El Cuerpo

Temas y letras

1. 1Too ObstinateLetra

   Huesos
   Thirteen and the plane lifts, India-bound
   Left a house too heavy, a mother's weight, a sound
   She held too close, unhappy, and I was the only door
   Salty tears down cheeks — I don't live there anymore

   Slats at half mast, pre-dawn dim
   The voices start their hymn
   Ignore them, deny them, befriend them if you can
   Aquí estoy — still a standing man

   Grab the wee dangly bits of fate and squeeze
   Face lifted to the sun — I bend, I do not kneel
   Body, médula, huesos — take what you need
   I'm just too obstinate, too obstinate to leave

   Twenty-four years married, then the marrow cracked
   The register will shut up and march — no going back
   Two wives, three continents, the ceiling fan still spins
   Poor wives — the hot air blowing where the fog begins

   The water runs deep, la confusión runs deeper
   Mild/moderate, said the reaper
   I wasn't, I shan't, I can't — then still, aquí estoy
   Death's bony claws — and yet, this stubborn joy

   Grab the wee dangly bits of fate and squeeze
   Face lifted to the sun — I bend, I do not kneel
   Body, médula, huesos — take what you need
   I'm just too obstinate, too obstinate to leave

   Más luz, por favor — more light
   The vessel cracked, did it let it in or out?
   No sé, no sé
   Adelantado — flag planted, machete, pen
   The advance scout who owns nothing, claims it anyway

   Crack on. Crack on
   Grab the wee dangly bits of fate and squeeze
   Face lifted to the sun — I bend, I do not kneel
   Body, médula, huesos — take what you need
   Too obstinate, too obstinate—

   Eighty-five now, and mi madre and I are good
   Returned the borrowed shroud — no, not yet, I misunderstood
   The journey, the destination, the stumble on The Way

2. 2SirenaLetra

   When monkeys fly… chickens cry…
   When monkeys fly… chickens cry…

   When the monkeys fly about (fly about!)
   The chickens, they will cry (they will cry!)
   Which they'd have done so naturally
   As I post up by the coop tonight

   So I sing my arias
   Of doom, despair, and warning
   The apocalypse is rising
   On this red and ragged morning

   Sirena! (the monkeys fly)
   Sirène! (the chickens cry)
   I'm the warning by the water
   I'm the siren, hear me high!
   Sirena! (don't turn away)
   Sirène! (the end is nigh)
   When the monkeys take the sky, oh —
   That's the day the chickens fly!

   Cuando los monos echen a volar (they fly!)
   Las gallinas llorarán (they cry!)
   Lo cual harían de todos modos
   Por instinto — I stand by

   Y entono mis arias
   De fatalidad, desesperación
   El apocalipsis, ya está —
   It's upon us now, it's on

   Sirena! (the monkeys fly)
   Sirène! (the chickens cry)
   I'm the warning by the water
   I'm the siren, hear me high!
   Sirena! (don't turn away)
   Sirène! (the end is nigh)
   When the monkeys take the sky, oh —
   That's the day the chickens fly!

   Quand les singes se mettront à voler… (fly!)
   Les poules se mettront à pleurer… (cry!)
   De malheur… de désespoir…
   D'avertissement… the sky, the sky —

   L'apocalypse est sur nous —
   It's upon us, hear me cry!

   Sirena! Sirène! (the monkeys fly!)
   Sirena! Sirène! (the chickens cry!)
   I'm the warning by the water
   I'm the siren, hear me high!
   When the monkeys take the sky, oh —
   That's the day the chickens fly!

