[INTRO – “Low Red Room”] [Composer Notes: 70 BPM, halftime feel. Brushed drums. Tape-saturated bass. Tremolo guitar with spring reverb. Hammond organ breathing in D minor. Room tone, glass clinks, slow footstep reverb.] The room leans in And the air tastes slow [VERSE 1 – “The Work”] [Composer Notes: Fingerstyle southern rock guitar. Minor 9th chords. Trip-hop ghost kicks underneath.] She moves like something you shouldn’t keep Bare feet talking to the floor Eyes that promise half a sleep Mouth that leaves you wanting more [PRE-CHORUS – “The Hook”] [Composer Notes: Chords rising chromatically. Muted trumpet breaths.] You don’t feel the line Till you’re already over [CHORUS – “House of Soft Ruin”] [Composer Notes: Low soul backing vocals. Dry snare. Thick bass. Light restrained guitar feedback.] She don’t take cash — she takes the part You hide when you say you’re fine She leaves fingerprints on your heart That don’t wash out with time Step too close, you understand You don’t walk out like the man who came in [BASS SOLO – “Heat in the Wires”] [Composer Notes: Overdriven fingerstyle bass. Slides, hammer-ons, minor blues scale runs. Syncopated accents. Filthy tone but smooth phrasing. Ends with a tight, snapping stop.] [INSTRUMENTAL] [VERSE 2 – “Contract in Skin”] [Composer Notes: Harmonica low in the mix. Drum brushes tighten. Guitar bends on blue notes.] Perfume mixed with old regret Cheap mirrors, expensive lies Every smile feels like a debt Every breath another price [CALL & RESPONSE – “The Devil’s Chorus”] [Composer Notes: Breathy female lead (call). Low male choir (response). Close-mic’d and gritty.] CALL: Who you reach when your will runs thin? RESPONSE: The one who knows where to begin CALL: Who you blame when you fold inside? RESPONSE: The one who’s always on your side [GUITAR SOLO – “Silk and Smoke”] [Composer Notes: Dirty-blues guitar tone with tape saturation. Call-and-response between high-register lead licks and low-register answer phrases. Uses bends, vibrato, and volume swells. Climaxes in long sustained note.] [INSTRUMENTAL] [FINAL CHORUS – “House of Soft Ruin (Reprise)”] [Composer Notes: Harder drum hits. Organ opened wide. Backing vocals expanded.] She don’t take cash — she takes the part You hide when you say you’re fine She leaves fingerprints on your heart That don’t wash out with time Lean too far, you understand You don’t walk out like the man who came in [OUTRO – “Smoke & Breath”] [Composer Notes: Instruments drop away. Bass hum and room tone remain.] The lights hum low You don’t feel holy You don’t feel damned You just don’t feel lonely
