Almanac of Fading Light

(Style Note: Vocals should be raw, gravelly, and powerful—a mix of Joplin’s soulful scream and a heavy blues-rock belt. Lots of sustain and feedback on the guitar chords.) (Opening: Slow, gritty, distorted guitar riff with heavy bass line. Vocal starts low and smoky.) Verse 1 The pavement is for fools, honey, ain't got no church tonight, Left the cruel neon piss and the cheap, cheap fight. I packed my sweet necessities, yeah, dropped down low, In the belly of the pine where the wild things grow. Got two fingers of cold whiskey, and a paper rolled so thin, Gonna wash the civilized stink right off my skin. Pre-Chorus That sticky little medicine, it cuts right through the wires! Gonna burn the lie to ashes, feed the ritual fires! I don't need your sidewalk prophets, and I don't need their grace— I just need the shadow’s solace and cold dirt on my face. Chorus Yeah! Give me that silver light, damn straight, I need it whole! Got my leather-bound secrets and my dark twisted soul! That sweet pine smoke, that's the only prayer I make! And this silent, red-eyed bastard is the only friend I take! (Scream/Wail) Oh, the fox knows the deal, baby! The fox knows the deal! Verse 2 The air bites colder than a two-dollar whore's stare, But I got Milton open, readin' "Loss" right here. The words ain’t makin’ sense, just silhouettes on the page, But the fog rolls heavy and it calms this awful, awful rage. I watch the muzzle twitching, yeah, next to my torn-out boot, He ain't askin' for a goddamn thing but the silence of the root. He don't judge the habit, he don't judge the sin, He just waits for the silence to begin. Pre-Chorus That sticky little medicine, it runs right through the bone! Gonna build my own damn altar, sittin' here alone! I don't need your clean water, and I don't need your key— I just need the dirt, the darkness, and the wild reality! Chorus Yeah! Give me that silver light, damn straight, I need it whole! Got my leather-bound secrets and my dark twisted soul! That sweet pine smoke, that's the only prayer I make! And this silent, red-eyed bastard is the only friend I take! (Vocalized Scat/Run followed by heavy guitar feedback) Take it down, Lord! (Instrumental Break: Raw, bluesy guitar solo full of bends, sustain, and emotional distortion, layered over a driving, Battle Beast style double-kick drum beat.) Bridge (Tempo slows, drums focus on crash cymbals. Vocal becomes a raw, intense confession/growl) They tried to tie me down with their pathetic little ropes! Told me salvation waited, fed me all their hopeless hopes! Said I was the ruin, the whiskey-soaked mistake! Well, the truth is a bitch, baby, and it tastes like ash for goodness sake! I don't need their fuckin' forgiveness—I don't need to be clean! The deepest knowledge I ever found was the shit that wasn't seen! The light outside your window is a lie you can’t escape! But out here... under the moon... this is the only shape! Chorus (Full Power/Crescendo) YEAH! Give me that silver light, DAMN STRAIGHT, I need it whole! Got my leather-bound secrets and my dark twisted soul! That sweet pine smoke, that’s the only prayer I make! And this silent, red-eyed bastard is the only friend I take! Outro Oh, Lord... I’m out here... I’m high and I’m readin'... The fox knows the deal, baby... the fox knows the deal! Keep that moonlight comin'! (Final, sustained, raw vocal scream over a crashing chord, followed by the sound of a match striking and a deep inhale.) Hah! (Fade out with the sound of the wind and light guitar static.)