Here is a list of full-length albums by J. S. Sanford and his collaborators.
For a more complete list of releases, check the websites for Neptune or E.
Click on an album below to see the complete lyrics.
LIVING WATERS
2024, E, Silver Rocket Records (Czech Republic)(FULLY) REMOTE
(lyrics by J.S.Sanford and Thalia Zedek)
we tried to speak out, you know we have tried
our words were censored and our tongue was tied
you know the numbers were falsified
you know statistics, and what they can hide
official missives but the dispatcher lied
how can we locate all those who have died?
try! try!
dig and dig and dig and dig!
the information is now living inside
we're looking outward from behind our eyes
as circulation delivers the code
we're getting ready to go fully remote
hide! hide!
the last aboard, shut the door
get inside!
NULL
(lyrics by J.S.Sanford and Thalia Zedek)
ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one,
null
counting backward
just keep breathing
backward counting
levitate
breathing deeply
spirit leaving
sinking upward
to the ceiling
now beneath us
see the body
thinking nothing
pulse is beating
hearing voices
sounding muted
lips are moving
without meaning
hearing voices
making contact
try believing
counting backward
try believing
JUMPROPE
(lyrics by Ernie Kim)
we walked over mountains empty handed,
across bridges and borders untethered and unarmed,
for the safety and comfort of white noise in air conditioned cars,
crawling down 10-lane roadways in the heavy summer heat.
you are a whisper. I am the silence in the dark
on late night walks far from the sigh of the highway.
you are a memory. I am an echo: can you hear me?
can you hear me? or have i faded?
air thick in the forest
clouds of mosquitoes
in a hidden cabin, content to exist and nothing more
when I am sinking, you break the surface
with absent-minded humming that sets me at ease.
you are the sunshine; I am a shadow. I can see you!
I can see you! but you won't see me ever again.
a sliver of blue sky, the smell of a well-mowed hill
eyes red and downcast, hands so strong and small
when you are out there I want you to know that
I am not okay and will never be well again.
I am a cold spring. you are an absence
in pictures we can't bring ourselves to look at.
you are the sunshine; I am a shadow.
you are a whisper; I am an echo across the valley in twilight,
and I am very tired.
watching and waiting in the dark corner
shapeless and shifting, creeping and crawling.
when it's time to leave you will turn away.
tell me a story. tell me a memory. sing me to sleep.
CLARION
(lyrics by J.S.Sanford)
we see the safety signal
we hear the safety signal
we know the safety signal
we fear the safety signal
listen, the clarion
ringing, from far beyond
so bright, so clear
listen, do you hear?
we see the safety signal
we hear the safety signal
we know the safety signal
we fear the safety signal
sand turns to broken glass
sun burns the mountain pass
wind whips a stinging lash
guide us to find a path
the earth dies
with each step that I take
see the lake turns
to alkaline flat
now the grass burns
and the land turns black
the birds cry
turn back the flock
and the sun's eye
must make us stop
NAMES UPON A LIST
(lyrics by J.S.Sanford)
an eyeless face
this empty place
there's not a trace
to be found
just look around,
just look around
these faceless eyes
up in the clouds
up in the sky
what have they found?
surveilling all
upon the ground, surveilling all
chemistry upon the plates
revealing negative mistakes
a missing face
in shades of gray
is turned away
and now the face
is in the clouds
projecting mystery
it shrouds
the truth behind a mist
concealing names upon a list
of all of those who would resist
revealing names upon a list
of all of those who would resist
of all of those who could resist
and now each face is recognized
we can identify by sight
all of those upon the list
who would conceivably resist
LIVING WATERS
(lyrics by Thalia Zedek)
watching bubbles rise,
at the waterline,
phosphorescent lumination
tracers light the night
it's pouring through the cracks,
we can't hold it back,
we're moving into a different dream,
with targets on our backs
ASH
(lyrics by J.S.Sanford)
we left our prayers back there in the town
buried in rubble, down,
down comes the ash from the sky
quiet as snow and comfortable lies
a blanket of ash settles around
our steps trace a trail away from the site
a trail erased with the gentle sound
of a breeze as it sweeps us into night
we left our papers back there in the town
they burned with the rest, burned down
ash in the wind, in the sky, on the ground
ash settles down without a sound
the tips of our fingers are raw from the work
of digging debris to save what we could
the backs of our hands are raw from the cold
no comfort now from the lies we've been told
POSTPERFECT CONDITIONAL
(lyrics by Ernie Kim)
you will not survive this.
you will not survive this.
you will not survive or get out alive.
you will not survive this.
you will not survive this loss.
you will not survive this sorrow.
it will beat you and defeat you.
you will not survive this.
from first breath to first steps
sweetness so distant and far
anger and shame, pain we will carry forever
you will not survive this loss.
you will not survive this sorrow.
you will not survive or get out alive.
you will not survive this.
it's all lost. it's all a blur. it's all broken.
GAIN OF FUNCTION
(lyrics by J.S.Sanford and Thalia Zedek)
the gain of function
is purely science
and all our research
in strict compliance
the board of ethics
has certain guidelines
let's roll our sleeves up
we're under deadline
and now our forelimbs
appearing longer
and our conviction
is growing stronger
the world needs us
and our good work now
a sacred purpose
a secret vow
we work in darkness, who dares shine a light now,
all of the evidence, is in our defense,
we have a purpose, nothing will deter us,
make a decision, reject all division
the polished product
is in the pipeline
the first responders
are on the frontline
the population
is under lockdown
nocturnal species
come out to feed now
are you hungry?
are you alone?
look at these forelimbs
see how they've grown
we can taste it
as it glistens
now that night falls,
let us listen…
your claims of ignorance, don't make you innocent,
all your ablutions are just more pollution,
the scales were tilted, what does not kill us,
here they come now and here we go
ANY INFORMATION
2022, E, Silver Rocket Records (Czech Republic)Any Information (lyrics by J.S.Sanford)
(this record is a 6 song EP, released as 12" vinyl- 45 RPM, and digitally)
Any information that you have
Any information that you have
Any information that you have about my brother
Any information that you have about this place
Any information that you have about my brother
Any information that could compromise the state
Any information that you have
DESIRE PATH (lyrics by Gavin McCarthy)
The look in your eyes
The hitch in your step
It knocks you down
And you walk around
Down in the dirt, on the ground
A worthless disguise
Identify
Pretending you're alright
You're doing fine
There's nothing left in your mind
The path of desire
I can see you've worn it down
You've worn it down
You've worn it down
And everytime you lie
You're lying right now, right now
Bringing your trouble
Coming down
There's no reason why
You've got to die now, die now
Will she come around
Like she always does?
