1. |
Cold Open
02:37
|
|||
I've been planning, ever since I landed on this planet
The secret to success, I guess I'll never understand it
Took gravity for granted, now my whole viewpoint is slanted
Though I'm still pretty sure that my feet are firmly planted
Goddamnit! That's a command by the way
So hopefully your ass'll get smote right away
Now don't get me wrong, I'd never drop to a knee and pray
But I'm down to make a deal with a deity, per se
If a lighter shade of grey could paint the sky these cloudy days
Then maybe I'd be less intent to see them go away
It must be better this way, as I'm pushing past the pain
So regardless of the rain I guess I really can't complain
This land is strange, geography's an oddity
Topography's a tragedy, cartography's a comedy
If one side of the coin cannot exist without the other
Then maybe that explains why the sun and moon are lovers
Sew me back up and start again from scratch
The plan and the outcome never seem to match
Double Dragons on the prowl, setting fire to the tracks
Remindin' lower life forms of the things they lack
When I first designed today I had a different shape in mind
I got a funny sorta way in which I play with space and time
Form situations outta clay, a shade of grey that stays refined
I guess it's true what they say, god is dead and fate is blind
Blessed with the gift of babble spreading bliss as I unravel
Or at least I am in theory, it's a constant uphill battle
Life has never really been the way it oughta be
And what's odd to me is the lack of a return policy
Struck by realization, maybe I should've listened
When they said to read the terms and conditions
though time is an illusion, I've still got no time for that
So instead I'm lacing snares with only the finest raps
Trying to cover my tracks and poetically wax
On a mixture of emotion and empirical facts
If you fear what you lack, then you do yourself disservice
Perfect is a concept that gets lost beneath the surface
|
||||
2. |
Knocksferatu
03:17
|
|||
"Aren't you interested in having any life at all outside the studio?"
"Not really."
"Hm."
"But when I do decide to step out, will you be the one to show me how it goes, 'cause your lifes so hot?"
The night is long
Or at least it always seems that way when sleep won't come
My legs are moving as I write, up until my feet go numb
It seems to me that if I could just live my own life decently
I might lose the piece of me I've come to fear so recently
Equally amusing, painful, self-reflective and abusive
These four terms best describe my relationship with music
So here I am again, pen in hand, paper's the target
It's a hard line to walk, fitting demons with a harness
Try not to let ego bleed through when I explain that I'm an artist
That's not interested in topping markets, rather leave my soul untarnished
I find I do my best thinking all alone in the dark
So you might find me at midnight gettin' stoned in the park
Headphones plugged in, headed towards the zone with my art
Now if only I could ever know how to start
The hardest phase of any journey is the first step
I'm on my ten thousandth, surprised I haven't burst yet
(The night is long)
So we write our songs, crouched in the shadows where we really belong x4
We don't get to the studio 'til the sun's been down for a couple hours
Make sure all the cables work, ensure that we've got phantom power
Danny bounces samples, while outside I stand and smoke
Watch the clouds all dissipate, recite the words that I wrote
Manic anecdotes coupled with passively panicked quotes
Pass on the chance to collab with most as if it were a can of Coke
Wait for the metal heads next door to pass out drunk before we hit record
Their bass cabs turned up so high that we can feel it shakin' the floors
Clock is tickin', tryna write an album just to go on tour
Lying to ourselves, as if we've ever done this shit before
Never thought that I'd have to entirely give up on sleep
For the record though, we've always been willing to bleed
One time through to check for levels, second time to check myself
Then I step out the booth to hear it, check the way that it felt
Ask Danny what he wants for breakfast, leave him at the spot to mix
But I waited too long to eat, so then I threw up on my kicks
The night is long
So we write our songs, crouched in the shadows where we really belong x4
|
||||
3. |
||||
Truly limited, the last of our kind
Firebreathing misfits that thought we left it all behind
Checked all the levels, from the rooftop, to the basement, to find
Human error's the result of faulty design
Lines of code; grains of sand, how's that for a metaphor?
I'm not sayin' anything that hasn't already been said before
That's the way that it works; thought's permeate the atmosphere
And circulate the globe - I just work with whatever's landed here
Standin' near the line but I know enough to never cross it
Never actually heard your tape, got in the car and fuckin' tossed it
Don't be too upset, as a fan I'm very cautious
Can't stand rhymes that make me nauseous so I struck it from my optics
More often than not we keep it awfully hot
Because the party don't stop, 'til the rate of poverty drops
So throw a donation our way, if we made you feel today
But if you're broke then that's okay, we don't really "want" it anyway
Blam, blam, blam, blam,
Blam, blam - Double Dragon brought the jam
Blam, blam, blam, blam,
Blam, blam - act like you give a damn
Blam, blam, blam, blam,
Blam, blam, - lemme see some lifted hands
Blam, blam, blam, blam,
Blam, blam - 'cause Double Dragon brought the jam
Misanthropic raps, and a monster on production
Seems nothing can go wrong when this maschine begins to function
Tearin' reps apart with syllables glued to percussion
And the rare idea that music should be used to spark discussion
Fear the pilot, not the mech; the shooter, not the gun
Remember wax wings melt when we fly too close to the sun
Thus the framework is important, so don't let the heat distort it
Might as well just delete everything you've ever recorded
On that Case and Molly hype, he works the tech and I'm the muscle
But, Wintermute fucked up, should've never combined our hustle
The trouble with AI is that the A stands for artificial
So we make our art official when we mark it with our symbol
Simply said, sky serpents survey scenes serenely
Takin' those that try and fail out the frame completely
Are you surprised to find that we reign supremely?!
