Get all 22 Baba Brinkman releases available on Bandcamp and save 40%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Rapsode, Bright Future, See From Space, The Rap Guide to Consciousness, The Rap Guide to Climate Chaos, The Rap Guide to Religion, The Rap Guide to Medicine, The Rap Guide to Wilderness, and 14 more.
Excludes subscriber-only releases.
1. |
||||
The Art of Seduction
Won’t you please come dance with me; I’ll take you to a fantasy
Land, and play the Tambourine Man, see
That’s the meanin’ of MC; we take you to the Jamboree
Move the crowd, make 'em clap and sing
I might hold hands and write poems to romance the beat
But I’m just lookin’ for my chance to skeet
The art of seduction is my lyrical function
With just the right pressure applied
Plus the subtle suction; mutually assured destruction
Usually comes from two suicidal sides chasin’ the little death
Makin’ the benefits equally distributed; I’m feelin’ crazy generous
I’m givin’ a little bit; you’re takin’ a little bit
And that’s the story of the stork makin’ a little kid
We’re not finished yet, though; this is just the intro
The slow tyin’ of both your wrists to the bed-posts
I might let you get close, but I’ll never let you slip
Over the edge of the precipice, unless you twist
Your limbs into pretzel sticks as if possessed; it’s just
How I get you all ready for the exorcist
Writhing in a web of your weaving
I'll be begging for some release
Either tie me up and torture and tease me
Until I'm pleased, or set me free
It’s the lull that anticipates the next great crescendo
The slow hesitation as I penetrate the tempo
Inseminate the instrumental with the lingo
Disseminate the info to make extra kinfolk
And get every listener wetter than a Diplo-
Dochus; so get your sweaty hands out your pockets
Unless you’ve got to keep them occupied to get off; it’s
Nothin’ to be ashamed of, a little game of pocket pool
A little stimulation of your own personal molecules
But what I’m out to do though is save you from your solitude
It’s really nothin’; that’s all you’ve got to lose
It’s the rap mad professor takin’ back your lack of pleasure
And replacin’ half-measures with some jackrabbit exercises
Surprisin’ mattress impact testers
‘Cause every threshold they invent is bad guesswork
Sack the fact-checkers for the limits they be makin’ up
When I’m makin’ love there ain’t records to break enough
Space I’m takin’ up vibrates with the drums
So I’m a slave to the funk, and you’re my co-inhabitant
I tried to amputate it but it kept growin’ back again
You know what happens then: extreme insistence
Resistance just seems to increase persistence
For instance, I’ve got the steam for the pistons
And if you’re listening then you can’t keep your distance
‘Cause I’m already makin’ deep imprints
With my fingertips in your neo-cortex
Like a doctor who delivers a fetus with forceps
I’ve got a grip that lets you just reach to vortex
As sensory deprivation gets treated with raw sex
Or its lyrical equivalent, so here I go, I’m givin’ in
To every sinful sensation I’ve ever been tempted with
So share a pillow with me in blissful emptiness
Writhing in a web of your weaving
I'll be begging for some release
Either tie me up and torture and tease me
Until I'm pleased, or set me free
|
||||
2. |
||||
The Road Northwest
Dance, dance, dance down the road
Observe the ancient code
Of rhythm and flow
I've been all across the map, but I'm always going back
To the Pacific Northwest, 'cause that's where I rest at
Plus, sometimes I soberly ask myself
What's my backup plan in case of global collapse?
And I feel, it's not an over reaction
Hell no
Imagine a total absence of authority
It's happened many times in the past historically
With survivors fighting over scraps and acting horribly
Maybe I shouldn't believe Cormack McCarthy
But what's your plan to go back to Kansas, Dorothy?
When the grocery stores close their doors, but it isn't a civil war
Just millions of poor civilians beginning to starve
With no energy sources
Could you pack your things and go live in the forest?
Until the public trust wasn't so touch and go
Could you provide for a tribe of 25 or so?
You better find a place where the wild mushrooms grow
Where bucks and does graze on the side of the roads
That sounds like a place that I grew up in, though
As anybody in British Columbia knows
West Coast!
The road Northwest
On the road
Observe the ancient code
Of rhythm and flow
Dance, dance, dance down the road
But never let them steal your soul
Go East
And you'll find civilizations increasingly ancient
Expansive land masses
Palaces built on the ruins of sandcastles
Layer after layer of man's trappings
Go West
And you'll meet the limits of human advances
Buildings get increasingly ramshackle
With summers of abundance and winters of avalanches
Wilderness that hits you right in the Adam's Apple
Yeah, it's magical, a survivalist's dream
With land-locked salmon spawning up wide crystal streams
And forest as far as the eye can see
Even when you climb to the peak of the highest tree
Am I making sense? All I'm saying is 'Yes!'
