“Neon Peyote (City of Thirst)” [Verse 1] Sun like a hammered coin, noon in my eyes, Dust in the throat, road draws a line. Pouch came up empty, spirits went quiet, Echo in the canyon said, “Walk, don’t fight it.” Coyote laughs low where the fence meets the sky, Rattles in the glove box keep the time. I trace old footprints in a salt-white hush, Wind talks circles I can almost touch. [Pre-Chorus] I’m a drum with no fire, I’m a match with no spark, Got a prayer made of copper, Ringing out in the dark. [Chorus] I’m heading down to the city of thirst, Where the neon blooms like a fever burst. Carry my circle through the wire and stone, ’Til the road remembers and the spirit comes home. [Verse 2] Streetlights hum like bees in a jar, Asphalt river, I drift too far. Steel birds whisper over bone-gray roofs, Sirens make thunder with plastic hooves. Shopfront glass holds a desert face, Sand in the lashes, miles in the taste. I trade four quarters for a borrowed dawn, Little brown paper, and I’m moving on. [Pre-Chorus] I’m a drum with no fire, I’m a match with no spark, But I’ll kindle this whisper ’Til it opens the dark. [Chorus] I’m heading back from the city of thirst, With a prayer that’s heavy and a song unrehearsed. Carry my circle through the wire and stone, ’Til the road remembers and the spirit comes home. [Bridge] Low beat, slow feet—heart on the rim, Horizon like a bowl, I’m pouring back in. Smoke draws a ladder, night draws a ring, Name of the thunder’s the name that I sing. [Breakdown] One step… two step… sand keeps score, Every grain a key, every key a door. Moon carves silver on a jackrabbit run, Old man river in the veins of the sun. [Final Chorus] I came up dry to the city of thirst, Where the lights bloom crooked and the prayers sound cursed, But the wheel keeps turning and the wheels roll on— Now the road remembers, and the spirit comes home. [Outro] Drum finds fire, spark finds bone, Star-salt silence, I’m never alone. Coyote fades where the fence meets sky, Wind says “enough,” and the wires reply.