Only picked this damn thing up to spit flames uniquely
Blam, blam, blam, blam,
Blam, blam - Double Dragon brought the jam
Blam, blam, blam, blam,
Blam, blam - act like you give a damn
Blam, blam, blam, blam,
Blam, blam, - lemme see some lifted hands
Blam, blam, blam, blam,
Blam, blam - 'cause Double Dragon brought the jam
One dragon two dragons, Red Dragon's blue, draggin' you
Back to his cave so you can see what a dragon'll do
To its prey, to its feed, to this little piece of food
We could toy with you all day but we're not really in the mood
This beat is crude and nasty, E Gadds, so ghastly
Danny G behind the boards mastered his craft exactly
Passed me the mic so I did what came naturally
Which happened to be to atrophy the egos of assholes, actually
Always preferred the id, even as a kid
Which I'm pretty goddamn sure shone through in everything that I did
In some other dimension, you're the villain with the henchmen
But that's not the world we live in so you'd better pay attention
We're vastly superior to those that would assume we're peers
Super weird, sure, but the passion comes through crystal clear
And if you're still somehow deluded enough to think that you can fuck with this
I'll cut that ass in half with a Destructo Disk, sucka dick, BLAM!
|
||||
4. |
The Siren
03:20
|
|||
I fell victim to the Siren's silent screamin'
On the boat that I call home is where you'll find me slyly schemin'
Of a mutiny, stupidly, the things I let a woman do to me
In the name of lust will be the things that ruin me
Drillin' holes in the deck, at her beck and call
Lifeboats and preservers, of course I wrecked 'em all
And best of all? I even killed the captain
Now there's none to stand and spur these men into action
And how could this happen? Enraptured by the seven seas
My pride and gluttony will surely be the end of me
My enemy is none other than myself
More so than the melody pushing me towards hell
And I've none to blame, but the devious Siren
Pulled in with promises of love, but greeted by violence
In wishing only for silence, she drives me to these evil deeds
My bloodshot eyes will be the last thing that these people see
Please don't fight it, and please don't hate me
I'll join you in Hell, eventually, maybe
The sea calls my name, the she-serpent beckons
She won't be satisfied 'til the ship lies in wreckage
My insides are empty, devoid of a soul
Snarling and gnashing, devour me whole
Pull me down to the depths that you call home
Rend me, consume me, tear the flesh from bone
But first I gotta know - did you use me for my body?
You were never satisfied 'til they were either dead or hobbling
Your words dripped with malice, while you're saliva simply dripped
I thought we'd be together, but now I know that I've been tricked
The water fills the barracks, and then of course the lungs
Of the men I've worked beside, in the years since I was young
Such beauty I've never seen, and kindness I've never known
Ecstasy in the seven seas - can I take you home?
Like our thermodynamic, this love is one-sided
Outlawed in the eyes of both God and Poseidon
Follow me cries the mermaid, but I stay on the deck
The look in her eyes betrays the hunger for flesh
One last wailing note, one sin with which to cope
Dissipate the last part of me, desecrate my only hope
Grab my knife with one hand, guide the blade with the other
Smilin' forevermore, I do my best to join my brothers
And I've none to blame, but the devious Siren
Pulled in with promises of love, but greeted by violence
In wishin' only for silence, she drives me to these evil deeds
My bloodshot eyes will be the last thing that these people see
Please don't fight it, and please don't hate me
I'll join you in Hell, eventually, maybe
The sea calls my name, the she-serpent beckons
And now she's satisfied, the ship lies in wreckage
"You weren't paying any attention."
"No, I wasn't."
"I don't think your manager would appreciate it - "
"I don't appreciate your ruse, ma'am."
"I beg your pardon?"
"Your ruse, your cunning attempt to trick me."
|
||||
5. |
Box Full of Notes
03:05
|
|||
"I was only pointing out that you weren't paying any attention to what I was saying."
"And I hope it feels good."
"You hope what feels good?"