There's no place on this planet like the Canadian West
And when climate change hits
Me and my people might just make a nest
And watch as civilization ends
The road Northwest
On the road
Observe the ancient code
Of rhythm and flow
Dance, dance, dance down the road
But never let them steal your soul
Dance when you're broken, dance to atone
Dance with your blood and dance with your bone
Dance in the morning and in the afternoon
Underneath the blazing sun, underneath the shining moon
Dance for your father and for your son
Dance for your momma 'til your sins are gone
Dance for the dinosaurs who died long ago
Dance for the leprechauns with their hidden gold
But if you wanna steal it then you can't be slow
Look, there's a rainbow, that's your road
The Road Northwest
|
||||
3. |
||||
A Buck and Change
I seen a lot of people caught up in a sea of greed and profit
Feedin’ off of weakness like it’s nothin’ strange
Sippin’ on a gin and tonic thinking they’re invincible
And when it bottoms out they’re worth a buck and change
I saw a banker groveling like a beggar on TV
Offering a sovereign nation his solemn apology
For trading on their freedom and treating it irresponsibly
And all the people watched him with their wallets on E
And with their jobs disappearing like they were lost in a dream
And his face was a combination of withdrawal and need
And alienation, he got a taste for autonomy
And deregulated trading based on foreign policy
Just a player in the intoxication economy
Speculating away with a cadre of freaks
And chasing the promise of personal liberation constantly
And following it into a place of bottomless greed
And now this banker was on his knees, begging the people watching
Not to take away his Audi keys, not to make him pay
For administrating his office in a state of unconscious sleep
But the people were angry, and they hated hypocrisy
And instead of naked honesty, the banker was making
Himself out to be a great martyr like St. Augustine
And they wondered, how did this monster get off his leash?
We should make some changes to this game in which we all compete
But some of them were into watching situation comedies
Instead of taking politics to the streets, they couldn’t see
That watchin’ the play of shadows on the walls of a cave is obsolete
So the changes weren’t made and the banker walked free
I seen a lot of people caught up in a sea of greed and profit
Feedin’ off of weakness like it’s nothin’ strange
Sippin’ on a gin and tonic thinking they’re invincible
And when it bottoms out they’re worth a buck and change
I’ve been crackin’ jokes and havin’ loads of plans but no cash
I’m known for passin’ notes in class and goin’ back to old Cass-
Anova tactics holdin’ hands and poems and that’s my only passion
So my rap is hope in action; no relaxin’ though, I’m smashin’
Holes fast in open caskets, slow dancin’ over scattered
Broken glass; I’m cold molasses; no fashion moguls have
My clothes; I’m happy sowin’ patches, I don’t have a home; I’d rather
Roam the map with no attachments; so I’m a laughin’ nomad
Though I travel lonely paths and roads that average joes can’t
I won’t collapse and go flaccid; no chance; it won’t happen
Only after no challenge known to man goes unmastered
Only after more than half my bones are fractured; only passive
Goats and cattle go to pasture; no one asked for prose; they asked
For smokin’ raps like solar flashes flowin’ past the globe’s axis
So I task my overactive dome with matchin’ no one’s standards
And only hatchin’ poems that have the motions of explosive gasses
I seen a lot of people caught up in a sea of greed and profit
Feedin’ off of weakness like it’s nothin’ strange
Sippin’ on a gin and tonic thinking they’re invincible
And when it bottoms out they’re worth a buck and change
|
||||
4. |
Paraphrase
03:47
|
|||
Paraphrase
Women love me; I like to party
I’m makin’ money come just by talking
And you can’t stop me if you’ve got a problem
With my carefree ways
Women want me, not just my body
I live it up ‘cause I came from nothing
And you can’t stop me, not with an army
That’s my paraphrase
So why you wanna hate on me huh?
Cause I occasionally play a little make believe?
So? You can’t take leaps patiently
You’ve gotta fake it ‘til you make to the place to be
You wanna learn how to dance by watching
From the sidelines all night long? Not a chance
Balls to the wall with a lot of incompetence
Involved is just common sense
So come on, little mouse, dive in!