NO SIGNAL (lyrics by Thalia Zedek)
I see a green light
It doesn't feel right
Not gonna cross
My hesitation's
A new sensation
I'm growing patient
I'm borderline
I don't know my mind
I see all the signs
Frozen in time
We lost the pieces
Something we needed
Has been deleted
No sense in counting
All we created
How much was wasted
Focus your eyes
Stay in the lines
Don't try to cross
Against the light
And though you were warned
You could not fight
You were not lost
They held you tight
JUNGLE CATS (lyrics by Thalia Zedek and J.S.Sanford)
So far away, so far away
So far away, so far away
We are the jungle cats with
Tattoo tears
Offering sweet release from
Certain fears
Faded ink
Faded ink on my skin
Faded ink
Faded ink on my skin
Inside, inside
My yellow eyes
Reflect like mirrors
Blinding like headlights
Bright in the night
Hide in plain sight
See the sunrise in
My yellow eyes
I move in the dark
Hide in the light
I feel so strong
And I know I'm right
I emptied my mind
I went along
I sang the song
I fought the fight
BREATHE AGAIN (lyrics mostly by Thalia Zedek)
Hey now, it's gone too far
I never thought we'd be where we are
today,
are you okay?
We can't fall too far,
Something has got to break this and save us,
From our certain fate
And when you awake
And find tomorrow is still today
Come back, come back, come back
To your body
And remember
And don't look down,
And, don't look now
--we've got to
--learn how to
--breathe
--all over again
--we've got to
--learn how to
--breathe
--all over again
HEY STRONGMAN (lyrics by J.S.Sanford)
Hey strongman
My dear friend
Hey strongman, how I want you
Hey strongman, how I need you
Hey strongman, come and hold me
Hey strongman, dominate me
Hold me in your strong arms
Hold me in your long arms
Grip me in your strong hands
Whisper to me your plan and
Tell me what you want me to do
Tell me what you want me to say
Tell me when you think I should go
Tell me if you want me to stay
Long yellow rubber gloves are
What you need if you want to
Clean this house, if you want to
Make it clean
Whisper in my ear
I can smell your breath
I can feel your clean shave
The rubber grip of your glove
COMPLICATIONS
2020, E, Silver Rocket Records (Czech Republic)lyrics by Thalia Zedek, Gavin McCarthy, and Jason Sidney Sanford as noted
CAUGHT (TZ)
I caught you falling out of line,
You caught me falling out, you were just in time
We can't feel ourselves, we play William Tell,
We can't walk straight but time keeps marching anyway
Don't be silent,
Don't go quietly without a fight,
There's no alibis
I want to hear you,
I want to hear you,
I can feel you,
You are near.
***
ACID MANTLE (JSS)
Anoint me
With oils
Inject me
Complete me
A lab mouse
Will greet me
My sister
Secretion
My skin in
Rebellion
The acid
A mantle
Disrupted
A portal
I join you
By virus
***
CONTAGION MODEL (GM)
In the back of our lab, we engineer the germs.
With this diagnosis, man, I can confirm:
IT'S CONTAGIOUS: Spread it around
IT'S CONTAGIOUS: Spread it around
We put it in the blood, see how the pathogen tracks
Inhibitions fallin, cognition cracks
IT'S CONTAGIOUS: Spread it around
IT'S CONTAGIOUS: Spread it around
The body's decomposing. Soften up the bones.
Ideas infecting and becoming our own
IT'S CONTAGIOUS: Spread it around
IT'S CONTAGIOUS: Spread it around
(TZ) (don't isolate me, don't erase me, quarantine)
Synthesize
Terrorize
Dehumanize
Normalize
That's our model!
(TZ) (don't isolate me, don't erase me, quarantine)
***
SUNRISE (TZ)
Regenerate yourself,
Regenerate yourself again,
Start from the end, and begin.
I will wait until the end,
My friend you can come back again,
Hang on when you begin to spin,
And regenerate yourself.
***
MIASMA (JSS)
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
to maintain
the body
a simple
incision
release
the pressure
for stable
condition
the cupping
may mark us
it's part of
the process
the sickness
is rising
it comes to
the surface
open
a window
vapors
are rising
miasma
retreating
the patient
reviving
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
the doctor
gives orders
it's not a
decision
tighten
the bedstraps
for this
prescription
a scalpel
can enter
with perfect
precision
to maintain
the body
a simple
incision
a simple
incision
the pressure
releasing
the sickness
rehearsing
a secret
secretion
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
hey-hey-hey
to maintain
the body
a simple
incision
release
the pressure
for stable
condition
***
DEAD DROP (GM)
You've got the information and
you hung your shingle out.
(I can feel your eyes)
You sellin' out the nations and
it's what we're talking about.
(they're burning holes in my back)
You tell your wife that you're going out for
(you're like a shadow)
another night on the town but…
(who are you following?)
You'll sit in the park watch out for the cops.
Look for the chalk that's marked on the box
Dead Drop
Dead Drop
You've got your motivations and
a secret bank account.
(they caught you in a lie)
Ya think it means salvation but
youVve got no reason to doubt.
(now you're compromised)
A little honey you fall into her trap, but
(hide in the corner)
you can work your way out if…
(behind a magazine)
You sit in the park watch out for the cops.
Look for the chalk that's marked on the box
Dead Drop
Dead Drop
Dead drop it's a setup!
