That Dirty Sound

(one, two— one-two-three) (yeahhh!) (feedback kiss… pull it back) Door swings shut, heat sticks quick, Beer on the floor, boots slide wrong, Neck of the guitar’s already warm, Ain’t even played one song. Drummer taps just to test the room, Snare snaps back real loud, I hit one chord, let it scrape and bend, Whole bar leans in now. Ooohhh— that dirty sound, Yeahhhh— that dirty sound, Mm-mm— when it bends and staggers, Everybody gathers ‘round, Ooohhh— that dirty sound, Turn it up, don’t calm it down. Thumb walks low, fingers bite hard, Pick hits wood, not just wire, That amp don’t care if it hurts a bit, It just keeps talkin’ louder. Guy by the stage yells “play that again,” Bartender nods in time, I drag that note past where it should sit, Let it hang, then slide. Ooohhh— that dirty sound, Yeahhhh— that dirty sound, Mm-mm— don’t clean the edges, Let it roll around, Ooohhh— that dirty sound, Shake the boards, shake the ground. Sweat runs down the guitar face, Strings bite back when I lean, Speaker coughs but it won’t quit, Just growls low and mean. Some folks like it neat and polite, Every note tied tight, This one limps, this one argues back, Feels right tonight— (no— feels right now). (Talkin’) Austin— you hear that? (play it…) (hold it…) (now bend it wrong) [Verse 4 — final push, no brakes] Hands ache bad but I dig in more, Let the string finish the sayin’, If I leave nothin’ but noise behind, I’m fine with what I’m makin’. Lights flash once, room gets loud, Drummer laughs, counts it down, I hit that note, shake it sideways, That low, low dirty sound. Ooohhh— that dirty sound, (yeah! yeah!) Ooohhh— that dirty sound, Mm-mm— bends it crooked, Won’t ever settle down, Ooohhh— that dirty sound, That’s how we do it now. (yeahhh!) (play it one more time!) (bend— hold— shake—) That dirty sound…