Small Hours

Warm intimate half-time trip-hop with soft drum and bass breakbeat undertow, 87 BPM, wide ambient pads, single-note piano pulse, low sub-bass, vinyl crackle, breathy close-mic sung vocal, warm reverb, restrained guitar stabs, warm minor pentatonic guitar in the bridge, whispered final chorus, tender late-night domestic mood, sparse arrangement, ends on a single held piano note

[Intro: vinyl crackle, warm pads, single-note piano pulse, radiator ticking]

[Verse 1: low, close-mic, intimate]
Your cold feet find my calves at half past two,
the radiator ticks like it's got something to prove.
Streetlight through the blind in stripes across your back,
I count the breaths between the ones I've learned to track.
You mumble someone's name from a dream I'm not in,
and I'm fine with that, I'm just glad I'm here again.

[Pre-Chorus: light breakbeat enters]
I never wanted fireworks, never asked for a view,
just your keys in the bowl and the sound of you.

[Chorus: full, rolling bass, warm reverb, breathy vocal]
Stay in the small hours, stay in the half-light,
stay where the toast is burnt and nothing's quite right.
I'd know you by your footsteps, I'd know you by your laugh,
I'd pick you out of any crowd.

[Verse 2: drums drop back, guitar stabs]
Saturday, you're singing in the shower, flat on the high note,
I'm pretending I can't hear it, standing in the hall in my coat.
We argued about the sofa for a month, you were right,
it fits the room, it fits us, I still won't say it tonight.
Your glasses on the fridge, my keys in your bag,
we've swapped so many things I've lost track of what I had.

[Pre-Chorus: light breakbeat]
I never wanted fireworks, never asked for a view,
just your keys in the bowl and the sound of you.

[Chorus: fuller, rolling bass, warm reverb]
Stay in the small hours, stay in the half-light,
stay where the toast is burnt and nothing's quite right.
I'd know you by your footsteps, I'd know you by your laugh,
I'd pick you out of any crowd.

[Spoken Break: dry, warm, close to the mic, pad only, no drums]
I was going to write you something big. Strings. A key change.
Then you came in with the shopping, said the bus was late again,
asked what's for tea, and I thought,
no. This. This is the song.

[Bridge: instrumental swell, warm pentatonic guitar, snare roll, no vocals]

[Verse 3: drums out, piano and drone, close-mic]
Years from now when the stairs get long and the knees complain,
I'll still find your hand in the dark by the sound of the rain.
We'll be arguing about the heating, I'd bet,
you'll say it's cold, I'll say it isn't yet.

[Final Chorus: almost whispered, pads and piano only]
Stay in the small hours, stay in the half-light,
stay where the toast is burnt and nothing's quite right.

[Outro: single piano note held, radiator ticking, fade]
Still here

2427/7500

[Intro: vinyl crackle, warm pads, single-note piano pulse, radiator ticking] [Verse 1: low, close-mic, intimate] Your cold feet find my calves at half past two, the radiator ticks like it's got something to prove. Streetlight through the blind in stripes across your back, I count the breaths between the ones I've learned to track. You mumble someone's name from a dream I'm not in, and I'm fine with that, I'm just glad I'm here again. [Pre-Chorus: light breakbeat enters] I never wanted fireworks, never asked for a view, just your keys in the bowl and the sound of you. [Chorus: full, rolling bass, warm reverb, breathy vocal] Stay in the small hours, stay in the half-light, stay where the toast is burnt and nothing's quite right. I'd know you by your footsteps, I'd know you by your laugh, I'd pick you out of any crowd. [Verse 2: drums drop back, guitar stabs] Saturday, you're singing in the shower, flat on the high note, I'm pretending I can't hear it, standing in the hall in my coat. We argued about the sofa for a month, you were right, it fits the room, it fits us, I still won't say it tonight. Your glasses on the fridge, my keys in your bag, we've swapped so many things I've lost track of what I had. [Pre-Chorus: light breakbeat] I never wanted fireworks, never asked for a view, just your keys in the bowl and the sound of you. [Chorus: fuller, rolling bass, warm reverb] Stay in the small hours, stay in the half-light, stay where the toast is burnt and nothing's quite right. I'd know you by your footsteps, I'd know you by your laugh, I'd pick you out of any crowd. [Spoken Break: dry, warm, close to the mic, pad only, no drums] I was going to write you something big. Strings. A key change. Then you came in with the shopping, said the bus was late again, asked what's for tea, and I thought, no. This. This is the song. [Bridge: instrumental swell, warm pentatonic guitar, snare roll, no vocals] [Verse 3: drums out, piano and drone, close-mic] Years from now when the stairs get long and the knees complain, I'll still find your hand in the dark by the sound of the rain. We'll be arguing about the heating, I'd bet, you'll say it's cold, I'll say it isn't yet. [Final Chorus: almost whispered, pads and piano only] Stay in the small hours, stay in the half-light, stay where the toast is burnt and nothing's quite right. [Outro: single piano note held, radiator ticking, fade] Still here

0/500