A blowback, a brush pass, the black ops, the hand-off
Nations' misinformation is
Selling. I'm selling', I'm sellin' at a deep discount
***
GELDING (JSS)
after the accident
I lost my feeling for
that which I'd found
attractively sexual
though strangely not
for beauty and art
for negative space
subtractive, conceptual
I ceased assessing
of legs and of asses
nectar of youth
now absent caresses
the stroking of beauty
beguiled by pleasure
forsaken, misshapen,
now without measure
a gelding repentant
and empty of seed
freedom at last
in the absence of need
a gelding repentant
and empty of seed
freedom at last
in the absence of need
after the accident
after the accident
after the accident
after the accident
***
LIKE A LEAF (GM)
Tearful eyes
look afraid to let go
It's not as bad as what it seems
Take your time
You can set the tempo
if you fall into a heap
My dear boy
I'm just gonna hold you
Why are you shaking like a leaf?
Another troubled day
Will it be ok?
Sometimes along the way we break down
And we all break down
Sleep tonight
and try again tomorrow
Just some rest is what you need
So my dear boy
I'm just gonna hold you
Ho o o o o o o o o o o o ld
Another troubled day
Will it be ok?
Sometimes along the way we break down
And we all break down
We all break down
Break down
***
***
NEGATIVE WORK
2018, E, Thrill Jockey Recordslyrics by Thalia Zedek, Gavin McCarthy, and Jason Sidney Sanford as noted
PENNIES (TZ)
Hello, you know I know your daughter
You've lived inside her eyes forever,
She even has your sense of humor,
She even said that she forgives you
Your name will live with her forever,
She stayed as long as they would let her,
You waited you did not forget her,
Pennies on her eyes forever
You know I know,
You know I know
***
THE PROJECTIONIST
TZ: Are you worried?
I don't care!
I'm so worried you don't care!
JSS: I could stare you
I could stare you down
When I look at you
You're upside down
On the back of my eye
Then you're right side up
When you reach my mind
It's all turned around
TZ: Time keeps slipping
Running down,
I'm so worried,
I'll lose the count
JSS: I could stare you
I could stare you down
When I look at you
You're upside down
On the back of my eye
Then you're right side up
When you reach my mind
It's all turned around
I could stare you
I could stare you down
TZ: We are coming from the shadows,
We are running from our shadow
***
POISON LETTER (TZ)
I've got something I can't tell you,
If I want to, I don't want to,
Words can't hurt you, I won't let them,
What's the matter, poison letter?
It's a fine line
You could fall and lose your balance,
Lose your balance
It's a fine line,
If you fall in,
I will follow
I will follow
How do you know?
You can't trust yourself no more,
You're a stranger at the door of your home,
You're alone
Can you know when you can trust yourself again?
Is it safe to let you in?
I don't know
Does it show?
***
A HOUSE INSIDE (JSS)
a house, inside,
I'll show you where to hide
and every night the
windows are shuttered tightly
we have a house inside
a spectral place where
our inner selves reside
without a trace to see there
and inside the house
the entry hall receives guests
the dusty decor
ancestral portraits look down
suspecting what you've guessed
look up now
the stairwell, upwinding
the landing's shafted with light
the stairwell, upwinding
in light the dust is shining
you've not seen light like it
it's blinding and it's perfect
each grain of dust glowing
floats slow for close inspection
each grain of dust dryly
is just a cell of skin
history drifts highly
suspended, floating, flying
awaiting,
awaiting resurrection
ascending the stairwell
this greeting seems like farewell
the landing, you've reached it
your waiting image greets you
antique and heavy
the mirror that is hung here
imperfect and convex
distorts as it reflects
it looks now much more so
the twisting of your torso
reflect now, your eyes
dark somehow in the light
gaze deeply, what's in there?
escape has made a shape there
a house inside
I'll show you where to hide
***
DOWN SHE GOES (GM)
Out to the rocks she sails
Where your family dissolves and fails
And all of the sirens sang:
I will be your ghost
The sound of the sea and waves
Covers the mess you made
Where all of the sirens sang:
I will be your ghost
Down she goes
All aboard a vessel
Made of skin and bone
Well I renounce the body,
Temple and the throne
And render unto Caesar
I leave the rest behind
Wash away the edges in the ocean's laughing time
Down she goes
***
ONE IN TWO (TZ)
This train's gone,
It's been derailed right from the start
It did not brake,
And we're going to break apart
The head's cut off, but the body's spinning like a top,
The head's cut off, but the body's run amuk
It's not your fault,
That you're dancing the last waltz,
It's not your fault,
That you're dancing the last waltz
You did not choose to be born as a chosen one,
And witness to, just how the mighty have fallen
***
UNTIE ME (GM)
You are the darkness but we are the sun
Loosened the cincture and we became one
At night, we light our way from within
Pull down your shades but that's how we make it
We won't be modest, shamefaced or sober
A turn of the key, the motor turns over
That's right, we like that ruinous sin
Pull down your shades, but that's how we make it
Untie Me
***
CANNIBAL CHATROOM (JSS)
illuminations and a light from behind, tell me
who stained the window?
taste a community I never could find, my
terminal temple
to find a mind inclined to think as I do, to
taste the forbidden
the richest flavor is the flavor of man, you can
taste what he's hidden
welcome my friends to cannibal chatroom, please
sign the disclaimer
eighteen or older and ready to cook - user,
enter your name here
flesh is on offer on the altar of friendship,
blessings upon us
eating our own, as the passion consumes us, con-
sumption becomes us
***
HOLE IN NATURE (JSS)
-The lyrics for this song are assembled from excerpted quotes by Alberto Giacometti, from James Lord's book, A Giacometti Portrait, (New York : Farrar Straus Giroux, 1980.)
for what I'm doing,
there's more than light enough.
what's best is simply
to look at people.
I've
never seen the trees like that before
maybe the canvas
will become completely empty
everything fine if...
look at me
you have the head of a brute
things look black, my poor friend
I've got to destroy everything again
what I'm doing is negative work.
everything is disappearing once more.