Struggle ‘til the cream that you've been strivin’
To churn into butter with your butterfly swim
Turns into something you can thrive in
I’ve been entrepreneurial
Long enough to know what every broke musician
In Vancouver knows: sometimes it helps
To be self-delusional, ‘cause you can go…
Women love me; I like to party
I’m makin’ money come just by talking
And you can’t stop me if you’ve got a problem
With my carefree ways
Women want me, not just my body
I live it up ‘cause I came from nothing
And you can’t stop me, not with an army
That’s my paraphrase
So what are you fakin’ huh? Oooh
Let me guess, when you’re makin’ love is it
Somebody else’s face that you’re thinkin’ of?
Or, wait, are you finances safe enough?
Did you buy a better car on your credit card
Instead of stickin’ that little bit extra in a jar?
Just to show the critics that, yes, you’re livin’ large
With the recession and all; just cover it up
With a bit less for dinner; you’re not like the rest
Your perception is different; you know the smart
Money bets on a winner, and sometimes you’ve gotta talk
Before you get to deliver, and hey, what do you know?
Studies show that everybody
Finds your scent more attractive after you’ve just
Had sex, so if you’re tryin’ to pull
Might I suggest a little Eau de Nastiness
Women love me; I like to party
I’m makin’ money come just by talking
And you can’t stop me if you’ve got a problem
With my carefree ways
Women want me, not just my body
I live it up ‘cause I came from nothing
And you can’t stop me, not with an army
That’s my paraphrase
Nobody wants to listen to paraphrase
Why not? Hmm, ‘cause they’re afraid
We’ll find out they’re broke and their marriage is fake
But that’s the American way
It’s just a game, and everybody plays it
Academics to intellectual vagrants
Acting like the ivory temple is sacred
When, guess what? The Emperor’s naked!
I’ve heard a few hippies try to say they can opt out
Turn on, tune in, and cop out
But me I’d rather ride around town with the top down
And paraphrase the whole hip-hop sound
So go ahead, show some bravado
Crack a bottle; better yet, write a novel
But never forget that this time is borrowed
And you’re gonna pay it back tomorrow
Women love me; I like to party
I’m makin’ money come just by talking
And you can’t stop me if you’ve got a problem
With my carefree ways
Women want me, not just my body
I live it up ‘cause I came from nothing
And you can’t stop me, not with an army
That’s my paraphrase
|
||||
5. |
Conversation Civilized
03:00
|
|||
Conversation Civilized
Okay, let’s open up this can of worms
What’s a Caucasian from Canada doin’ rappin'?
That’s damn absurd!
Maybe we should rephrase the question
And switch up the races and see if it even changes the message
It’s all stereotypes but hey, maybe you’re right
And maybe Asian people shouldn’t play the bagpipes
And Scandinavians shouldn’t Salsa dance
Foreign flavours should be banned from the South of France
Let’s keep the art forms and groups of humans separate
What’s up with all these Eastern Europeans Sumo wrestlin’?
But at the risk of offering a simple solution
Let’s just skip the racial prejudice and stick to basic execution
‘Cause Caucasians accomplished at rappin’ isn’t half as
Impressive as half the shit you never thought would’ve happened
So can we please rock the mic now?
Or is it still an issue even with Barack in the White House?
Right
So if a black kid with a book isn’t acting white
Then what's a white kid acting like every time he grabs the mic?
I’ll tell it the same to every person I meet
Hip-hop was birthed in the streets, but it’s just words and beat
It’s a game we all get to play just like politics
Just like science, or like sports, or like arguments
And integration is breakin’ the racial barriers down
With innovations from different areas split to various styles
But only the South Bronx really invented the game
And then when the fame spread that’s when the benefits came
But every CD sold was a seed bein’ sowed
From MCs speakin’ Creole to Swedes with the sweetest flows
And racial prejudice is just narrow hypocrisy
It has no place in a modern state of meritocracy
At least that’s the belief by which we live our lives
Just keepin’ our minds open and the conversation civilized
|
||||
6. |
||||
Gutter Green
It's getting kinda critical it might just even be the end
So plant a seed and let it grow and turn the gutter green again
How does it feel now?
Feelings passing through the day
That their soul sacredly laid down
And all I gotta say is let the walls fall down
We came to this planet like an asteroid, but not from an intergalactic void
Just a bunch of monkeys with a knack for coitus
Makin' noise, and hangin' like bad boys
But the impact, damn was it ever intense
We haven't figured out how to measure it yet
But it's time to accept it and let it sink in
We're the extinction level event
So get ready for 10 billion live earthlings
With fires burning striving and thirsting
10 Million species vying for the nursery
And now it's bye, bye, bye reversing
But life is an act of force
And over extraction is a crash course
But it seems like people just ask for it
So let's see if we can go back to the forest
How does it feel now?
