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1.
When I woke up after the nuclear holocaust I had no memory of course The trees and the squirrels and the sky and the ground were the same dead grey I found There was a dreadful stillness in the air, there was a silence everywhere I smoked a cigarette as out the window I leant, pondering what it all meant I dropped the bomb And I'm still breathing I dropped the bomb My senses reeling I dropped the bomb My heart is jumping, blood is pumping from my fingers down to my toes I went for a walk after the nuclear holocaust, I put on my Wellingtons of course I waded through the blood and passed the puddles of tears and put my hands over my ears The homes of my friends and my relatives had disappeared, the damage was surprisingly severe I noticed the battles of the warring factions and stayed away from the action I dropped the bomb And I'm still breathing I dropped the bomb My senses reeling I dropped the bomb My heart is jumping, blood is pumping from my fingers down to my toes A man that I had beaten to a bloody shivering pulp was lying prone on the floor He opened his eyes and he said "please forgive me" and he said "please let me come back for more" He said "what d'you think you've done to deserve such clemency?" and I squealed and I put up my hands He gave me some crumbs that he had found in his pocket and he said "just this once you understand" I dropped the bomb And I'm still breathing I dropped the bomb My senses reeling I dropped the bomb My heart is jumping, blood is pumping from my fingers down to my toes I dropped the bomb Just this once you understand I dropped the bomb Just this once
2.
Kick Me 03:41
Well come on and kick me And then kick me again Come on and beat me Beat me to the end Come on and bruise me Colour me black Put me on the floor now And leave me on my back I want you to hurt me I want you to make me smart I want you to kill me And that's just for a start So go on and love me And then walk out the door And then come back and kick me And then kick me some more I want it I need it I love it You love it Birds do it Bees do it Let's do it Let's do it Come on and do it Come on and do it yeah It's what I exist for I'm here to take your pain So come here and break me And then break me again I need a reminder I need a souvenir So come back and kick me And then leave me here
3.
Henri 04:35
Henri, like a dew drop on a flower Or a room let by the hour Like a snowflake on a child's tongue Like a grip lost on the first rung Like a rainbow, like a daydream Like a dust fleck in a sunbeam Like a boy found in the rushes I see the light's on but nobody's at home I'm out here all on my own I knock at the door I call 'til I'm hoarse But your world just keeps turning The sun is low It's starting to snow Henri won't you come and let me in Henri, like a ripple in a fleet stream Like a sunset disappearing Like the deepest of the oceans Like an offering from the Trojans Like a coat that doesn't fasten In a storm that quickly passes Like a jewel found in a sand dune I see the light's on but nobody's at home I'm out here all on my own If you open up to me You will see That the world just keeps turning I'm down on my knees I'm begging you please Henri won't you come on back to me Henri, like a dolphin on a sandbank Like a baby in the drunk tank Like a gypsy fortune teller Like a doped up midnight caller Like the darkness of the night sky Like a brief glint caught in your eye Like a love song tapped in Morse code I wish you could tell me who you are
4.
Fire, Fire 05:11
Emergency service, I set my house on fire I brought in a wood pile, erected me a pyre I drew all the curtains, I locked up all the doors I lit me a match and I threw it on the floor Fire, fire, burning dazzling beautiful fire Send over your engines, send over your best men I set my house on fire again I can hear the sirens, they're coming to my aid I lie down and wait here in this bed that I made My consciousness wavers, I'm dreaming in my smoke I hear them draw nearer, I can hear them approach Fire, fire, flames are leaping higher and higher I'm getting so drowsy, I lie down on the floor I hear the sirens at my door They're breaking the windows, they've come to save our lives They're unreeling their hose, they're in for a surprise I'll tell you a secret, just between you and me I put petrol in the hydrant where the water should be Fire, fire, choking me with fear and desire Send over your engines, send over your best men I set my house on fire again Emergency service, I set my house on fire
5.
Heroes 03:47
The light has changed, a chill has come There is a wall where before there was none And there won't be any heroes anymore It's in your eyes, it's in your heart That this is tearing us apart And there won't be any heroes anymore We build it up, they tear it down They tie your feet down onto the ground I saw you swim, they'll say you drowned And then they'll spread their lies all over the town They bring their tools, they bring their hate They lock our dreams behind their gates And there won't be any heroes anymore There were schools and hospitals and playgrounds and libraries There was spaceflight and starlight and courage and society We beat the fascists and the racists and the bigots and the cheats And then we stopped giving a fuck and put our hands under our feet Our gaze has dropped, the sky is dark And now I don't know where to start And there won't be any heroes anymore And there was Venice and New York and Berlin and Brixton There were galaxies and heartbeats and twenty-twenty vision We were dreamers, believers, adventurers and lovers And then we pulled down the blinds and hid our heads under the covers Night has come and day has gone But there's a light burns in our song And there won't be any heroes anymore