I
have to make a little hole in nature.
I've
never seen the sky that way before.
it's so high.
I saw the emptiness.
it's the first time in my life
I saw the emptiness.
it's the first time in my life
I like working in the dark
the photograph exists and that's all there is to it.
I'd like to be able to paint like a machine
yes. I've made a little hole,
there's an opening.
***
HOLLOW
TZ: When your eyes are empty
You'll fill them with anything,
You will blindly follow,
Anyone who takes your lead
When you live in the hollow,
You don't have anything,
You can't drink the water,
They feed you everything you eat,
GM: We know you need it
Sign your name right on the line
But down the line,
There will be only lies
With which you'll breathe
TZ: When your idols are empty,
You can fill them with anything,
The smoke will rise and cover,
Whatever you don't want to see
When your words are hollow,
They're easier to sing,
You're an American Idol,
You can drown out anything
GM: We know you need it
Sign your name right on the line
But down the line,
There will be only lies
With which you'll breathe
***
E (Self-titled debut album)
2016, E, Thrill Jockey Recordslyrics by Thalia Zedek, Gavin McCarthy, and Jason Sidney Sanford as noted
GREAT LIGHT
TZ: Feels like radium JSS: Great light
TZ: Falling down JSS: Fill me
TZ: What was in that cloud? JSS: Great light
JSS: Dark thoughts begone. Foul dreams begone. Flood drain from my eyes. Dark thoughts begone.
I command it. I command it. I command it. I command it.
***
SILO (TZ)
I have realized, you've broke all ties with what's behind.
I sympathize, there was no time for you to cry
Since you fled, I've seen what's left was left for dead,
The sky is on the ground, it's upside down, a looking glass
I sympathized, there was no time to say goodbye
***
DELICATE FINGERS
JS:we will have
money
we will breathe
water
we will have
money I
promise I
promise
you
creatures so
tiny
unseen on our
skin
bathe in pure
light tiny
creatures burn a-
way
delicate
fingers held
closely
lamplight shines
through and the
color of
blood shines
through
we will have
money
we ill have
money
we will get it
we will get it
we will get it
we will get it
TZ: There is a backlight which casts shadows,
Of everything that you can imagine,
We try so hard not to think bad thoughts,
We try to hard not to think at all,
There is a light that burns from the outside in
The inner voice is getting stronger
There is one line, there is no cross,
There is no line we did not cross
***
I WANT TO FEEL GOOD
JSS: I want to feel good (repeat)
TZ: Leaving
all the way back home
rising up
from the bottom floor,
first generation
rising
Going down
all the way back home
give it back
first generation
going home
to the mother nation
first generation
rising
I wasn't born this way
I wasn't born in this place
***
REGATTA (TZ)
Casting, a line goes out
Curling, as it frees
Catching, and tightening
In a circle they were waiting
Rocking, riding, and the sea was like a horse,
a shot went off and
it's on
In a circle they were waiting
Up and down until the signal
***
CANDIDATE
GM: You run a rainbow ruse
For your cold-read clues
Watch the spirit medium
Bending spoons
Bend. Bend. Bend it.
Such an obvious tell
In the story that you sell
It's the art of seductions
And it serves you well.
Sell. Sell. Sell it.
JSS: I heard the words
the news and analysis
I had a presentiment
you are me candidate
GM: Prestidigitate.
Hyperventilate
I could be the President
And now I'm running for President.
In the king's dominion
My court the public opinion
I am the psychic surgeon
You are the vestal virgin.
Bend. Bend. Bend it.
JSS: I'm ready for conversion
by luminous immersion
the values of the empire
are burning in our hearth fire.
GM:You got a snake oil cure,
Tin-foil coiture
Well I could the president
Well I could the president
So now I'm running for president
And now I'm running for president
***
THE ARCHER
JS: the stars are
preserved in
the sky like
an archive
of light---
the record
transmitted
how long it
has taken
how long it
has taken
how long it
has taken
that system,
it flickers
who knows it
could vanish
what star is
forever?
what happens
to us now?---
my finger
will draw it
palms up now,
you feel it?
the archer
she's with us
the archer
she's with us
TZ: That star will surely flower,
That flower find a crevice,
That bow now taught with power,
Release a course of arrows,
The string outlines the spirit,
The shape is in the absence,
The body of the animal,
Orbits like a carousel
***
FISSURE (TZ)
This is a failure of reason, a seizure
This is a rupture, an interruption,
Come back to your senses,
And illuion of freedom,
The loop of feedback becomes too frequent,
Your words are tumbling out of sequence
The city's crumbling, cracks in the cement
***
WATER
JSS: I wanted water
the underside
provided liquid
and a place to hide
this is not water
reluctant sun
come out to dry
the burning sky
let's burn the fater
his tie has come
TZ: What we are we don't regret,
What you did we won't forget
What you want you will not get,
What you did we won't forget,
What you want you will not get
JSS: I wanted water
a second chance
let's ask the father
or what remains
***
FOUNDATIONS/TRIALS
2016, E, 100% Breakfast RecordsFOUNTAIN OF FIRE
Course of veins
fountain of fire
surge on
warm my breath
organ of life
breathe on
round and round
coursing throughout
my frame
breath of life
fountain of fire
and flame
bright, bright light
splinter of sun
inside
bright, bright light
tell them of how
I tried
Children play
fountain of fire
may spill
scorch the earth
children may scream
how shrill
laugh and shout
playing about
the fire
clap and laugh
splashing about
the flame
burn your hands
children must learn
behave
burn your arms
children beware
the flame
***
Msg Rcvd
2012, Neptune, Northern Spy RecordsLUMINOUS SKULL
I put on a whole lot of make up
when I get ready to make the rounds
I could make a whole lot of money
just by being a natural man
when they put my skull back toghether
they sewed around a luminous crown
I could get a whole lot of interest
just because I'm a natural man
I'm a natural man
I'm a natural man
there could have been a massive reaction
with what it took to sew my skull
it's a halo, it's an antenna
it's got a kind of a subtle glow
I put on a whole lot of make up
to cover up my luminous scar
it doesn't stop the message reception
I can hear luminous thoughts
in my luminous skull
in my luminous skull
you should go, you should go as a man
you should go, you should go as a natural man
you should go, you should go as a man
you should go, you should go as a natural man
***
DARK REPORT
I'd like to be prepared
I'd like to be prepared
I'd like to make our home secure
I'd like to be prepared
I've got a gun, upstairs, my son
never play with it
never play with it
you never know when they may come
I'd like to be prepared
I'd like to be prepared
I've got a gun, upstairs, my son
my golden son
my golden son
my thinking son
my thinking son
your golden head
your golden head
in golden shafts
my golden rod
of sinking sun
the upstairs light
never show it to
a dark report
your unseen friend
sink out of sight
never play with it
never play with it
never play with it
never play with him
never play with him
never play with him
never play with him
never play with him
never play with him
never play with him
never play with him
never play with him
never play with him
never play with him
never play with him
***
NATURAL SYSTEMS
He constructs
an elaborate representation of
natural systems
he constructs
an elaborate represenation of
a natural system
this is his job
to model natural systems
this is his job
to model natural systems
***
NEGATIVE REVERSAL
The skin is just the skin
is just the skin is just
the skin is just the skin
is just the skin is just
he's really magical
magic inside of him
why would I make it up?
