Backwater Blues

[Verse 1] Grain dust on the viewport Rust in every seam Punchin’ in at double sunrise On a rock that barely gleams Union patch is faded Stitched on borrowed clothes Boss man beams in from the core worlds Never feels the cold [Chorus] I got them backwater blues Out on Procyon Nine We keep this quadrant turnin’ But they don’t read our signs They’re countin’ credits in their towers We’re countin’ scars and fumes Oh The core keeps shinin’ And we wear these backwater blues (oh yeah) [Verse 2] Kids learn math from busted tablets Stories from the old ship hands How they swore the jump lanes promised More than gravel Grit And sand Every raise gets lost in transit “System error ” same old phrase Funny how the line stays broken When it’s time to raise our pay [Chorus] I got them backwater blues Out on Procyon Nine We keep this quadrant turnin’ But they don’t read our signs They’re pourin’ drinks in bright-side gardens We’re drinkin’ recycled gloom Yeah The core keeps laughin’ And we hum these backwater blues (backwater blues) [Bridge] One day that driftin’ freighter Gonna carry our names home Printed on a list of martyrs Or a list of debts we owe So we carve our hopes in bulkheads Where the welds still hold the truth “Don’t forget the hands in Procyon Who wore these backwater blues” [Chorus] I got them backwater blues Out on Procyon Nine We keep this quadrant turnin’ They keep movin’ down the line When their bright machines go silent They’ll remember who they used Till then we’re singin’ into vacuum Wearin’ these backwater blues