6.
I would give away my house if you would live in it with me I would sink this ship we're on just to get you in the sea I would swim with you up the mountains and walk with you in the sky I would beat myself black and blue to see affection in your eyes And I would give you up I would give you up If I could have you I would come so close to you if only you would let me near You would push me far away except you want to keep me here I would roam the fields and lanes if I could just untie this rope You would keep me fed and clothed enough to light a little hope But I would give you up If I could have you I would touch your lukewarm skin and put my lips upon your face Yet I would hope and pray one day you'd disappear without a trace I would paint a dream in gold if I thought you might see it too And I would give up the most important thing in the world to me if it meant that I could have you Yes I would give you up I would give you up If I could have you
7.
Sky real cloudy, tastes like whisky Drink it down me, stare deep blue sea Bring an answer to this chancer Make me dancer on the fresh air Hour has come now no more trouble it is time to burst the bubble What’s outside it? Will I feel it? Will I breathe in toxic gasses? Will my skin come up all bumpy? Will my feet dissolve in acid? Do the sinful flay each other? Sodom sleeping with Gomorrah? Will my kidneys be on fire? Do the locusts come to die there? Hour has come now no more trouble it is time to burst the bubble
8.
Sunset in April on the Westway Up in a sky of pink and blue and grey With you so small and far below me Flight from our gridlocked declarations Blinded by light cast by the dying sun So bright, so holy Take my hand, the angel called to me Come along and walk with me Up, up and away, over the Westway Rent by a thousand complications Fire-lit window panes winking clues from Bayswater through to Savoy Circus Glittering worlds of tribulation Spinning through their tiny constellations To ground our earths Take my hand, the angel called to me Let me take your pain with me Up, up and away, over the Westway Not living Nor dying Not falling Bathed in a sparkling mountain river Wrapped in a blanket woven from pure air With you so true and right beside me Woken so gently by a boy whose Eyes are the lights that shine on all we do So bright, so holy Take my hand, the angel called to me Let me take your dreams with me Up, up and away, over the Westway Not living Nor dying Not falling But flying
9.
We’re primitive people Something fell from the sky We take shelter by the walls of the keep We hardly dare open our eyes It’s wider than mountains It’s colder than ice It towers above us Obscuring the light We pray for deliverance from this dark and lonely night We pray for the sense and hope that come with the returning light Let the bells ring, let them ring forlorn Let our hearts sing, this is how the saviour was born This is the bleak midwinter We turn toward the east We see the light rising Joy flushes our cheeks Cold rays revealing An endless barren earth On which we’ll delineate our fields And then work them for all that we’re worth ‘Cause we prayed for deliverance from this dark and lonely night We prayed for the sense and hope that come with the returning light Let the bells ring, let them ring forlorn Let our hearts sing, this is how the saviour was born Yes we prayed for deliverance from this dark and lonely night We prayed for the sense and hope that come with the returning light And let your love come down on us Let it breach these battlements Let it fall like gentle snow A silent blanket for our souls Petals from a heav’nly rose Drop among us, let it come down Let the bells ring! Let them ring forlorn! Let our hearts sing! The saviour is born! Oh my love, let it snow
10.
No more hunting shall we go In the places that we used to know Where the deer run tame with pretty doe eyes And the maidens disrobe with affected sighs Where you grabbed my arse and looked at me so surprised Let your love drink on, let it sing this song: there’s no hell below and there is no Soho No more hunting shall we go Since they paved the streets o’er the meadow All the prospecting spivs have got in here With their Sky TV and their German beer With their charts and blinds and dollars and dull ideas Let your love drink on, let it sing this song: there’s no hell below and there is no Soho Though the stocks were still booming There was quarry there to fall The quickest outran the meanest measures of man ‘til their backs were against the wall No more hunting shall we go Since they moved the posts and stole the show There’ll be no more highs and no more lows There’ll be nothing not turned into gold There’ll be no more weeds growing through the King’s manicured toes Let your love drink on, let it sing this song: there’s no hell below and there is no Soho
11.
Skeleton 05:29