you've seen him disappear
disappear
let's lift the curtain up
see how he operates
he's made of medicine
an anesthetic
just try to watch
just try to think
you will forget it
just relax
count back from ten to one
ten
a woman cuts her judge
like you've never seen
you are suggestive
let's shape a memory
here's a spot of blood
and a piece of cloth
a piece of torn dress
what's around her neck?
skin is pale soft
just beneath the nape
a necklace you have seen
swinging like a clock
you have seen
you have seen
what have you seen?
you have seen
***
Silent Partner
2011, Neptune, Northern Spy RecordsCASH MATTRESS
I run through the forest
I'm totally naked
I'm scratching like crazy
my feet scraped and bloody
I am the richest
and I am the highest
I take what I want
and I hide in the forest
the perfume of fear
the scent of compliance
I'm stuffing the mattress
with all of the finest
I'm getting dizzy
the flies are about me
I visit the faeries
they call me your highness
I am the richest
and I am the highest
I take what I want
and I hide in the forest
that stinking mattress
lies in the forest
I sleep where I want
'cause I'm so self-reliant
I run through the forest
I'm totally naked
I'm scratching like crazy
they call me your highness
I am the richest
and I am the highest
I take what I want
and I hide in the forest
I'm taxing the poorest
I'm licking their lips
relaxing with women
invite me to dinner
I run through the forest
I'm totally naked
***
CANINE SPACES
we dogs in cages can
do without our leashes
our serum comes for free
and our freedom is contagious
we dogs in cages will
persecute the hare
trembling at the races still
before our hope has faded
we dogs in cages can
terrorize the pheasant
crazed with blood and fear we can
drive the families skyward
we dogs in cages can
do without our leashes
our serum comes for free
and our freedom is contagious
we dogs
in our
cages
prize our
we dogs in cages can
patronize our masters and
terrorize our patrons as
we call for bloody terror
tiny
freedoms
we dogs
in our
we dogs in cages are
mindful of our spaces
the smell of blood erases
the heresy of freedom
keep our
tiny
secrets
we dogs in cages are
utterly delighted when
it's time to feed our hunger
our wishes are fulfilled
we dogs in cages are
really true believers that
our cages are our nature,
nature so deceives us
we dogs in cages
recognize the process
we settle on our haunches and
gnaw delicious bones
***
REST FROM BREATHING
we all believe in something
we all believe the same thing
inconsolate in mourning
we miss our pretty darling
the silver sheets are twisted
his body cold and silent
his silver lips are parted
let's whisper close departed
we all believe in something
we all believe the same thing
his eyes are closed with silver
his blood has come to resting
believing silver seething
our silver coins are minted
with pictures cast in silver
of rulers now departed
the silver mirror's showing
our lover's lost his breathing
the fog of life is clearing
his blood has come to resting
we all believe in something
we all believe the same thing
our lover's life was wasted
the silver snake has struck him
and now his breath has left him
in silver sheets we wrap him
now whisper close departed
and kiss his silver lips
we all believe in something
we all believe the same thing
the silver sheets are burning
the silver flames are leaping
our eyes are closed with silver
we're only silver seeing
and now that life is leaving
we search for silver meaning
the silver mirror's showing
our lover's stopped his breathing
the fog of life is clearing
his blood has come to resting
***
Mother of Millions
recorded 2009, Neptune, released 2020, Wrong Whole Archival BureauLEADEN CURSES
when there is sufficient confirmation
We must be prepared to accept the facts
Whether we feel able to understand them or not.
We make mistakes
We make the same mistakes
Even in death
Through the action of the discarnate
We make mistakes
We make the same mistakes
by reflection of the unseen, unseen, unseen
We learn our fate
We paid a lettered man
To scribe our curses onto lead,
Then folding them,
Folding the leaden sheets hurled them
Into the waters.
Hot,
red coal in the palm of his hand, bury him
bury him in wax, eyes glimmer sunken wax
In the waters, at the bottom, in the sand, he awakens
He must dance, red wax in his melting hands
He is holding flaming coal in the palm of his hand
He is holding flaming coal in the palm of is hand
He must dance, red wax in his melting hands
In the waters, at the bottom, in the sand, he awakens
Bury him in wax, eyes glimmer sunken wax
Red coal in the palm of his hand, bury him
Hot
In the red light
They were serene
They were vapors,
Moving freely,
Though we measured their weight
We were vapors
We make mistakes.