   When monkeys fly… chickens cry…
   (sirena… sirène…)
   When monkeys fly… chickens cry…

3. 3Protection not PunishmentLetra

   Hey hey hey
   Thou Knowest not Knowest not
   The future
   The future
   The future

   What the future holds
   The future the future the future
   What the future holds
   Protection Not Punishment
   Thou Knowest not
   What the future holds
   ProtectionNot Punishment

   Sunflowers tracking their sustenance across the sky
   As the young ones do
   As the young ones do do do
   Sunflowers across the sky
   I learned in times past
   Times past times past
   Sunflowers tracking
   The Sun the Sun the Sun
   Across the sky

   Thou Knowest not
   What the future holds
   Protection
   Not Punishment

   Secret or just Concealed
   Secret or just Concealed
   Dos palabras
   Secret or just Concealed

   The well has run dry
   The burbling brook is now a
   Bone ditch
   Stochasticity and intention
   Our lives captured

   Thou Knowest not
   What the future holds
   Protection
   Not Punishment

   Secret or just Concealed
   Secret or just Concealed
   Dos palabras
   Secret or just Concealed

   I learned in times past
   To and fro is a no go
   Better to sit quiet like a mouse
   As some young ones do
   Dos palabras
   Secret not concealed
   To and fro
   Is a no go

   What the future holds
   Protection Not Punishment
   Thou Knowest not
   What the future holds
   Protection Not Punishment
   What the future holds
   What the future holds
   Sunflowers tracking across the skyyyyyyyyyyyy

4. 4Cat at DooreLetra

   Knock, knock — who's there?
   Nobody… maybe… nobody's there
   Gato a la puerta
   Standing in the in-between

   The doorbell rang unexpectedly
   I opened up to what I couldn't see
   A probability cloud where a guest should be
   Half here, half gone — a mystery

   Consider the imposition
   Of this superposition
   El timbre sonó (inesperado)
   Now it says it never showed

   How rude, how rude
   Qué descaro, oh
   It swears it never rang at all
   Choice is a treacherous soul
   La elección — traicionera
   Standing at my door
   How rude, how rude
   No sé nada más

   Abrí la puerta, and there I found
   A cloud of maybe, no solid ground
   Y encima se atreve a jurar
   Que nunca sonó — it was never there

   Consider the imposition
   Of this superposition
   The audacity to claim
   It never even came

   How rude, how rude
   Qué descaro, oh
   It swears it never rang at all
   Choice is a treacherous soul
   La elección — traicionera
   Standing at my door
   How rude, how rude
   No sé nada más

   (Did you ring?) — Nunca sioné
   (Were you here?) — No estuve aquí
   (Do I choose?) — La elección
   (Traicionera) — till the end

   Knock, knock — nobody's there
   A cloud of maybe in the air
   Gato a la puerta, fading slow
   Half goodbye, half hello

5. 5CeruleanLetra

   Swept along in the throng
   Seemed rude not to come along—
   So I opened up my mouth
   And I sang, and I sang, and I sang…

   "Death to whitey!" went the cry
   "Whitey go home!"—well, which is it, guy?
   Death, or a one-way flight?
   You gotta pick a lane if you wanna riot right

   Die right now, or die of age?
   Do we ship the body, do we pay the freight?
   Is a casket in the deal?
   These are things a mob should really seal—

   WHICH IS IT? (Which is it?)
   Death or deportation!
   WHICH IS IT? (Which is it?)
   Somebody call a meeting, take a motion to the nation!
   Back in my day we'd sit right down
   Work it out before we burned the town—
   WHICH IS IT? (Which is it?)
   I blame the social media-tion!

   What is true cannot be new
   What is known, well, that we can prove to you
   Who's in the pew, absorbing the known
   Cannot be blue when the truth is shown

   So if it's true it can't be blue
   That's just the logic marching straight on through—
   Load the syllogism, aim, and fire
   Every zealot needs a funeral pyre—

   WHICH IS IT? (Which is it?)
   Death or deportation!
   WHICH IS IT? (Which is it?)
   Somebody call a meeting, take a motion to the nation!
   Back in my day we'd sit right down
   Work it out before we burned the town—
   WHICH IS IT? (Which is it?)
   I blame the social media-tion!

   DEATH TO CERULEAN! (Hey!)
   DEATH TO CERULEAN! (Hey!)
   If it's true it can't be blue—
   So down with every shade of you!
   DEATH TO CERULEAN! (Hey!)

