Static in the Rhythm [Intro] (Deep static… wet rope creaking… one steel drum note repeating…) Somewhere beneath the static… something found the beat. (The steel drum repeats… louder… louder…) (A deep bass begins pulsing like a heartbeat.) WOOP… WOOP… (Everything drops.) ⸻ [Verse 1] Witch doctor drums got the shoreline jumping Black sand kicking like the dead are drumming (WOOP WOOP) Steel pan bright but the notes sound wrong Everybody grinning till the shadows sing along (Steel drum answers.) Candle wax running down a skull-white face Treasure chest shaking in a locked-up place (HEY!) Voodoo dolls hanging where the ropes hang low Pins in their hearts but they still move slow (Bass groove rolls.) Old ship groaning with nobody aboard Dragging wet chains on the ocean floor (Static crackles.) Walls start breathing when the bassline leans And the mirror shows waves where your face should be ⸻ [Pre-Chorus] Animals hide… …when the rhythm gets loud. Jungle starts talking… …but there ain’t no crowd. Compass keeps spinning… …no north… …no south. Something black smiling… …with a saltwater mouth. (Beat builds.) ⸻ [Chorus] Curse got rhythm… …and the rhythm got teeth. (WOOP WOOP) Steel drums laughing… …underneath the reef. (HEY!) Bassline crawling through the sand and the trees. Whole beach moving like it’s trying to breathe. (Steel drum solo.) Curse got rhythm… …yeah the storm got swing. Black waves clapping… …while the ship bells ring. No way out once the beat gets in. WOOP WOOP — watch the shoreline spin. ⸻ [Verse 2] 89.9 blinked red in the rain. One crooked signal riding through my veins. (Radio crackle.) Radio host talking from a long-dead room. Laughing through static like a crack in a tomb. Palm trees swaying to the beat too clean. Like somebody pulled them by a string unseen. (WOOP WOOP) Voices from nowhere start counting down. But nobody’s standing when I turn around. Gold coins sweating in the treasure chest. Every little shine got a soul unrest. Groaning ship rocks with a hungry sound. (Everything cuts except bass.) Like it wants the whole damn beach pulled down. ⸻ [Pre-Chorus 2] Dead roots tapping… …under bare feet. Rain keeps time… …with a crooked heartbeat. No escape… …when the Black Tide rolls. It don’t just take bodies… …it borrows souls. ⸻ [Chorus] Curse got rhythm… …and the rhythm got teeth. (WOOP WOOP) Steel drums laughing… …underneath the reef. Bassline crawling through the sand and the trees. Whole beach moving like it’s trying to breathe. (Steel drum riff.) Curse got rhythm… …yeah the storm got swing. Black waves clapping… …while the ship bells ring. No way out once the beat gets in. WOOP WOOP — watch the shoreline spin. ⸻ [Bridge] (Everything drops to hand drums, static, rope creaks, and distant chanting.) Don’t trust the drums… …if no hands are playing. (Pause.) Don’t trust the wind… …when it knows what you’re saying. (Pause.) Don’t trust the dolls… …when their heads turn slow. (Pause.) Don’t trust the tide… …when it starts to glow. (Low choir enters.) Voodoo Radio hums through the rain. One lost voice keeps saying my name. Ships lose stars. Maps go blind. Dead ships… …drawing crooked lines. (Complete silence.) WOOP… WOOP… (Massive bass drop.) ⸻ [Breakdown] Steel drums bright… …like a carnival grin. Dark underneath… …where the curse crawls in. Feet start moving… …though the souls feel gone. Everybody dancing… …to a funeral song. Black flags snapping while the storm bells ring. One laugh drifting on the salt-soaked wind. (Everything fades except whispers.) From the deep comes a whisper grim: “Till the dead all danced again.” (Silence.) ⸻ [Final Chorus] (Full band explodes back in.) Curse got rhythm… …and the rhythm got teeth. (WOOP WOOP) Steel drums laughing… …underneath the reef. Bassline crawling through the sand and the trees. Whole beach moving like it’s trying to breathe. Curse got rhythm… …yeah the storm got swing. Black waves clapping… …while the ship bells ring. Undead tide with a crooked grin. WOOP WOOP — watch the shoreline spin. (Steel drums take over.) ⸻ [Outro] (Only steel drums… radio static… jungle voices…) The drums stopped first. (Silence.) The feet kept going. (Silence.) The shore went quiet. (Silence.) The dolls kept smiling. (Static fades into nothing.)
