[Intro – *Instrumental FX* + Spoken Word] [Accordion in minor key, slow waltz rhythm. Background: ticking clock, rising steam hiss] [Spoken – Male, playful villainy]: “Ah, they said I was mad—imagine! But a heart of brass beats just as sweet… with the right touch of oil and obsession.” [Cue: *CRANKING sound* + *slow wind-up click*… then—music kicks in] [Verse 1] [Baritone vocal with theatrical flourish] I was built in a lab with a teacup in hand A dashing delight made to waltz, not to stand They gave me a cane, a monocle too And taught me to murder in a high-button shoe [*Accordion stabs in offbeats,* *violin glissando after each line*] [Female] My jaw clicks in verse, my gears grind in time And if you insult me, I’ll answer in rhyme A corset, a curse, a drop of vermouth— I'm wound up for chaos and terribly smooth [Chorus] [Full band kick-in: *Organ*, *Guitar*, *Percussion* FX] I'm the Gentleman Automaton, Brass and bourbon, sin and song Clockwork kisses, powdered grace— A blade beneath my silken lace Tick-tock darling, your time is gone… When you dance with the Automaton! [FX: *GEAR RATCHETS* + *steam pipe hiss*] [*Violin flurry descending into glissando shriek*] [Verse 2] [Leaning into cabaret swagger] I dine on champagne and leftover queens With manners so sharp I cut through their dreams My laugh’s been refined by a chorus of cogs I pirouette proudly through top hats and fog My love is a lever, my hate’s a piston I’ll toast to your doom in a chrome-braided vestment I don’t bleed or rust, I just flicker and hum A darling of decadence, oiled and well-strung [Bridge – Slow Waltz Interlude] [*Steam organ + violin over ticking clock FX. Tempo slows. Whispered vocals.*] [Male whispered] She touched my gears and called it fate… I pulled her close—it sealed her state… She wound me tight, she kissed the steel— And vanished where the dreams aren't real… [*Theremin swell + deep brass chord — like a sigh from a dying machine*] [Final Chorus – Full Ensemble, slightly faster tempo] Oh the Gentleman Automaton, Clocked to midnight, prim and wrong! Silk cravat and sins to sell, A ticking menace dressed quite well So waltz with me, before you're gone… Kiss the gears of the Automaton! (FX: *SPINNING GEARS* + *SLAMMED DOOR echo*) [*Guitar solo: minor scale, violin duels in call-and-response*] [Outro – Spoken Word + *Music Box FX*] [Music box in E minor, slowing down as if winding down…] [Spoken – Male, wistful whisper] “Don't forget me my dear… I promise to be good this time…” [SFX: *Wind-up crank*… stops. *Tick… tick… silence.*]
