Get all 386 Middle-Man Records releases available on Bandcamp and save 90%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Episode 201: Drew Coughlin (Heavenly Blue), Episode 200: Edie Quinn w guest host Elias Amini, Demo MMXXIV, Episode 199: Ben Kraco (Depiction of Man), Episode 198: Tracy Wilson (Outer World, Dahlia Seed), Episode 197: Josh McIntyre (Malevich), Episode 196: Ben Rudolph (Stress Positions, C.H.E.W.), Komarov, and 378 more.
1. |
||||
reborn in shame
brought low
only to begin again.
the painting's eyes follow me down the hall
and as the candle lights
it's the sound of me dying
the smoke rises
they draw their blades
and taste my blood
the sigils spell your name
the heavens come apart
torn from the stars again
brought here back to life
visions of this moment fill my mind
100 eyes fixed on me as i fall
the blood pools in circles around my head
their steps fall closer and they draw their blades
the sands in the glass count the hour down
the blood pools in circles on the ground
make myself forget every part of you
and believe it down to every last drop of blood
that paints the floor of the room in protective wards
as written, this ritual calls you here
the false healer waits and prepares a spell
with our blood together, they'll escape this hell
this is the sound of me dying
a covenant older than time
a curse placed on this empty shell
abandoned by those you'd call gods
subservience immortalized
|
||||
2. |
Slohaugh en Sperata
01:20
|
|||
I cannot hold on
I am just not here
no rush to return to this place
just drift along and watch as the flesh operates on instinct
i survive with a nod and a smile
in this skin that's not mine
it comes as a surprise
why am i still alive?
slohaugh en sperata
|
||||
3. |
Peel Back the Layers
00:58
|
|||
wipe away the blood
a custom, this ritual mutilation
it's the first step
assimilate them into this barbaric way of life
what did i ever do to deserve to be stuck here in this body?
the tears i've wept and a lifetime spent
staring at a face that is not my own
none of this world's tinctures and spells could help me forget this body
the pain that's left in their places serve as a reminder this is what i deserve
|
||||
4. |
Fragmental
02:26
|
|||
twisted and buried
clinging to hope
it's a light that doesn't shine where i am
any semblance of it died when you did
then came the anger
then came the fear
then came the aching
it's all that's left of me here
then came dissection
fragmental vivisection
then came the aching
it's all that i am
when i'm here alone, the scars come to the surface
they've left me incomplete
i'm so much less than half
i'm not one thing
and i'm not the other
i'm nothing
so much less than nothing
|
||||
5. |
The Face Underwater
01:16
|
|||
seek solace in the water
find it on the lake's floor
my last breath escapes
as it rises, i climb with it
until i am above it
i will be free of this empty shell
that marks the difference of how i came to
and what i came to be
it breaks me
the face i see in the water
how could it be me?
the reflection is cast
|
||||
6. |
Foreign Reflection
02:31
|
|||
in my dreams i see your hands reach out
it's not just me that keeps me here
scared and alone here in the dark
it's for the best if i just don't return
every time i failed you, is every time i tried
all these pieces of me lost
i just stopped searching
broken apart and scattered
pretending that i'm whole
held together by necessity
compulsory necessity
the reflection in the mirror is a lie i cannot face
am i the dead, or a demon on the other side?
together we can burn this all away
will we be all that's left on this side of it?
|
||||
7. |
Shatter
02:40
|
|||
suddenly
i'm gone
a specter, all but disappeared
i'm gone
staring into darkness
i know you're out there somewhere and i don't need to see
my fingers trace the writings on these tunnel walls
is it all in my head?
here in the dark, these words may never reach you:
"we were always and we always will be"
but i have to find a way to escape
building this sanctuary from parts of myself i tremble
as all i'm made of is glass
and i know this whole world would shatter
with just one touch from you
we brace ourselves and watch as it falls
the tiny pieces dance in the light as they hit the ground
i bleed for you and i can see that you're bleeding too
just stay where you are
please stay where you are
we are already too close
|
||||
8. |
Un Recognition
01:07
|
|||
the princes feed on these cries
you can be sure they'll get what they are wanting
laid low, you hear their lies
for trusting them, you'll get what you deserve
will you follow me through this hell?
will you be by my side until the faces you see in the mirror are yours?
how many times have the demons in this world and others
tried to tear us apart
their pull is strong but not strong enough
the princes feed you their lies
promises unkept leave you uncertain
left in the dark, they've all but disappeared
the way ahead is blocked and i call out for you
|
||||
9. |
The Lie in the Dark
02:24
|
|||
somehow expect to find a balance
between what you've always known as me
and the real me
but you've never known the real me
what does that even mean?
this thing set loose only brings destruction
the lie is a blade that comes in the dark across my throat
and brings me peace
they couldn't heal me
i couldn't heal me
time could never heal me
and the lie brings me no peace
|
||||
10. |
Horrid Reflection
05:29
|
|||
holding onto those memories
even death offers no respite
brought back again and again to this miserable place
so many times i'd die to make it right
if you don't know the circumstances of how this all came to be
don't tell me i should be grateful to be here
i never asked to be here
a prisoner to this bargain
a failure in death and life
and questioning why it matters to anyone
alone here with my hope
it burns so cold
what a fool i am for thinking the next time could be any different
still i hold on
what other choice is there?
it ends and so it begins again
us two, on this shore, the world aflame
and all the rest is ash. everything is ash.
why would this time be any different?
|
Streaming and Download help
If you like The Mirror, you may also like:
Bandcamp Daily your guide to the world of Bandcamp