***
GOLD CROWN
gold crown way down in the c-cold ground
gold crown way down in the c-cold ground
gold crown way down in the c-cold ground
gold crown way down in the c-cold ground
the sound of gold is the sound of lead
gold crown way down in the c-cold ground
the sound of earth and the sound of wood
spade on wood is a hollow sound
spade found the box with the dead rich man
spade split his head like a ripened fruit
spade split his face like a ripened fruit
don't need these teeth when you're dead, rich man
don't need these teeth when you're dead, rich man
dead rich man with the golden crown
dead rich man with the golden crown
you stink rich man with your golden fruit
you stink rich man with your golden tooth
with golden teeth inside our head
guilty fruit, ripe and dead
with guilty teeth inside your head
***
GENTLEMAN CALLER
Gentleman caller, why have you come?
man of a moth, I have called here to know
wings touch your mouth, alight on your lips
flutter down to me, I rest on the earth
wing seems to flap, beat with my pulse
moth has no mouth, it emerges without
lives just to mate, rhythmic perfume
I am ornate, please accept my gift
White Witch your long wings will cover my hate
rhythmic perfume, it lives just to mate
accept my gift, I am ornate
gentleman caller, you've come here too late.
***
Gong Lake
2008, Neptune, Table of the ElementsGREY SHALLOWS
I felt that I must try
to occupy my mind
for a time before
---I felt that I must try
authorities arrived
---to occupy my mind
I took an inventory
---I felt that I must try
of the other items
---to occupy my mind
in the sediment
---I took an inventory
the light at angles and
---I felt that I must try
the motion of the water
---to take an inventory
made it difficult
---I took an inventory
the light---at angles
those limbs---at angles
the light---at angles
those limbs---at angles
Arms, Arms
Legs, Arms
Become exposed
Above the surface below
half above and half
---the light at angles and
half below the surface
---the motion of the water
limbs at broken angle
---the light at angles and
my eye, they caught my eye
---the motion of the water
and the pattern on that jacket
---my eye, they caught my eye
and the water flowing past it
---I felt that I must try
my eye, they caught my eye
---to occupy my mind
my eye, they caught my eye
---the motion of my mind
the light, at angles, the light
those limbs, at angles, those limbs
the light, at angles, the light
those limbs, at angles, those limbs
Arms, Arms
Legs, Arms
Become exposed
Above the surface below
***
PARIS GREEN
my darkening shutters,
old-timey and quaint
Parisian in make,
emerald in paint
my delicate bowels
and gastric pains
I shudder to travel
given my state
my racing heart,
my pallid skin
how did I reach
the state I'm in?
Wallpapering curls,
imperial green
embossed with floral
patterned relief
a noted designer
Parisian print
water spots and mold
have stained it
my cleverly hung
pastorals hide
walls which rot
from inside
WE move like poi-son march-ing slow
-ly MASS-ing our forc-es mass-ing
rats in SEW-ers teem-ing teem-ing
and mass-ing GREEN
decadent landscapes,
arcadian scenes
these lush oils
in gilded frames
these small windows
are my relief
a palliative,
my last retreat
nobly opposed
to this collection
a fine portrait
I'd once commissioned
the flush of my
young visage
behind the scenes,
behind the frames
the peeling paper,
the peeling walls
behind the walls
those scampering forces
I hear them creeping
and marching in droves
up from the sewer,
rats in the walls
the sewer army
has special claws
sewer rats with
curling claws
WE move like poi-son march-ing slow
-ly MASS-ing our forc-es mass-ing
rats in SEW-ers teem-ing teem-ing
and mass-ing GREEN
***
YELLOW RIVER
red, yellow, golden and copper
red, yellow, golden and bronze
yellow
yellow
river
yellow
yellow
river
golden flecked at sunset
shimmering
did you glimpse the
bronze giant
lurking
beneath the surface
twisting
and flickering
flickering
and twisting
with his long arms
and his long golden tongue
his amber eyes
his angry eyes
his amber eyes
his angry eyes
looking up from
beneath the
yellow
yellow
river
yellow
yellow
river
yellow
yellow
river
yellow
yellow
river
***
BLACK TIDE
we siphoned the dark from the night sky
we siphoned the dark from the night
because it's what we like
we siphoned the dark from the night
to make our black tide
we siphoned the dark from the night
with our oily fingers and our inky wishes
we've sealed ourselves away from the fish
with our searching lips
with our inky black lips and a long rubber hose
pulling and sucking, making it flow
we siphoned the dark from the night
hairless things with rubbery skin
pulling and sucking, pulling-sucking again
we swallowed the night and we spit at the shore
we swallowed the night and we spit
to make our black tide
***
Neptune/OSR split
2007, Neptune and One Second Riot, Distile Records (France)TELL MY PEOPLE TO GO HOME (Part I)
little wires
little live wires
in our ears
hear the ticking
silver needle
ever clicking
tell my people
to go home
the time is nearing
tell my people
to go home
smoke is clearing
tell my people to go home
land's depleted
tell my people to go home
they're not needed
tell my people to go home
they've been cheated
tell my people to go home
two silver rivers
two silver wires
one running current
under the skin
we are believers
and we are liars
silver deterrent
under the skin
***
TELL MY PEOPLE TO GO HOME (Part II)
the dark
young gardener,
pruning,
sneaks a pomegranate,
ripe and sweet,
I see him,
he's a guest here
and he sneaks
a pomegranate
ripe and sweet
a guest here
for six months
a year
the dark,
young gardener,
smooth and hard,
works his pruning shears,
long and sharp,
ripe and sweet,
and he says,
tell my people
to go home
I miss my
family
I miss my
own land
I've seen him
through the window
pane
it's a pleasure
to watch him
work
the garden,
ripe and sweet
please
stay a little longer
I will make you Queen
see his fingers
how they touch
the leaves
how they handle
the stems
see he knows
all that's green
***
Untitled Improvised Album
2007, Neptune, Golden Lab Records (UK)No lyrics, this is an instrumental record.
