Feeling Superior

[INTRO — exposed, spoken, almost embarrassed; one muted acoustic guitar chord] I'm not saying I'm better than you. I'm saying— Wait. That's exactly what I'm saying. [PART I — intimate, low-register vocal; fingerpicked acoustic guitar] Same room. Same air. Same cheap soap. You got a story. I got one too. Mine makes me look better than you. A little book. A little taste. A little dignity I can save. Nothing to win. Nothing to prove. Just give me somebody I can look down on. [PRE-CHORUS — melody begins to rise; voice catches slightly] It's a funny little thing that a man can do when he's got nothing left but the way he looks at you. [CHORUS — open, soulful, melodic; restrained drums enter] Look down on me, I'll look down on you. We can call it survival if it helps us get through. We're all just trying to stand a little tall, building ourselves up on somebody else's fall. [PART II — stronger rhythm, rougher vocal; bass and live drums build] Your failure's a choice. Mine's a phase. Your life's a mess. Mine's a delay. Funny how the rules change when the loser is me. Funny how the mirror shows me what I need. I can dress it up in wisdom. I can call it being strong. I can tell myself a thousand things until I almost belong. [BREAKDOWN — instruments cut; voice exposed and nearly breaking] We're all standing in the same shit. Some of us just found a better angle. [Silence] And God, I hope nobody moves. [PART III — full band returns; passionate, gritty vocal, rising intensity] Higher. Higher. I need higher. Hands on the ceiling, heels on the wire. I'm not above you. I'm not below. I'm just running out of places to go. Higher. Higher. Don't let me fall. I said I was fine— I wasn't fine at all. Keep it loud. Keep it moving. If I stop for a second, I might see right through it. [FINAL CHORUS — soaring vocal, raspy high notes, full drums and backing harmonies] Look down on me, I'll look down on you. We can call it survival if it helps us get through. We're all just trying to stand a little tall, building ourselves up on somebody else's fall. And if I come down, if I lose it all, will you still be there when there's no one left to call? [OUTRO — band drops away; one acoustic guitar, almost a whisper] I'm not saying I'm better than you. [Pause] I'm saying— [Long silence] I hope you didn't notice.