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Laying Low

by Chris Ballew

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1.
LAYING LOW sound wave smashing everything sound wave enjoy the ride until it stops I wonder if it will stop flying fast and high together flying 'till we stall out and we drop gravity makes us drop I've gone as high as I can go now I'm laying low climbing through the clouds I'm always climbing through the blue into the void the ceiling has been destroyed sunday slides into another sunday now I'm folded up and tired light another useless fire I've gone as high as I can go now I'm laying low low low low low low neutral what a joy to be in neutral slip into a deep reverse bubbles are born to burst I've gone as high as I can go I've gone as high as I can go I've gone as high as I can go now I'm laying low
2.
Atomic Haze 03:50
ATOMIC HAZE I can barely see you out of phase blink if you can hear me through the maze shimmering reflections hard to touch burning sensations hurt too much reaching through the atomic haze reaching through the atomic haze stranded here in a daze for days reaching through reaching through I can hardly hear you when you shout smile if you can see me and pull me out beautiful distortion falls in sheets yelling through the jello glistening if I can't feel you are you gone? clocks are tick tocking on and on send me all the signals at the same time how else can I find you and make you mine?
3.
YOUR WARM STAR I can feel love from your warm star I've never met you but I've stood beside you so here we are I've never touched you but I've felt you with me so here we are our eyes have never met but we share a vision so here we are you let me ask you what I already know so here we are I can feel love from your warm star I've never seen you but I have seen you so here we are you hold my soul through the television so here we are I look through you but never through you so here we are you've always been aware that I am aware so I can feel love from your warm star
4.
LITTLE BY LITTLE I negotiate freedom I sever the thread detach from the tedium I can see myself dead (little by little) I'll calm the hooligans (little by little) they'll change their tune (little by little) I am the fool again (little by little) that's why I'm screwed my love gets amplified fear flees the scene all the gods feel glorified they got the new vaccine (little by little) intentions will crumble (little by little) when the plot is erased (little by little) defenders will fumble (little by little) when they feel unsafe I refresh my senses the new reality this cage is senseless I gotta pay to be free (little by little) I disrupt all the patterns (little by little) throw out the map (little by little) I don't ask for permission (little by little) don't really give a crap light up the dark tunnel for my getaway I see my troubles double during my great escape (little by little) I draw these imperfect circles (little by little) I say yes to the cake (little by little) got good advice from Steve Urkle (little by little) I will forget my mistake I wanna feel the sensation to deny the cheater I wanna comfort my devils in my security theater (little by little) I keep finding all the land mines (little by little) left over from the fight (little by little) I keep tearing up prescriptions (little by little) for the perfect life little by little
5.
SPLINTER OF A SLIVER
 dangerous and beautiful we very nearly died you left a splinter of a sliver inside delicate and powerful wit sharp as a knife you left a splinter of a sliver inside voluptuous and combustible you set my house on fire you left a sliver of a splinter inside inside totally confused and let down by the the high you left a splinter of a sliver inside underwater moonlight took me by surprise you left a sliver of a splinter inside smashed up my guitar venom in your eyes you left a splinter of a sliver inside showed me how to cut the strings you helped me harmonize you left a sliver of a splinter inside inside
6.
In The Sun 03:40
IN THE SUN if you need me I'll be in the sun when you want me I'll be in the sun if you miss me I'll be in the sun when you see me see me in the sun I'm not talking about at the beach I'm not talking about a long vacation I'm not talking about hawaiian sand I'm not talking about recreation I'm talking about particle string I'm talking about quantum love I'm talking about relativity I'm talking about fire up above I'm not talking about lyin' out I'm not talking about relaxation I'm not talking about spacing out I'm not talking about radiation I'm talking about two distant cells I'm talking about small molecules I'm talking about one gets a jolt I'm talking about the other one feels
7.
Now I See 03:09
NOW I SEE now I see you now I see you now you see me now you see me now I see you now I see you please believe me now I see when I was alone I thought I'd never fine a home then I found your home and lo and behold we're not alone when I was alone I could not see you in the smoke then I cleared the smoke and lo and behold we're not alone when I was alone all I could feel was skin and bones erase the skin and bones and lo and behold we're not alone when I was alone my melody was just one note harmonize those notes and lo and behold we're not alone now I see now I see
8.
GO BACK TO ZERO everybody knows the baby is free will I get to see what it sees? will I get to see what it sees? behind those giant eyes is a brain dismantling you and me dismantling you and me sometimes the darkness wants to stay and all I see is diminishing light diminishing light that makes me want to fade to grey and that would be alright that would be alright sometimes I wanna go back to zero turn on that extra eye in my heart I can see through everything I can see through everything I just might fall completely apart when you clip my delicate wing when you clip my delicate wing I know it crushes up the bright day when you got no love in your life when you got no love in your life sometimes I want to throw it away and crawl back up inside and crawl back up inside
9.