   Swept along in the throng
   I never asked what side I'm on—
   Seemed rude not to
   Seemed rude not to
   Seemed rude not to…
   sing along

6. 6Sacred Interior SpacesLetra

   Steel and paper, blood and gold
   Two old stories waiting to be told
   One of the body, one of the soul
   Which is which? Which is which?

   Damascus steel, the tang runs dark
   Dried blood written on the blade
   Smooth dank wood, the casing worn
   Darkened by the death it made

   Chewed and dyed, that rice-paper skin
   A Gangtok shop where the sidewalk bends
   Mandalas bloom in adulterated gold
   Languorous relics of forgotten ends

   Sacred interior spaces
   One opens a space that fills
   The other fills a space to empty
   Both meant to loose the soul from flesh
   Both meant to loose the soul from flesh

   One of the body, one of the soul
   Thousands of hours to make it whole
   Creation, then the hand that wields
   Which is which? What's revealed?

   Both took thousands of patient hours
   To fashion and to use
   The sword to sever, the wheel to still
   Different roads, the same last truth

   Sacred interior spaces
   One opens a space that fills
   The other fills a space to empty
   Both meant to loose the soul from flesh
   Both meant to loose the soul from flesh

   The blade sets loose with a single stroke
   The mandala, slow, dissolves the "I"
   One tears the veil, one lets it fall
   Both are teaching us to die

   One of the body, one of the soul
   Thousands of hours to make it whole
   Which is which? Which is which?

   Steel and paper, blood and gold
   Languorous artifacts of eras old
   Both meant to loose the soul from flesh
   Which is which? Which is which?

7. 7De Tiza, De FuegoLetra

   I built my house of chalk once, Watched it wash away
   Marble floors gone cold, a castle
   Made of sand
   Three good things survived the flood, But the walls Could not stay
   I was fire without water, a match Against the wind

   Then one dark and stormy night
   A violent slip of a woman came Tumbling down my street
   Not the sword, not the miss, not the Grief—
   But the rain, the cleansing rain, Washing clean the heat

   De tiza, de fuego — from chalk, from Fire
   You crept in like the fog into the bay
   I settled in your curves, home at last, Home at last
   Mi amor, mi cielo, mi alma — you Deliver me
   Lore, Lore — won't you deliver me
   And you did, and you do, and you stay

   You steal the blanket every night, 3 AM I'm shivering
   Then bright-eyed, bushy-tailed, you Ask me how I slept
   What audacity, what grace — this holy Larcenizing
   I'd freeze a thousand nights to keep The warmth of what you left

   You recited poetry in bed — Sor Juana in the dark
   So hot, so sharp, hombres necios on Your tongue
   You said take off your shoes to count Above ten
   Technically accurate, and I have never Been so young

   De tiza, de fuego — from chalk, from Fire
   You climbed the naked volcano, Laughing up ahead
   Esposa striding, blithe and bright Through untrammeled snow
   Panting, hurting, abandoned — and So, so happy instead
   Mi amor, mi cielo, mi alma — you Deliver me
   Lore, Lore — won't you deliver me
   And you did, and you do, and you stay

   The fire lies dormant
   Cold wind reignites the blaze
   Fall passion burns bright
   Aquí estoy — still
   Sammy's on guard in the backyard Now
   Fifteen years he looked out for you
   I'll take the watch he left behind
   Borrowed shroud of flesh, but the love Comes through

   De tiza, de fuego — from chalk, from Fire
   Ten happy years, we just got hitched, It all feels too soon
   Star light, star bright, your Contentment my guiding star
   Morning, noon, y fricking night — Under the same fool moon
   Mi amor, mi cielo, mi alma — you Deliver me
   Lore, Lore — won't you deliver me
   And you did, and you do, and you stay

   Solo tuyo.
   Home at last.

