Started in 2009 when it was about certain things, finished in 2017 when it had become about other things, so it meanders a little. I put a demo on SoundCloud last year, and it's finally done.
lyrics
i'm surprised by what i see in your eyes,
do you see the same thing in me?
when you hold that gun pointed straight up at the sun,
it's really the same darkness you're trying to flee
so put down your knife and go make love to your darling wife
you never know if it'll be your last
take her in your arms and forget about the harm
that everyone on earth is trying to exact
the bombs drop from above, and for now they're not falling on us
but bombs from our enemies fall just as fast
and to think that we're immune is to foolishly assume
that all of this is somehow gonna last
all the folk singers are gone and the torch has been passed on
to a generation education by machines
but our parents fought and won, and they figured the fighting was done
so they didn't tell us what any of it means
now they're talking about nuclear fission all over the television
but wasn't this our parents war?
and they slowly realize that while part of the evil dies
the fight against it must always carry on
but this isn't black and white, we can't face each other eye to eye
we're fighting heart to heart, and wit to wit
and we cant fight this in blood, because the evil side always has too much to spill without care of consequence
if we shed our own then which side have we become?
that’s not an accusation, it's just a thought
because they'll play the war games day and night and send our children off to fight
protecting what they tell us we‘ve got
there’s nazis marching in the streets thinking that they’ll somehow reach
a new audience who’s forgotten the past
but time cannot just wash away the tears and all the awful pain
of what happened last time everyone bought into that
hatred is a tired distraction even when it's coming from a brand new faction who thinks they’ve smoothed out all the old defects
once you've seen the light, it’s pretty plain to see what’s right
and the bullshit’s pretty easy to detect
it’s time to shout out loud and make sure the word resounds
we won’t let all the progress go to waste
because the opposite of hate can’t be anything to disdain and
progress is just another word for fate.
credits
from The Fight / H.R.H.,
track released December 8, 2018
Music, lyrics, performance by Jared Cohen.
Shearwater team up with film composer and percussionist Brian Reitzell (Virgin Suicides, Lost in Translation, etc). Bandcamp New & Notable Oct 27, 2015