[Intro] [slow, marching riff, drums entering low and deliberate, single gavel-crack sound accent on the downbeat] [Verse 1] [full riff groove, steady and unshaken, marching cadence] Gavel dropped a hundred times I never lost a wink of sleep Signed the papers, said the words Watched the trapdoor drop and creep Called it justice, called it order Called it the county's will Never thought the rope would follow Me on up that courthouse hill [Pre-Chorus] [drums tighten, march deepens] Hear my footsteps in the hallway Hear the gavel strike at three Every man I ever sentenced Comes to sentence back on me [Chorus] [full weight, doom-heavy march, gang vocals on last line] I'm the hangin' judge who can't stop hangin' Every night the same decree I'm the gavel and the gallows And the rope's still waitin' on me I'm the hangin' judge who can't stop hangin' Guilty's all I'll ever be [Verse 2] [same march, delivery a little more desperate] Thirteen men I sent to heaven Or the other place below Never asked if I was certain Never let the doubt show Now I hear them on the staircase Now I hear them call my name Turns out justice keeps a ledger And I'm the one who's still in debt [Pre-Chorus] [drums tighten, march deepens] Hear my footsteps in the hallway Hear the gavel strike at three Every man I ever sentenced Comes to sentence back on me [Chorus] [full weight, doom-heavy march, gang vocals on last line] I'm the hangin' judge who can't stop hangin' Every night the same decree I'm the gavel and the gallows And the rope's still waitin' on me I'm the hangin' judge who can't stop hangin' Guilty's all I'll ever be [Guitar Solo] [slow, grinding, courthouse-echo styled, wah-drenched bends] [Bridge] [half-time breakdown, doom-heavy, vocals lower and hollow] Maybe one of them was innocent Maybe more than only one I can't take back a single verdict I can't undo what I have done [building back up toward the final chorus, march widening] So I walk the halls at midnight Signin' papers no one reads Every name still needs a verdict And there's nobody left but me [Chorus - Final] [heaviest version of the march, full weight, shouted final line] I'm the hangin' judge who can't stop hangin' Every night the same decree I'm the gavel and the gallows And the rope's still waitin' on me I'M THE HANGIN' JUDGE WHO CAN'T STOP HANGIN' GUILTY'S ALL I'LL EVER BE
