begun! [Outro — calliope slows, one final metallic creak] Come one… come all… Your ride is waiting.