SKELETONS ARE STARS in the dark inside of us where I hope no light goes can you see our skeletons run away as we doze wake up and feel the buzz marrow electrified wake up and feel the fuzz wake and you will find skeletons are stars skeletons are stars why bother you may decide why feel sensation why hide what's hard to find an undone connection a love objectified shallow vibration reverse and visualize this invitation
10.
NEW TRANSMISSION easy now easy now don't try to know what you do not know picture a flame on high burning up the fear inside take a moment or take along time it's up to you there's no wrong or right short circuit your brain hole and I will fill you up with light I'm gettin' a new transmission fuzzy but clear I'm gettin' a new transmission in my inner ear I'm gettin' a new transmission whispering low I'm gettin' a new transmission on my soul radio hey hey it's ok you can navigate home with the stars in your bones you got a body for fun but you're not the only one loosing days in a musical void goofing off with a golden toy unplug and unwind and I won't be far behind woah woah take it slow you may fail and loose the flow I know I gave you quite a scare it doesn't mean that I do not care all the pain is blue sky all the joy fades in time now I'm gonna go and leave you alone
11.
MISSING A PIECE in a muffled explosion (in a muffled explosion) I shatter my option (I shatter my option) on and on like a fractal (on and on like a fractal) kaleidoscopic and fragile (kaleidoscopic and fragile) squinting at the target (squinting at the target) right back where I started (right back where I started) is this how I've come to be (is this how I've come to be) broken from the factory (broken from the factory) I'm missing a piece of my peace of mind I'm missing a piece of my peace of mind I'm missing a piece of my peace of mind I'm missing a piece heaven is in a parallel (heaven is in a parallel) universe in a bombshell (universe in a bombshell) put the puzzle away for now( put the puzzle away for now) even up with the odd man out (even up with the odd man out) I am all out of order (I am all out of order) so I start with the border (so I start with the border) felling hungry and incomplete (felling hungry and incomplete) have you seen the rest of me? (have you seen the rest of me?)
12.
Backbone 03:05
BACKBONE when the spotlight melts you into a pool on the stage I'll be your backbone if you feel like everything beautiful cracks and fades I'll be your backbone when you give and you give and you give and it all disappears I'll be your backbone if your mood is doom every morning and the clouds won't clear I'll be your backbone I'll be your backbone I'll be your backbone I'll be your backbone when you can not smash the void and the sunset is brown I'll be your backbone if the radio plays your song with the volume down I'll be your backbone when your heart and your mind refuse to sing a duet I'll be your backbone if you feel like you're caught in a trap that you yourself set I'll be your backbone I'll be your backbone I'll be your backbone I'll be your backbone when you feel a wave of fear that's brighter than day if your knees are buckling under and you might give way when it seems like everything colorful turns to grey if you wobble when you try your best to stand up straight I'll be your backbone I'll be your backbone I'll be your backbone I'll be your backbone
13.
STEP AFTER STEP unfold the map and it disintegrates (step after step) carve out a trip and it all fades (step after step) project a plan and it eliminates (step after step) the message coming through the haze (step after step) no clear decision is ever made (step after step) no route that time cannot erase (step after step) all the charts are washed away (step after step) follow the creases in my face (step after step) in my fear there is clarity (step after step) and in my hope there is waste (step after step) and every dream is a parody (step after step) of that heavenly place (step after step) all I can do is take (step after step) all I can do (step after step) all I can do is take (step after step) all I can do (step after step) (step after step) (step after step) (step after step) (step after step) all I can do is take all I can do all I can do is take all I can do all I can do is take (step after step) all I can do (step after step) all I can do is take (step after step)
14.
TROUBLES BEHIND time never brought me this far never got me this close never let me break the chain and throw away my watch me transfer power to my problems that I thought I could vaporize with my supersonic embryonic light every match in the book and maybe I will not burn all the graveyards I can find down to the ground turns to mud in a storm hiding in the basement of a funeral home hiding from the wind that only wants to flatten life and blow my fragile mind over matter is fine if you have that similar sort of specific kind of mind your manners and try to get the new high score watch my bank account soar yet I thirst for more or less or good or bad dismantled and modified behind the curtain I can commodify all of my love should be easy and free like climbing a tree going up is so much easier than coming down beat heart on a cardiogram I tried to mix jazz and glam but the drum beat I made broke all but nine of my toes have been stepped on and bruised I just wanna cut loose and leave all my troubles behind all my troubles behind

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Written, recorded, performed and produced by Chris Ballew
Co-produced by Pete Droge and Mark Heberlein

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released July 14, 2023

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Chris Ballew Seattle, Washington

Chris Ballew is the songwriter and lead singer of the Seattle rock 'n' roll band The Presidents of the United States of America. For 10 years Chris made music for 0 to 5-year-olds and their parents as Caspar Babypants. Now chris makes fuzzy psychedelic meditative fun loopy music for grown-up brains to chill out and do tiny dances and take naps to. ... more

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