[Verse] The town goes quiet after ten, No one knows quite why or when, But every year, when October dies, Something wakes beneath the skies. (Something wakes...) The shutters close, the streets turn still, A colder wind comes down the hill, And those who know what comes tonight Are home before the last sunlight. (Before the sunlight...) [Pre-Chorus] Because once midnight takes the town, There’s no good sense to be found, And if you hear your doorway call, You'd better not answer at all. (Don't answer...) [Chorus] Wicked Hours, here they come, (Here they come...) When the night decides the day is done, Every fool who stays outside Finds out what walks the other side. Wicked Hours, wild and strange, When the rules begin to rearrange, And if you're foolish enough to roam, Don't expect to make it home. (Don't make it home...) So lock the door and kill the light, Pretend you've never heard tonight, For once the town forgets the sun, The Wicked Hours have begun. (They've begun...) Wicked... Wicked Hours [Verse] But curiosity is cruel, And fear can make a clever fool. I took the road I knew so well And watched the evening cast its spell. (Should've stayed home...) The houses seemed to lean my way, As if they had a word to say. Then from the churchyard came a sound Three little knocks beneath the ground. [Pre-Chorus] I should have turned and walked away, I should have waited for the day, But pride is such a foolish thing When something buried starts to sing. (Starts to sing...) [Chorus] Wicked Hours, pull me near, (Pull me near...) Every step makes danger clear, Down the crooked garden wall, Past the place I knew as small. Wicked Hours, cold as stone, Make a crowded street feel lone, And when the buried start to rise, Even brave men tell some lies. (Tell some lies...) I tried to laugh, I tried to flee, But something laughed along with me, And when I heard that second sound, I knew there'd be no turning round. (No turning round...) Wicked... Wicked Hours [Verse] The ground gave way beneath the stones, And up they came with hollow bones. They left the earth without a sound, And slowly spread across the town. (Across the town...) I watched them pass the houses by, To search for victims under midnight sky. They never stopped, they never strayed, They knew exactly where I stayed. (They found me...) The closer they came down the street, The harder grew my heart to beat. Then one by one they turned to me As if I'd broken some decree. (What did I do?) [Bridge] The oldest fear I’d heard as a child Returned to me, no longer mild: When wicked hours claim the night, One living soul must pay the price. (One soul..) Not for a sin, not for a crime, But simply for remaining past the time. And those three knocks beneath the ground Were a warning: if you hear them, you are found. (You are found...) I ran toward home through empty lanes, Through drifting leaves and starting rain. The houses stood in perfect rows, But none of their familiar doors Would open anymore. (Open...) [Pre-Chorus] The final hour was drawing near, The first faint trace of dawn appeared. Behind me came that measured sound, A hundred footsteps on the ground. (Coming closer...) I reached my door and turned the key, Then I felt the cold come over me. As I saw it written underneath the frame: One word only: (My name...) [Final-Chorus] Wicked Hours, take me in, (Take me in...) Let the strangest night begin, No more running, no disguise, No more clever alibis. Wicked Hours, dressed in fright, Keep me laughing through the night, For if the dead have saved a seat, It would be rude to miss the feast. (Saved a seat...) Wicked Hours, one last chance, Take my hand and join the dance, If tomorrow asks where I have been, I'll simply say I went for Halloween. (For Halloween...) [Outro] At sunrise, every door stood wide, But not a single soul outside. The town was just as it had been, As though the night had never been. (Never been...) Except beneath my bedroom door, A trail of earth across the floor. And where my shoes had once been laid, A pair of footprints freshly made. (Freshly made...) [Fade Out] Three knocks beneath the ground... (Knock... knock... knock...) And somewhere underneath the town, Something waits for next sundown. Waiting with all its eerie powers For the next... Wicked... (Wicked...) Wicked Hours...
