Black Tide Broadcast

BROADCAST [Intro — 0:00–0:20] (Rain on tin. Steel drums hit a catchy minor-key melody. Bass slides in low and mean.) Hear that shine in the storm? That ain’t sunlight. That’s the water smiling with knives. (Drums snap in. Dancehall-reggae groove starts.) ⸻ [Verse 1 — 0:20–1:00] Late night, dockside, wind got teeth Palm trees snapping like they can’t breathe Tin roof talking in a wicked little rhythm Whole beach jumping but the sand won’t listen Old men leaning by the bait shop door Watching black foam crawl up the floor No one running, no one speaks But every radio got warm last week Steel drums laugh from a shack on the hill Too sweet to trust, too loud to kill Everybody sways when the bassline drops Even when the clocks all stop There’s a glow where the reef should be Blue fire walking on top of the sea One kid points and his mama pulls back “Don’t wave at the water when the water waves back” ⸻ [Pre-Chorus — 1:00–1:18] The compass don’t spin It dances now The lighthouse don’t warn It bows down The tide got rhythm The rain got hands And something offshore Just started the band ⸻ [Chorus — 1:18–1:50] Black Tide Broadcast Booming out the bay Got the whole damn coastline Moving the wrong way Black Tide Broadcast Steel drums in the rain When the shoreline starts dancing That’s when trouble came Black Tide Broadcast Bassline from below Makes your heartbeat follow Where your feet should never go Black Tide Broadcast Everybody move But nobody knows What the water’s gonna do ⸻ [Verse 2 — 1:50–2:32] Fishing boat left with a crew of five Came back empty but the lights still alive Engine coughing like it swallowed a hymn Deck all wet and the wheel still spins Captain’s hat on the bowline post Radio warm with a voice like smoke Logbook open to a page gone black Last line written: “We ain’t turning back” Farther out where the deep gets wide Cargo ships drift with their names untied Radar blinking like a warning sign Drawing dead ships in a crooked line Harbor master says, “That current ain’t right” Whole map sweats under lantern light Needles lean to the wrong coastline And every bell rings three times Steel drums hit like bones on glass Bassline rolls and the shadows pass Rain comes down with a marching sound Like feet from ships that should’ve drowned ⸻ [Pre-Chorus 2 — 2:32–2:48] The buoys don’t blink They stare instead The gulls fly inland The moon turns red The dock ropes tighten The boards all groan And the sea starts singing In a sailor’s tone ⸻ [Chorus Variation — 2:48–3:20] Black Tide Broadcast Shaking through the bay Got the drunk and the holy Moving the same way Black Tide Broadcast Sweet drums, bad rain If your hips start moving Better guard your name Black Tide Broadcast Low end from the floor Makes the whole town step Toward the waterline door Black Tide Broadcast Everybody groove But the tide keeps count Of every body that moves ⸻ [Bridge — 3:20–3:48] (Music drops to bass, steel drum melody, rain, and hand percussion.) A town can pretend it ain’t scared When the drinks still pour When the band still plays When the kids still laugh by the corner store But fear looks different by the ocean. It smiles through gold teeth. It taps the table on beat. It says, “Dance first. Understand later.” Out past the reef, the water turns heavy. Black like memory. Black like every secret That ever sank without a witness. ⸻ [Breakdown / Dance Chant — 3:48–4:08] Step left Don’t look down Step right Hear that sound Steel ring Bass bite Rain dance No light Move slow Move fast Black tide All night (Heavy metal drum fill. Full groove explodes back in.) ⸻ [Final Chorus — 4:08–4:45] Black Tide Broadcast Burning through the bay Got the whole damn coastline Moving the wrong way Black Tide Broadcast Steel drums in the rain When the ocean starts smiling Do not smile the same Black Tide Broadcast Bassline from below Turns the street to a river And the river says, “Go” Black Tide Broadcast Everybody move The beat is too sweet And the water knows it too Black Tide Broadcast No map, no moon Just a storm with a rhythm And a town out of tune ⸻ [Outro — 4:45–4:50] (Steel drums fade with rain and static.) The party didn’t end. It just moved offshore.