Used to know me

[Intro][overdriven guitar riff alone, 4 bars, drums crash in bar 3] [Verse 1][Clean][intimate and controlled, guitar and drums only] Found an old photo the other day, didn't recognise the face Same eyes looking back at me from a completely different place That guy laughed at everything, believed the world was good Did all the things they told him not to, did all the things he should Don't know when the switch flipped, don't know what changed first Can't tell if I got better or just got used to worse People say I seem more settled, say I finally grew up But settled feels a lot like something slowly giving up [Pre-Chorus][Build tension → guitars thicken → drums intensify] And I keep trying to find him in the mirror every morning But every day he's harder to make out And I don't know if I should be mourning Or finally letting go without a doubt [Chorus][Belting][full distorted grunge wall of sound, driving relentless energy] I used to know me, now I'm not so sure Used to know exactly what I wanted everything for Something shifted somewhere I can't name or locate And I can't decide if this is growth or if it's just too late I used to know me, I used to know me Now I just wear the shape of who I was before I used to know me, not anymore [Instrumental break][overdriven guitar lead melody, 8 bars, drums lock in tight] [Verse 2][Clean][rawer delivery, more urgent, vocal doubles creep in] Started saying no to things I would have died to do before Started leaving parties early, stopped keeping score Used to need the noise to feel alive inside my chest Now the quiet doesn't scare me and I don't know what that says Caught myself explaining why I've changed to someone new Halfway through the sentence I didn't know if it was true Said I'm more at peace now, said I've finally found my ground But peace and numb aren't all that different when you write it down [Pre-Chorus][both vocals layer, guitars push harder] And I keep trying to find him in the mirror every morning But every day he's harder to make out And I don't know if I should be mourning Or finally letting go without a doubt [Chorus][Belting][bigger than first, everything stacks] I used to know me, now I'm not so sure Used to know exactly what I wanted everything for Something shifted somewhere I can't name or locate And I can't decide if this is growth or if it's just too late I used to know me, I used to know me Now I just wear the shape of who I was before I used to know me, not anymore [Breakdown][single guitar note only, near silence, 4 bars] Maybe this is just what living does to you... Maybe everyone forgets who they were... Or maybe I just stopped fighting to remember... I don't know anymore... [Build][drums return one hit at a time, guitar distortion rises, 8 bars] [Bridge][Belting][most raw moment, vocal pushed to edge of control] I don't miss the chaos, I don't miss the pain I just miss the certainty of knowing my own name Every version of me left a little piece behind And I'm standing in the wreckage trying to make up my mind Is this who I wanted, is this what I chose Or did I just become whatever the current year proposed I keep waiting for the answer like it's coming any day But the guy who used to have it probably gave it all away [Final Chorus][maximum everything, vocal fully alive, guitars wall of sound] I used to know me, now I'm not so sure Used to know exactly what I wanted everything for Something shifted somewhere I can't name or locate And I can't decide if this is growth or if it's just too late I used to know me, I used to know me Now I just wear the shape of who I was before I used to know me Not anymore [Outro][single guitar fades, vocal last line almost spoken, no resolution] I used to know me... Not anymore...