"I hope it feels so good to be right. There's nothing more exhilarating than pointing out the shortcomings of others, is there?"
|
||||
6. |
||||
Travelling, swallowing dramamine
Travelling, swallowing dramamine, dramamine
Tongues are interlocked, but not necessarily tied
Time passes by rapidly, kinda makes me wonder why I ever even tried
My favorite type of beauty is the heartbreaking kind
So when I get mine broken, I guess I shouldn't mind
If I climb to the top, maybe I won't feel it when I fall
It's that type of thinkin' that got me here at all
Feeling so involved with problems I can't solve
Pour me into your coffee and watch me dissolve
If you could just milk it for everything
I've said what I've said and you know what I mean
I still can't focus on anything
We kiss on the mouth but still cough down our sleeves
Travelling, swallowing dramamine
Travelling, swallowing dramamine, dramamine
Tongues are interlocked, but is there even a reason?
Days turn into weeks, into months, into seasons
It would seem interlaced fingers gave us something to believe in
Now that the grip is loosened, I'm glad that you're leaving
Hindsight's only as perfect as anything else
Thought I meant as much to you as you did to yourself
When you spend this much time walking through Hell
You get to know the geography pretty damn well
If you could just milk it for everything
I've said what I've said and you know what I mean
I still can't focus on anything
We kiss on the mouth but still cough down our sleeves
Travelling, swallowing dramamine
Travelling, swallowing dramamine, dramamine
Tongues are interlocked, repetition in the name of expectation
Articulation of thoughts could've spared us this situation
Instead lips stayed locked, all that remained was fixation
And a far off look in eyes that delivered mixed statements
Continents slowly shift as people drift apart
Now this I understand, but that don't make it less hard
After hearing the things that you say in your sleep
I'd hate to see what you hide up your sleeves
If you could just milk it for everything
I've said what I've said and you know what I mean
I still can't focus on anything
We kiss on the mouth but still cough down our sleeves
|
||||
7. |
||||
8. |
||||
9. |
||||
10. |
10.31.09
01:53
|
|||
11. |
Dry Bones
04:26
|
|||
12. |
Light Echoes
04:04
|
|||
Light echoes, light echoes, light echoes
Light echoes, light echoes, light echoes
I hear the footsteps wandering the hallways, all day
Wondering why you're pacin' nearly always
I can't put a face to the echoes that I'm hearin'
But I'm hearin' them all day and thus insanity is nearin'
I've thought of peerin' through the cracks in the door once in a while
But I'm afraid to see your face - 'cause maybe then I'd smile
And its wild the way a thought like that could make me hesitate
I'll never leave my room again with you pacin' at the present rate
Haven't ate in seven days; you're so persistent in your promenade
It's all so odd, I'm fallin' off the surface of the rock I'm on
My perspective has been slanted by my lack of a perspective
Her juxtaposed percussion has me feelin' introspective
Several quiet seconds pass, and I'm enraptured by the silence
Then she starts again with a sudden eager violence
Heel, toe, heel, toe, tell me how you feel though
Life is but a dream 'til you decide to make it real, whoa
Light echoes, light echoes, light echoes
Light echoes, light echoes, light echoes
Light echoes, as the sound reflects
And I reflect on the sound as I ponder what's next
Will I spend my whole life locked away in this room?
Will this four walls add up to the sum of my doom?
The window's not an option 'cause your boy is far too cautious
And the ringin' in my ears has me feelin' awful naesuous
Suddenly the footsteps soften as the day comes to a close
And I'm forced to wonder where exactly this woman goes
Hold my breath and count to thirty, hear no sounds so there's no worries
Peek my head outside the door, the way is clear, so now I scurry
Down the stairs, with a quickness, to carry on with business
I've got a small window and I do not wanna miss it
So I step through the front door, and out into the cold
To wander through the night and find the secrets that it holds
Pull the hood over my beanie and the buds into my ears
Going nowhere fast and the path is clear
Going nowhere fast and the path is clear
Light echoes, light echoes, light echoes
Light echoes, light echoes, light echoes
I return to my building before the sun to the sky
Bags underneath my arms, but even more beneath my eyes
5:05 am reads the screen on my phone
As I sift through my pockets for the keys to my home
At this point in life all I wanna be is alone
And suddenly my ears are greeted by familiar tones
Heel, toe, click, click, hinges creak, door cracks
My keys fall to the floor and I stop in my tracks
Reach down for my keys, and I'm shocked to see her hands
Scooping them up, interrupting my plan
So here we are, eye to eye, with no more doors between us
No more walls to interfere, and no echoes to deceive just
A little alcove cut into the curvature of time
I spent what felt like eternity studying her eyes
She stood up from where she was, asked for my name
I extended a hand with a smile on my face
Light echoes, light echoes, light echoes
Light echoes, light echoes, light echoes
Light echoes, light echoes, light echoes
Light echoes, light echoes, light echoes
|
||||
13. |
Wryyy!!!
01:40
|
The Lobetrotters Collective
A hip-hop collective based in the California Bay-Area that is underground-minded and values lyricism above all else. The Lobetrotters, residing on all ends of the spectrum, uniting for the cause.
Contact The Lobetrotters Collective
Streaming and Download help
The Lobetrotters Collective recommends:
If you like Double Dragon, you may also like:
Bandcamp Daily your guide to the world of Bandcamp