You buried me deep, deep down in the ground I see you each night sleeping, sleeping safe and sound You think you escaped me, you don't know who I am You think it's wine and roses, I don't give a damn I am the forest, strange and dark and deep I'm old frail grandmama with great big pearly teeth And I am starving when you're filthy rich My patience always halving, awkwardly you itch I'm yours And I wear a dark cloak over all my bones I've got a stick to poke you when you're all alone And I've got a sickle for cutting down your size It could be instrumental, open u[p your eyes I'm all around you, everywhere you turn My presence will astound you, no-one ever learns You should start praying or at least using your mind I tell you I'm not playing you're almost out of time I'm yours Forgive me brother for what I done I never knew it 'til it was gone Forgive me mother for what I done I never knew it 'til it was gone I'm yours
12.
I've flown too close to the sun I've seen what the fire has done I got my fingers burned I spent all the money I earned Now I teeter at a precipice And anyway what kind of wine is this? Come on baby give me a shove Too much is not enough Killing me softly I am my friend my own worst enemy I want to go to war And it's you that I'll be fighting for I trained my weapons on All the places I have gone I wore the plastic crown And I burned the bridges down I brought the prisoner back It was me that put him on the rack Killing me softly I am my friend my own worst enemy Well it's an exquisite suicide To be right by your side And what kind of torment's this That plays out just as I wish? And there's no drug I know To take me where you go You're too close, come closer still Light the fire, do my will Killing me softly I am my friend my own worst enemy
13.
Fine Line 04:28
There’s a fine line, fine line Between the mountains and the green valley Between the desert and the deep blue sea Between the starlight and the ocean bed Between the diametric things we’ve said Between the ousted and the gone too soon Between a tender touch and the courtroom Between a falsehood and the awful truth High office and a gunman on the roof But don’t fear it baby, it’s not real, no border guards patrolling here Between a crisis and a government Between a lover and a fury sent You can walk it baby, step by step, observe the ground ain’t crumbled yet Between the hymnal and the harlot’s curse Between a vacuum and a universe You can cross it baby, forth and back, you can feel the heat as the atoms crack There’s a fine, fine line between you and me There's a fine line, fine line Between the living and the grateful dead Between surrender and a field of red Between the White House and the poplar tree Between a raised fist and a bended knee Between the homeless and the overfed Between the coffin and the wedding bed Between the rapids and the stepping stones Between asylum and the killing zones But don’t fear it baby, it’s not real, no border guards patrolling here Between the twilight and the break of day The ones who idolise and those that pray You can walk it baby, step by step, observe the ground ain’t crumbled yet Between the saviour and the parasite, the superstitious and the bathed in light You can cross it baby, forth and back, you can feel the heat as the atoms crack There’s a fine, fine line between you and me
14.
Henri’s happy though it’s strange to see Henri’s happy now It looks like he’s more settled and he says so anyhow The clouds have parted and the storm has passed He’s found a place to rest Yet I can’t shake this feeling that he’s not quite at his best Henri’s happy though it’s strange to see Henri’s happy it’s true No more flailing on the open sea No-one to rescue Henri’s flying on a jumbo jet He might not know his destination yet But if Henri’s happy, then I’m happy We’re all happy, everybody’s happy now Should you fall, when you fall, land on me Like the light of the sun, like a holy blessing, won’t you land on me Henri doesn’t really care for me But he likes to know I’m near He understands I’m willing, when he talks to me, to hear I haven’t seen him for a little while But I hope that he’ll return Bringing gifts of melodies and garlands of his pearls The sun is dappled and the breeze is light The air is balmy and still I think I will sleep well tonight The wolves have had their fill I asked Henri how quiet it might get But Henri hasn’t answered yet And if Henri’s happy then I’m happy We’re all happy, everybody’s happy now Should you fall, when you fall, land on me Like the light of the sun, like a holy blessing, won’t you land on me

credits

released July 6, 2017

All songs by Ian Beetlestone

Ian Beetlestone – lead vocals, piano
Dom Coles – drums, sleigh bells, backing vocals
Tom Fry – double bass, bass guitar, sleigh bells, backing vocals
George Simmonds – trombone, backing vocals, additional lead vocals on tracks 1, 8 & 11
Louis Maui Hetariki Schultz-Wiremu – saxophone

Eden Sheli - additional backing vocals on track 9
Ilana Sheli – additional backing vocals on track 10
John Ruscoe – guitar on track 13

Recorded by Margo Broom at Ollywood Studios & Hermitage Works Studios, London, April & May 2017
Mastered by Samuel Smith at Green Door Studios
Artwork by Anna Magnowska
Band photograph by Trevor Docksey
Thanks to Danny, Desmond, Kath, Louis, Matt, Oli and Peter

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