Get all 12 Ben Roque releases available on Bandcamp and save 45%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Mad Andalusia, Charmed I'm Sure, Hatchetfish, The Old Hush, Money in the Doll, Off Your Tiltawhirl, Amuser, Jackals, and 4 more.
1. |
You Had to See
03:41
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She said that I heard you fell into the bottom of a rabbit hole
one you might call your home
said we never waited
we spent it faded
we had to face it with our faces free
you had to see
Said you've given up all over yourself
I'm an open field just waiting for anything like a first time
we're all too old to wait around
for something else that we call new
we never waited
for anyone else to give us home
we never waited
we spent it faded
we had to face it with our faces free
you had to see
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2. |
The Drifter
03:54
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Scars on elbows
some accident
God knows
stoned on a boat near Mexico
caught bluffing
stuck and fucked
hands tied
to the bottom of my luck
on the back of the deck
watching the water trail behind
follow us anywhere to a
future wreck
that no one will ever find
struggling to separate my hands
stinging salt from sweat stains
bare feet
grinding toes to splintered grains
head full of sand left on her front porch
draining to the bottom of half
of an hourglass
sinking in the ocean fast
still bound I floated to shore
and was never found
running fast and leaving a scowl
on every person I passed
only stood still in the wind's howl
long enough to leave
feet imprints in a cotton town
in some hotel deep in the ringing
of the liberty bell in me singing
I felt the warm heart of hell
took off my clothes and held nothing
I was bringing
down in where I've always been
a rabbit hole with no end
waiting for the echo of my sins
to chase me down and sing
but I won't
I'll never come clean
I won't come clean
I won't
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3. |
Spindle City
05:00
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I slipped into the space between everything
too tired to even try I looked out from behind the colored glass
and I let the day move slow
I've been up since I got up
but I haven't stopped dreaming still
I know I got somewhere to be
but that doesn't matter
that just doesn't matter to me
So I find someone to follow not on my own
So I know I'm alone and everyone else too but
that's all I know about you
I know I've got somewhere to be
I know I've got somewhere
turn around in Spindle City
I know I got someplace to be
but I'd rather just stay asleep
stray away in something nice to wish for
I know I got someone to be
but I think I'll just stay asleep
for crying out loud
let's get bored stuck lost distracted by everything
and anything really, there's got to be something
somewhere to at least stare
I know I've got somewhere
turn around in Spindle City
I know I got someplace to be
but I'd rather just stay asleep
stray away in something pretty
I know I've got someone to be
but I think I'll just stay with me
for crying out loud
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4. |
Wandering Jack
04:06
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Tonight
golden curls
polite and tall she was
her face all wrapped up
around a string of pearls
murder, what do you think?
wet from the press
soaking in the ink
distress always happens Tuesday
and it just so happens
that's my lucky day
marionettes put on my play
singing second's best
and safety's first
but I should have guessed
that she had it the worst
while he drank away all her thirst
listening to the city
my window's filled
sky's fading by
silent above the street
always being built
we speak through a filter
knowing simple words
to hide behind
are all too easy to find
the daughter of the house
be careful to her new spouse
while he kneels to prayerful and cries
I'll get you get
advised to disguise her demise
he made his threat
and I'd like to tell her but I can't tell whether
to say or say too much
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5. |
Saw Through Wood
03:42
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Look out in between what's there and what's not
close your eyes does it look the same when you see it all
turn back into itself
oh no
can you tell or was that only you before yourself
cus I can't know now anyway no matter
what you think you've said or say
even though we all got our own door
they said that they would
take us for every penny that they wish they could
and just should while we sleep like a saw through wood
like a saw through wood we take comfort
look at yourself pretending to be you
you could do this for a whole life couldn't you
be an image of who you wish you always was
standing above frozen water looking only down
only just living as far as you can see all around
before any sound
always think sometimes know it's not me when I know I can't
but just might be
time in a mind
you're only as real as you make yourself seem
between asleep and a permanent dream
across a lifetime of waking scenes
like a flag full of wind
that's seen but unheard
look at yourself pretending to be you
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6. |
Coast is Clear
05:06
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How many times in a life do we change into ourselves
before we know it?
or is there any place along the way where you can just stay
like a knot in a string
or does it have to end before you really see it?
you have to
there's a big picture filled with everything around me but
the coast is clear enough to see
a man stands alone and leaves a road where a field used to be
I saw a small time turn
hours change to minutes when real sometimes became sure
I stared like a blank page
across the new age
a scarecrow standing alone
on a dark stage
flying free as a bird in an aged aged cage
staring at myself in rage
I can't say what I mean or mean what I say
I fell into sleep forever one night but only a hole of light
I followed a flower from the ground up and stood up safe and sound
I rubbed my eyes to clear my sight and everything was as it still was
fine and right
I woke up in a place with no foreground or background
but these days I just wake and wait to go back to sleep
but watch your step in mine town
my town where there is no ground
they never make a sound where there is no ground
I can't say what I mean or mean what I say
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7. |
Foundation*
03:51
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Splinters in my hand aren't working themselves out
underneath the grandstands all I'm small talking about
for a sweet fix of concrete flashlights on dead sentiments
holding them down below the street where they take up residence
that voice has been around and they're all about trying to break even
before breaking out
for nowhere to go
with nothing to show
join the crowd
where they're all in the know
and instant angry mob enters from everywhere
following the direction asleep at the driver's seat
steering into your own reflection
alone but never on your own
singing monotone
attracting attention and pointing only at something to mention
maybe that god I've been doubting
batter the door down
they've been shouting
feel the foundation shake
but I won't wake
no I'll never wake
cos I've got nightmares to think of out loud
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8. |
Daylight Blues
03:47
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Afterglows are hard to come by when you're burnt out all night
I pinched a match between my fingertips and sparked
the attention for something new
it feels like singing in a ghost town loud and clear
there is an x marking every place that we have left
so take your time
make your mind
and be gone
yeah
an empty auditorium welcomes me when I can't sleep
make a promise make your bed
just a passing stranger like daylight
I watched your hand fall to your side
it's all inside I just can't place my finger now
history hid itself from me now
and I guess I pulled apart what I can't see
so take your time
make your mind
and be gone
yeah
it's just a passing stranger like daylight
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9. |
What Seems
02:29
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So he spoke
and she understood the language
through him she confessed I want to know
what colors you see
the director smiled
he said the same as you
but how do you know what
how do you know what
how do you know what colors I see?
Please
and she knew
that I understood
as I stood under a burning tree
and watched the leaves move with me
and she closed her eyes
and saw everything
how do you know what
how do you know what
how do you know what colors I see?
Please
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Ben Roque Burlington, Vermont
Noir/Lo-fi influenced musician, author (The Midnight Cabaret, Calliope Steam, Living Paint), and collage artist.
Booking/All inquiries: ben.belldrive@gmail.com
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