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Portraits

by Timothy Armstrong

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1.
Sell Out 01:25
Sell Out I’ll sell out, just so long as I can keep from drying up you’ve whet my curiosity Become a comb and rake along the river bed Make sharp the stone and carve your name on my forehead
2.
Forgery 04:11
Forgery She is with swollen buttons, to no end Soon will ring the bells of birth, sudden and brazen Oh my God I wonder if I could be more than just a foster - (I wonder if I could be the) - father figure What am I supposed to be? I was sure of you and me This sounds more like forgery I have a case of monomania Coz nothing could be so perfect, no The ocean capsule has just unwrapped itself Strength should be your vade mecum Coz life will become harder and bitter and murder Don't you dare give up (We can not always be everything, I’m sure, to everyone We can not always do everything, I’m sure, for everyone) I guess you'd be more than just skin and bones Just one look is enough to convince us Hush now sleep now
3.
Tar & Feather When I met you, we were mountains The cavern walls could not contain the commotion Now a new born, in a garden I shower them with weeds, I meant to say, daisies Ive seen feathers fall into the dirt beneath my feet Hear the thunder in the desert Fix their fangs before you arrive Ive seen feathers fall into the dirt beneath my feet And I know that you have come at last Ive seen feathers fall into the tar I thought would cover me Parading through the town to reveal I'm no better than the crowds on the banks How long will my head rest upon my shoulders Beware the trickster It was iron bound It will kick you when you're down
4.
Awake 06:12
Awake All the faces I have worn, but wont again Were picket fences all along To keep them out, Or me in We cannot help what we know or where we've been So don't you dare apologize for what you might say In company We don't want to luck out again We don't want to play to lose If that's the only way You are gonna have to drag me kicking and screaming I'm awake, are you? We don't want “three strikes and you're out” That's just an empty threat You can tell by listening I'm awake, are you? We are not broken, not anymore We've been set in motion, body and soul Sinking feeling falling into sleep I saw you stand upon the sand Sinking feeling falling into sleep I felt you making eye contact Are you awake?
5.
The Best Will Come You can always tell who's travelled far The way they limp around like wounded fauna Always tends to make a lantern of us Everyday we’re sure the sun will show But how much do we really think we know You can bet your broken arrow We’ll hit the target Have I done enough to warrant your trust Honest I promise you that The miser might have more But the patient are sure I promise The best will come Fiction is the lie wed love too live but It fixes us a meal that will never fill us Even if the eye is narrow We will insist that the animal fits I'm so unsure of the fact That there might be more for those who lack All I do is hoard gather store and stack Till the quivers full still the bows intact Are you content with the life you think your meant to live We all contend with the concept What we try to mend might not be broken Broken bow and arrows spent
6.
Counting 06:09
Counting Tonight's almost over and I must prepare I’ll take your body down and pull the covers up over your face I’ll wet my door with your mark To starch my head and bleach my heart Oh I dreamt of a kingdom, not this stone cold coffin I’ll make sure the lid wont open Tomorrow I’ll pause And wonder what good could come from your downfall Oh its such a bitter pill So I’ll bury my doubt I’d bury myself to spend just one less day without you. Wheres my sword oh wheres your armoury We all thought you would've brought your army You know we’d die for your diadem But were here alone and the days are counting You had the weapon at your side but the barrel felt no friction Why weren't the bullets left inside How could the king be voted out, he held the keys to the castle So draw us a bridge to cross out the night The dawn denied first light, the birds refuse to make a sound Autumn passed us by, the leaves refuse to fall to the ground Winter has arrived, your woollens cannot be found The things you can never find, maybe you should leave them lying around
7.
Bells 04:18
Bells What landscapes lie beyond your fortress We could only speculate, but could not have known The ambulant gradients of your night dress Meandering in folds like a sine tone You Let your hair fall out your window We flicker on and off like fluorescents We turn all the dials and fix them with tape The looking glass tells it best Bells billow the chimes and the well swallows the dimes its given But I’ll never let go of this moment, it’s the home I live in Ruins are all that remain of your palace Everything you owned has been overthrown Coz I saw you splitting hairs in the courtyard With the jester swaying in corner, his face in his palms I wouldn’t call you scared at all
8.
Pictures 03:38
Pictures Pale as my pillow, but warm under the skin Clear as my window, are your translucent limbs You spell danger, I’ll take you home It’s better the devil you know Stale as my water, are my old demon's tricks Rare is the summer, that I don't feel rained in (If I take the picture, I wont be seen Wont you take one of me)
9.
Make a Start 04:11
Make a Start What concerns must we have for the earth That we cannot see our own dirt Our eyes have become like knotted tree limbs The runes you wrote in the dust wont deter The bricks in their grasp from striking her We Grind into grain We’re turning from thoughts to feelings Our efforts used to count for something Now ethic has all but lost her meaning We try to parch the sand to quench our thirst And we bleach the bland but wind up worse Come bail us out, this forest of cell bars needs felling Our efforts used to count for something Pick the lock from round your neck, learn to use your metacarpal key Now ethic has all but lost her meaning It’s so simple lets agree, change our patterns let each other speak When will we think first of each other Brush the shivers from your spine, pull the covers up to warm your heart Not as something inferior Lets just make a start
10.
Furnaces 04:30
Furnaces Oh love please don't pocket me and say that all I am to you is loose change Oh love wallet me the same as you would any other valuable thing Ill paint you an iron door, lock it with swords and speeches Lightning and thunder, my favourite storm approaches We learn at the cost of being walked over But don't burn your feet we’re the rocks glowing as embers We thrive in furnaces Lets not pretend to enjoy all that gets wrapped up in colours I’ll paint you a victory march, lets not forget what lights us up We thrive in furnaces Oh love spend me We learn at the cost of being walked over But don't burn your feet we’re the rocks glowing as embers Don't burn your bridges till they're crossed, you might regret it Don't worry about what you lost, try to forget it We thrive in furnaces Oh, love
11.
Safe 05:40
Safe Back at the start, before we fell apart We were so certain it would last forever But you broke our window pane, 1000 shards of glass I’ve pieced them all back together Before we fall asleep we take three with water In a certain order So that when we wake up we think ‘success‘ Instead of ‘we should have just stayed in bed’ I crossed the void, I crossed the night out I left the fabric of space in tatters So don't feel blind anymore Just set your eyes to the score At the end of every day Its you who I remember Did you see me walk by Was I put in my place Lets thank our lucky stars we are safe

credits

released August 5, 2010

This album includes performances by Timothy Armstrong, Sarah Colman, Nina Miller, Jeremy Bennett, Rene Corbett, Madeleine Griffiths and Tim Beals. Borrowed instruments courtesy of Matt Langworthy (Acoustic Guitar), Mary Pack (Spanish Guitar), Jess Reade (Toy Piano), Jeremy Bennett and Rene Corbett (Drums), Susan Davey (Glockenspiel), Piano samples Courtesy of Imperfect Samples. Album artwork by Louisa Armstrong. All songs written, recorded, mixed and mastered by Timothy Armstrong. Thanks to everyone who gave up their time and talent to make this album possible.

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