[Classroom ambience, papers shuffling] [Midwest emo clean guitar, lazy trap hi-hats] [Verse 1 - speak-singing, defensive] listen kid im not here cause i failed at anything still get texts from my drummer about touring in the spring yeah i drive a civic and yeah the speakers blown but temporary situations dont define what ive outgrown see these rocks? there metamorphic like my whole dam life pressure and heat but i came out crystallized alright [Pre-chorus - getting shaky] and maybe my ex-wife was right about the coffee breath and maybe playing dive bars wasnt really success but [Chorus - melodic, geology teacher energy] igneous forms when the world gets too hot to take sedimentary settles when you learn to embrace mistakes metamorphics just a fancy word for change under stress and erosions just another word for becoming less [Verse 2 - more desperate, talking faster] look i had a record deal in 99 ok well almost we opened for some bands you definitely dont know but thats not the point the point is about geological time you think your moms late but the earths been waiting since the paleozoic era for someone to understand that teaching science is punk rock with a lesson plan [Pre-chorus - voice cracking] and yeah i eat lunch alone in my car most days and yeah i still wear the same flannel since the myspace days but [Chorus - quieter, more fragile] igneous forms when the world gets too hot to take sedimentary settles when you learn to embrace mistakes metamorphics just a fancy word for change under stress and erosions just another word for becoming less [Bridge - attempted wisdom, melodica solo in background] kid when your 35 youll get it when your dreams turn into credit card debt but thats just the rock cycle spinning round mountains become sand becomes solid ground and maybe thats beautiful or maybe its just what happens when you trade your strat for trust [Final chorus - almost whispered, acceptance] igneous cools down when you stop trying to burn so bright sedimentary layers up monday through friday night metamorphics just what happens when the pressure wins and erosions just another word for starting again [School bell rings, guitar fades] [Whispered] "see you tomorrow mrs henderson" [Footsteps walking away] -- ok so songwriter is this burnout substitute teacher who used to tour with a metal band in the 90s but now hes teaching earth science to 7th graders and drinking too much instant coffee. thinks hes still cool but drives a 2003 honda civic with one working speaker. definitely owns too many flannel shirts and quotes lyrics nobody recognizes anymore listener is the principals kid whos forced to stay after school every day cause mom works late. shes 13 and really into true crime podcasts and making friendship bracelets out of embroidery floss she steals from the art room. pretends to hate everything but secretly thinks the substitute is less boring than the regular teachers cause at least he doesnt make them read from the textbook so one day the kids waiting in the empty classroom for her mom and the substitutes there grading papers or whatever but actually hes writing lyrics on the back of a worksheet about sedimentary rock. she sees him tapping his foot and humming and shes like "what are you doing" and hes like "nothing go away" but then she notices hes written "VOLCANIC HEART" at the top of the paper and she cant help but laugh. they end up having this weird conversation about how rocks are basically just really slow explosions and somehow this becomes a metaphor for growing up or getting old or both idk song intent: instead of being about teaching life lessons or whatever its gonna be the substitute trying to explain to the kid why hes NOT a loser while accidentally revealing that he totally is but in a way that makes being a loser seem kind of inevitable and maybe even ok genres: midwest emo meets educational rap - really quiet clean guitar arpeggios - speak-singing over trap hi-hats but like really lazy ones - maybe a melodica solo? structure: - cold open with classroom sounds - verse 1 (defensive denial) - pre-chorus (starting to crack) - chorus (the geology metaphor) - verse 2 (getting too real) - pre-chorus (fully cracking) - chorus (the geology metaphor but sadder) - bridge (wisdom that isnt quite wisdom) - final chorus (acceptance?) - outro (bell rings) ok songwriting tips for myself: - use at least 3 different types of rocks as emotional metaphors but make them scientifically accurate - every time you want to rhyme "stone" with "alone" just delete the whole line and start over - add specific brand names of teacher stuff like expo markers or whatever to ground it - make the choruses get progressively quieter instead of bigger - include at least one line that sounds profound until you think about it for 2 seconds - spell something wrong on purpose cause your typing this on your phone remember
