[Intro] [Synth pad wash, gentle drum machine pulse] [Distant reverb creating space] (Instrumental - 8 bars) [Verse 1] [Intimate, conversational vocal] [Minimal - synth bass, light drums, single pad] Deering Oaks, it's a place where the forgotten go Where admission isn't easy, it takes a hand ready to fold Kelly says "these are our homes" but they sweep us every week Give us 24 hours' notice, then we're back out on the street Cory's been here 24 years, asks "why?" into the air The city looks right through him like he isn't really there There's a pregnant woman sleeping by the fountain in the cold And Allan who is blind gets told he's "liability" we're told [Pre-Chorus] [Building slightly - bass line becomes melodic] [Layered vocals beginning to harmonize] We got jobs but still no housing We got hearts but who is counting? In a country made of plenty We're the guilt you're not confronting [Chorus] [Full arrangement - horns, layered synths, falsetto climbs] [Anthemic but bittersweet, not triumphant] Deering Oaks, Deering Oaks Where the invisible go to be seen Deering Oaks, Deering Oaks We're your brothers you choose not to believe The grass is always greener When you drive on by But we're sleeping in your Eden Asking "why? why? why?" [Verse 2] [Pulling back to intimate again] [Single synth line, drum machine, bass] There's abundance in the windows of the shops along the way But somehow scarcity's constructed to keep us out, they say We're not lazy, we're not broken, we're just humans in the rain Some of us lost jobs, some lost hope, some lost ourselves to pain You walk past with your headphones, we might as well be ghosts But we're flesh and blood and stories that this city needs the most 'Cause if you really saw us, you'd have to face the truth— That the system you're defending is the system that produced [Pre-Chorus] [Building again with guitar chorus effects entering] [Falsetto hints beginning to appear] We got dreams but still no shelter We got names but who remembers? In a land of milk and honey We're the shame beneath your comfort [Chorus] [Full lush arrangement again] [Horns more prominent, synth strings swelling] Deering Oaks, Deering Oaks Where the invisible go to be seen Deering Oaks, Deering Oaks We're your sisters you choose not to believe The grass is always greener When you drive on by But we're dying in your Eden Asking "why? why? why?" [Bridge] [Stripped way back - just synth pad and voice] [Most vulnerable, almost a cappella moment] [Spoken-sung, conversational] And maybe if you saw us Really saw us You'd have to change something And change is scary So you make us into problems Into statistics Into anything but human Into less than you But we're still here (We're still here) In your park (In your park) Waiting For you to remember We're the same [Final Chorus] [Building slowly - each element returning] [Synths, bass, drums, horns, layered vocals] [Falsetto climbs at peak moments] [Most emotional delivery] Deering Oaks, Deering Oaks Where your conscience goes to sleep Deering Oaks, Deering Oaks We're your family in the street The grass is always greener When you refuse to see But we're human in your Eden Just like you and me Just like you and me [Outro] [Slowly stripping back instrumentation] [Ending with just synth pad and distant voice] [Falsetto fading into reverb] Deering Oaks... (We're still here) Deering Oaks... (Just believe) Deering Oaks... (Synth pad fading out slowly)