Patterns
2006, Neptune, Self-Release (US)/Fortissimo (UK)/Les Potagers Natures (France)THE LIGHTHOUSE
I've always loved sailing
loved being out on the water
embrace the adventure ahead
we fought our veins
to stay in control
electronic systems
flooded below
appetizing meals to get acquainted
with a sextant and dead reckoning
with electronic navigation systems
we fought our veins
to stay in control
electronic systems
flooded below
crashing, I was afraid, determine our position
passing ships, in the groove, situation shifted
came the dark, the boat was lifted dim and distant
we fought our veins
to stay in control
electronic systems
flooded below
the night came off in our stomachs
the only relief crawled into our bunks
and then we saw the light
***
DONKEYSKIN
What did I see? My empty eyes saw only memory
I had watched you, but was blind to blossoming maturity
until a pretty miniature showed me
showed to me your face anew
If you could know the pain I've known
while you in charm and grace have grown
my one, my only pretty daughter
come and share this lonely throne with me
my one, my only pretty daughter
come and share this lonely throne with me
tell me what you wish, you shall have it
call the royal tailor, sew a dress that's fit
the sky, the moon, the sun, these things will clothe you
the sky, the moon, the sun, let me behold you
tell me daughter, do you have another wish?
my donkey's skin? but who has put you to it?
what do I care, this gold is shit, you shall have your wish
I will skin my banker for you
***
EQUESTRIAN PHANTASY
measuring prevention
by the ounce
good penmanship
and good intentions
to renounce
two fingers are
long legs
seen through a glass
from a stool that new my ass
two fingers that new my ass
and a pen
a fancy Parker ball-point
nice pen-
manship
sugar
and corn syrup
in a stirrup, in a saddle
with a whip that knew my ass
and knew these
long legs
at a gallop pal, at a gallop
nice horse-
manship
ride, ride, ride, ride
take a journey on the inside
***
FOURTEEN PLEASURES
a man
or his goods
are consumed
by flame
and the law
will respond
by prescribing
pain
a man or his goods are consumed by flame
and the law will respond by dispensing pain
in legislating pleasure for the common rule
the only tool of the law is inflicting pain
these simple pleasures in number fourteen
compound in value by extending their reach
these simple pains are only twelve
compounding harm as they touch us each
for money
for money you gratify
a man's hatred by putting to death
his adversary
for money you plough his field
you rob a man, he prosecutes you
out of resentment you set upon him
and hang him with your own hands
a man
or his goods
are consumed
by flame
by pleasure
by pain
***
KAGUYA
the mouse with
two mothers
they call her
Kaguya
with sutures
and rinses
no need for
charmed princes
conception
synthetic
her wishes
prophetic
Kaguya
mouse princess
***
THE PENETRATING GAZE
like drinking chalk
while they were watching
eyes were around him
it made him nervous
seeing the barium
passing through his skin
tracing a hallway
connecting his mouth and
conjoining intestine
now he was nervous
eyes were inside him
imaging systems
looked right inside him
physicians looked through him
saw right inside him
he felt uneasy
this was not easy
now they would probe him
in through the out door
hospital gown left
open the back door
fingers and latex
moisten the entrance
eyes right inside him
prehensile vision
tentacular eyes are
inside his business
a history of cancer
inside the family
it's never too early
advanced diagnostic
eye crystallizes
conditions within him
it's fiberoptic
the eye on this snake, it's
the eye of science
snakes slither in and
snakes slither out
snakes slither out from
mouth and ass hole
into the earth and
down through a mouse hole
a garden of mice and
worms inside him
a luncheon for snakes
penetrating inside him
mechanical snake with
ruby red eye
crystallizes the vision
of physicians inside
***
Intimate Lightning
2004, Neptune, Mister Records/100% BreakfastTINY CONDUCTOR
you have shown me inches of disrespect
and this I can't
I cannot forget
I think I can, I think I
I know I can, I think I
my body is entirely made out of shit
my mind is immune to it
I plan to retire from the public eye
right after my mega-hit
my hobby's a model train wreck suicide
the tiny conductor was super high
his desire nested up with pubic lice
why didn't they test him?
even on surveillance screens
these tiny, little tracks are seen
my HO scale destiny
is in the land of make believe
***
MISTY
it's misty I'm floating my wrists
red, red kisses on my wrists and I'm drifting
I'm drifting into traffic and I'm laughing
because I'll miss work today
anyway its misty my wrists
red lips parting dripping kisses from my wrists
I'm drifting from the sidewalk and
red red it's misty it's
I can't operate under these conditions
listen rush hour is a river
and I guess I'll miss her when it's
it's misty I remember it's misty it's
it's a fantasy that possesses me
on the way to work way to work to lie
to lie broken and red on the blacktop
it's an impact and it's a heartstop
just beyond the crosswalk crosswalk
I can't do it
***
A LITTLE SPIDER
so many little birds have landed on this line
they'll eat up a little spider, all mine!
and underneath the feet of each little bird
a thin layer of insulation, have you heard?
can they feel it in their hollow bones?
yeah, they know
in Tokyo she's smoking and she's practicing her EnglishIt feels like spiders inside my lungs, anybody can teach this language
I thought about having a baby, but I'm glad that I didn't
not yet.
so many little birds are scattered overhead
***
SILVER PLANETS
silver
planets
on the
ceiling
silver-silver
planets
up above me
in the atmosphere
silver-silver
can they see me
in the dressing
room?
Galileo
Galilei
silver
planet
on the
ceiling
silver-silver
planets
up above me
in the dressing room
can they see me
with what I take from the rack
I seldom put it
back
Galileo
Galilei
can you see me
in the dressing room
with
the ladies'
lingerie?