8. 8So Damn LoudLetra

   I don't know why you always gotta be so damn loud, proud
   I'm so damn proud, and you're so freakin' loud, loud, loud, loud, badda-bing, badda-boom
   So loud
   Sing it with me

   Sing, sing it with me
   Let's get loud
   Don't be shy
   Don't go quiet now

   Hold your head high
   I'm so damn proud, so proud
   I'm so damn proud, so proud of you, of you, my love
   It's you, my love

   It's you
   You keep me floatin' on a cloud
   That's right
   So proud, proud, proud

   Bing, bang, boom
   Pow
   Bing, bang, boom
   Pow

   Bing, bang, boom
   Pow
   Bing, bang, boom
   Pow

   Bing, bang, boom
   Pow
   Bing, bang, boom
   Bing

   Pow
   Bing, bang, boom
   Bing
   Pow

   I don't know why you always gotta be so damn loud, proud, so damn proud
   I'm so damn proud, and you're so freakin' loud, loud, loud, loud, loud, badda-bing, badda-boom
   So loud
   Sing it with me

   Sing, sing it with me
   Let's get loud
   Don't be shy
   Don't go quiet now

   Hold your head high
   I'm so damn proud, so proud, so proud of you, of you, my love
   It's you, my love
   It's you

9. 9Patents of NobilityLetra

   Hey
   Hey hey
   Hey hey hey
   Heyyyyyyyyyy!!!!

   Patents of nobility

   Closing the door behind you
   I've got mine and now, fuck you

   Patents of nobility
   Earned
   Forged

   Cycle of power
   First gained in blood shed by the sword
   Now earned by the devestation of economies by the
   Fast movers quick breakers
   Instead of vellum
   They're written in stock certificates and blockchain

   Patents of nobility
   Earned?
   Forged!

   Power/money/social standing built on the backs of others
   Opm Opm Opm
   Other peoples money
   Got no problem killing
   Other peoples mother

   BASTARDS!

   Vast gulf of wealth and poverty
   distant voices of peasants before the French Revolution

   Patents of nobility
   Earned?
   Forged!
   STOLEN!!

   Not simply oppression of the huddled masses
   But denial of opportunity, crushing of ability to strive

   A pheasant explodes from the underbrush, the pleasing curve of sudden flight
   as the arc of history bends towards Justice

   Patents of nobility
   Earned?
   Noooooooo!
   Forged!
   STOLEN!!!

   Patents of nobility

   Closing the door behind you
   I've got mine and now, fuck you

   BASTARDS!

   Stolen Wealth
   Stolen power
   Patents of nobility
   I've got mine and nowwwwwww

   Watch out watch out watch out
   Mutherfuckers-
   The arc of histooooooryyyy
   It bends it bends
   It bends towards justice
   Justice!
   JUSTICE

10. 10Presagios del PasadoLetra

    Crispy critters
    The smell of burned flesh
    Mixed with diesel
    And shattered metal

    Lingers

    Decades later
    Unbidden
    Denied
    Smell it in my dreams

    The damage remains

    Relived
    Returns
    Under my skin
    In my dreams in my dreams in my dreams

    What was buried
    Still breathes again

    Presagios del pasado
    Presagios del pasado
    They call my name again

    Presagios del pasado
    Presagios del pasado
    The wound won't stay in

    Ash in the grout
    Black on the glass
    A hand on the door
    That never passed

    I hear the steel
    In the empty lot
    I taste the smoke
    Like it forgot

    Relived
    Returns
    Through every vein

    What was buried
    Breaks open again

    Presagios del pasado
    Presagios del pasado
    They call my name again

    Presagios del pasado
    Presagios del pasado
    The wound won't stay in

    No lo apagues
    No lo niegues
    It lives in the bone

    Footsteps behind me
    Calling me home

    Presagios del pasado
    Presagios del pasado
    They call my name again

    Presagios del pasado
    Presagios del pasado
    The wound won't stay in

11. 11What Once 'twasLetra

    What once 'twas
    Must ever end
    What once 'twas
    Will be again
    What once 'twas
    Totally unique
    What once 'twas

    Commonality's binding theme
    What once 'twas
    Tis always is
    Comme ci, comme ça

    Lo que una vez fue
    Por fuerza ha de acabar
    Lo que una vez fue
    De nuevo ha de tornar
    Lo que una vez fue
    Del todo singular
    Lo que una vez fue
    Lo común que a todos nos ata
    Lo que una vez fue
    Por siempre es y será
    Comme ci, comme ça

    What once 'twas
    Tis always is
    Tis always isss
    Tis alwaayysss issss
    Comme ci, comme ça

    Ce qui jadis fut
    Doit toujours prendre fin
    Ce qui jadis fut
    Reviendra de nouveau
    Ce qui jadis fut
    Absolument unique
    Ce qui jadis fut
    Ce lien commun qui nous tient
    Ce qui jadis fut
    À jamais est et sera

    What once 'twas
    Tis always is
    Tis always isss
    Tis alwaayysss issss
    Comme ci, comme ça

    O que outrora foi
    Por força há de acabar
    O que outrora foi
    De novo há de voltar
    O que outrora foi
    Totalmente singular
    O que outrora foi
    O comum que a todos nos liga
    O que outrora foi
    Para sempre é e será
    Comme ci, comme ça

    What once 'twas
    Tis always is
    Tis always isss
    Tis alwaayysss issss
    Comme ci, comme ça

    Was einst gewesen
    Muss immer enden
    Was einst gewesen
    Wird wieder sein
    Was einst gewesen
    Gänzlich einzigartig
    Was einst gewesen
    Das gemeinsame Band, das uns hält
    Was einst gewesen
    Ist auf ewig und wird sein
    Comme ci, comme ça

    What once 'twas
    Tis always is
    Tis always isss
    Tis alwaayysss issss
    Comme ci, comme ça

    Cengjing de na yiqie
    Zhongjiu bi hui zhongjie
    Cengjing de na yiqie
    Zhongjiang zaidu chongxian
    Cengjing de na yiqie
    Wanquan dute wuer
    Cengjing de na yiqie
    Lianxi women de gongtong zhi xian
    Cengjing de na yiqie
    Yongyuan shi, yongyuan cunzai
    Comme ci, comme ça

    What once 'twas
    Tis always is
    Tis always isss
    Tis alwaayysss issss
    Comme ci, comme ça

    Jo kabhi tha
    Avashya hi ant hoga
    Jo kabhi tha
    Phir se lautega
    Jo kabhi tha
    Poorntah anokha
    Jo kabhi tha
    Vah saanjha bandhan jo humein baandhe
    Jo kabhi tha
    Sada hai aur rahega
    Comme ci, comme ça

    Comme ci, comme ça
    What once 'twas
    Must ever end
    Comme ci, comme ça
    What once 'twas
    Will be again
    Comme ci, comme ça

    Lo que una vez fue
    Por siempre es y será
    Comme ci, comme ça
    Ce qui jadis fut
    À jamais est et sera

    What once 'twas
    Tis always is
    Tis always isss
    Tis alwaayysss issss
    Comme ci, comme ça

12. 12SayoLetra

    Hey oh
    Hey oh
    Hey oh — hey!
    Say say... say ohhhh
    Hey hey... say heyooooo
    I got something to sayo

    Hey hey hey oh
    Little bit cray cray crayo
    Always got something to say say sayoo
    Hey hey hey oh
    Little bit cray cray crayo
    Always got something to — say!

    Hey oh, hey oh
    We all want to be heard
    Say oh, say oh
    We all want to be heard
    Hey oh, hey oh
    We all want to be heard
    Say oh — sayoooo

    Not all of us seek excoriation
    (Excoriation!)
    Heyo sayo sayooo
    Through divination, our exploration
    (Exploration!)
    Crayo say crayooo

    Of our insanity as we scream
    (SCREAM!)
    Hey hey heyooo
    Of our insanity as we scream
    (SCREAM!)
    Hey hey heyooo
    Into the abyss—
    Into the abyss—
    Into the abyss— exhortation!

    Hey oh, hey oh
    We all want to be heard
    Say oh, say oh
    We all want to be heard
    Hey oh, hey oh
    We all want to be heard
    Say oh — sayoooo

    Hey oh hey oh
    A little bit crayo crayo
    Hey oh hey oh
    A little bit crayo crayo
    Hey hey CRAYO

    I said what I said...
    I said what I said...
    I said what I said — sayoooooo!

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