***
AT THE PINK PONY
Starlight is
the one with yellow hair
pink skin, pink
where she has no hair
Sweetheart is
very, very white
with pink hair, pink
watch her dance tonight
skin flicks and sports hits
at the Pink Pony
six foot city limit ordinance...forget about it
twenty dollar lap dance
you can use plastic
tomorrow
tomorrow
tomorrow, Starlight
tomorrow, Sweetheart
tomorrow
tomorrow we bring these towers down
***
IN THIS HEMISPHERE
don't look at me with
those hospital eyes
don't look at me, don't give me
your diagnoses
my cure is a text book case
I can take it
I can make my blood
(I can make my blood)
I can make my blood
stop
I'm building tiny igloos
underneath my skin
I've got to dig in, I've got to dig in
I've got to save one of everything
they've got so many words for snow
siko-siko-siko
one half of the icy skies
don't look at me, don't look
a slow I.V. drip
this line is the horizon (siko-siko-siko-siko)
it's a blood line, frozen (siko-siko-siko-siko)
it's a house made out of snow (siko-siko-siko-siko)
this saline is cold (siko-siko-siko-siko)
his teeth were crystal thin
and I thought I could love him
each word he spoke I froze
beneath my skin
***
A CAR IS A WEAPON
the children, consenting
my conscience unrelenting
a car is a weapon
please send them straight to heaven
the highway is bending
what's broke will not be mending
this auto is sending
us to a grisly ending
***
JEREMY BENTHAM
Jeremy Bentham, why is your body still on display?
given to science, dissected by colleagues at the end of your days
Jeremy Bentham, why does your body still sit behind glass?
is it the inversion of the panoptic?
I did not speak
I am invisible
Ill let the prison talk
I hear its' syllables
become me come to me become
me come to me become me come
auto-policing, induced by the architecture (is someone watching?)
when I'm gone, that my colleagues dissect me is my final request
***
THE GILDED BOMB
we are quietly
gilding a bomb
watching the flip
of the dragon's
tail
the clicking sound
of the Geiger
the hissing
of snakes
the shrill
whistle
of that baby
dropping
we're packing
a kiss
for tomorrow
a picture of
Rita Hayworth,
sailing down
to ground zero
beneath the heel of Saint George
the scaly body of sin
is this the dragon you knew?
did you slip, did you let it in
listen, Louis Slotin did you tickle,
did you tickle that dragon's tail?
Lucky Dragon, bravo, Lucky Dragon
there were nine to set sail
eight surviving the sickness came home
the shifting wind was the cause
an act of war now resembles
an act of god
***
Ballet of Process
2002, Neptune, Mister Records/100% BreakfastEROSION
erosion
erosion
it's just a word that I use to describe
when I wake up sweating in the middle of the night
maybe you could take it all back, take it all back
everything that you said to me in the night
erosion
erosion
erosion
erosion
maybe you could put it all put, put it all out
like a cigarette on the back of my hand now
maybe you could take it all back,
everything that you said to me in the night
maybe you could cut it all out with a long, thin knife
erosion
erosion
***
CHOLESTEROL
please make me thin, so thin again
cholesterol collects inside
inside us all
can we control our will to hide?
I will not move to catch their eyes
when we begin to shrink like stars
we may be thin, but it's all ours
this photograph when I was young
let it dissolve beneath my tongue
***
MURDER COUTURE
murder couture, murder couture
execution style: what does that mean?
is it the new style, new style, new style in a magazine?
is it the language of the journalist
one shot to the back of the head; you just can't miss
is it the language that binds my wrists?
one shot to the back of the head; it's a fashion hit
it's in the language. take a fashion tip
execution style. one shot from a clip
execution style
is it the new style, new style, new style in a magazine?
***
THE WATERGLASS
falling from my hand,
the waterglass
there's a memory of a car crash
in the past
memory's a flash, freeze, flash
there's a line
there's a line from my hand
to the floor
and in my mind the car door
a wave of glass
crashing over Gabe, my passenger
there's a line from my hand
to the floor
and in between,
the waterglass
falling falling, water water
falling falling, water water
here comes the floor
here comes, here comes the floor
***
LUXURY
who pays for this luxury?
it sure as hell isn't me
fill my pockets with what I see
everything I need
fill these sockets with love for me
kisses on all my holes
dissolve yourself in history
give up these eyes to see
***
I'M AFRAID OF MY HANDS
well, I'm afraid of my hands
do you understand?
because I know where they have been
because they have their own plans
put them in a jar
put them in a jar without germs
an experiment
a little test that can confirm
why I'm afraid, afraid, afraid of my hands
I'm afraid of my hands
it's in the palm of my hand
they give it all away
with overactive sweat glands
they finger things
they finger things that I don't want
don't touch, don't touch, don't feel
seal up that jar
I'm afraid, afraid, afraid of my hands
I'm afraid of my hands
oh yeah, get it, got it...good.
***
Studio Recordings, May MCMXCVII
1999, Neptune, Archenemy RecordsSPONGE ENVY
you know that I worship
water that you bathe in
bathe your body in
takes away your sins
you know that I envy
sponge between your toes
wish I could help you clean
but dirt it always shows
you know that I want
want to pump your heart
want to lick your tongue
you know that I need
need to clean inside me
if I were only water
you could swallow me and hide me!
worship
water
worship
sins!
envy
envy
clean
dirt!
want
want
clean!
need
clean
water
***
WHEN I'M ALONE
When I'm alone and I'm all alone
when I'm alone and no one's around
I take out my gun and I clean out the barrel
I clean out the bullets and I listen for sounds
when I'm alone and I'm all alone
when I'm alone and no one's around
I take out my gun and I clean out the barrel
I take off my clothes and I act like a clown
when I'm alone and I'm all alone
when I'm alone and baby, you're not around
I take off my clothes and I sit and I stare
I stare at the walls and I listen for sounds
when I'm alone and I'm all alone
when I'm alone and you're not around
I take off my clothes 'cause there's something inside of me
something with claws and it is crawling around
***
NEW
I'm not a slut
I'm not a cad
gonna take a shower
with a brillo pad
gonna get real clean
remove my skin
'till I get that sheen
then I'll start again
new
new
new!
***
AM I DEAD YET?
know I fucked up maybe once maybe twice maybe
know I fucked up guess a couple of times
ask myself this, I say, kid have you gone crazy?
ask myself this, were you our of your mind?
I just want to know
I just want to know
I just want to know
I just want to know
am I dead yet?
am I dead yet?
am I dead yet?
am I dead yet?
***
JSS at Le Sonic, Lyon, France, 2018
photo by Hazam