Feelings passing through the day
That their soul sacredly laid down
And all I gotta say is let the walls fall down
Yeah let it fall down
Let it fall down
Let them all fall down
Now listen, this ain't about quittin'
It's about cleaning house, not demolition
It's about how it is and how it could be different
It's a civilization salvage mission
So if you're down with us then step back
And extract yourself from the progress track
'Cause it doesn't take complex math
It just takes plants growin' in the cracks of the concrete
And it takes Aaron's voice to make the song sweet
And Tom Caruana with the bomb beat
And plus Lin G to make it complete
See? It ain't all about me
Nah, it's an eco-system
That's got your body movin' to the freaky rhythm
And that's how we gotta make each decision
Seein' how it affects all the creatures livin'
How does it feel now?
Feelings passing through the day
That their soul sacredly laid down
And all I gotta say is let the walls fall down
Yeah let it fall down
Let it fall down
Let them all fall down
All I know is that I'm human
Who am I to say what's true and what's false?
But when I watch the city fumin'
I can't help but help it fall
How does it feel now?
Feelings passing through the day
That their soul sacredly laid down
And all I gotta say is let the walls fall down
|
||||
7. |
Do or Die
04:12
|
|||
Do or Die
Automatic rifle in my hands and I hold it steady
Got the landing boats, Land-Rovers, and the soldiers ready
No one really knows the plan, no one told us anything
They just told us we’d be home in twenty or thirty weeks
And people in the streets would throw confetti
I’m totally sweating; my nerves are just a little bit
Tense; I confess, I’m full of adrenaline
I stick my head out the window and pull it in again
I can’t see shit; it’s like the ocean is infinite
But somewhere ahead of us is an island fortress
Defended by five battalions of the tyrants’ forces
And the sergeant told us “Gentlemen, this guy is remorseless
He tears his opponents apart with wild horses
And starves his own people, leaving many a child orphaned
And now he’s plotting to attack us, so we’re gonna try and force him
To surrender his power, and his natural resources”
Ours not to reason why, just to do or die
Suicide mission, crawlin’ through a sewer pipe
A sniper shot him through his eye; I wrote a letter to his wife
To give some meaning to his life, but who am I?
Some people say we shouldn’t even be in this fight
They’re outside lookin’ in though, so it’s easy to snipe
But when you’re on the front lines and there’s no relief in sight
You need to find yourself a decent reason to fight
I’m fighting for the soldiers on either side of me tonight
And none of us give a fuck if our leaders are right
Man some of these grunts can barely even read or write
But you don’t need a PhD to un-sheath a knife
And come to the aid of your brother in arms
We march on for each other under the cluster bombs
We’re just pawns, you can say what you want about us
But I’d like to see you try to play a chess game without us
And even those who criticize the cause of the mission
Claim to support us, but they give us the wrong equipment
That’s why I don’t even try to listen to politicians
I just signed up for this to pay my college tuition
Ours not to reason why, just to do or die
Suicide mission, crawling through a sewer pipe
A sniper shot him through his eye; I wrote a letter to his wife
To give some meaning to his life, but who am I?
My grandfather fought the Nazis in the Dutch militia
He told me: “The chance to fight a just war must’ve missed ya
Too bad no enemy today lives up to Hitler huh?”
The old man’s got a sense of humour – he’s fuckin’ jester
But what’s the measure of whether this is a just cause?
Even at home we’ve got some messed up laws
I got friends in prison ‘cause they like smoking’ up a lot
But they’ve got prescriptions for more potent drugs than pot
I just chalk up my palms and get a grip on my rifle
It’s real insightful when you say that "violence is a cycle"
But someone’s gotta fight those tyrants and psychos
It’s my job tonight, and that’s how life goes
I won’t let one member of my company down
Any second the bow of this boat will start runnin’ aground
And we’ll hear that thundering machine gun sound
So where’re the critics at now to pass their judgment around?
Ours not to reason why, just to do or die
Suicide mission, crawling through a sewer pipe
A sniper shot him through his eye; I wrote a letter to his wife
To give some meaning to his life, but who am I?
|
||||
8. |
Creeper Feat. Tia Brazda
03:30
|
|||
Creeper
She's so understanding, she's so fun at dancing
She giggles at my jokes when no one is laughing
And no one is asking me whether I'm sure
'Cause they've never seen me with a match better than her
And every time she touches me the pleasure just surges
So I'm stuck in a mouse trap and she's a wild cat
Wondering if it's really me she smiles at
With her lips puckering up and it's such a child's act
That says, 'I got a secret', Oh yeah, how's that?
I need some sodium pentathol, make me a potion
Instead of joking and saying this relationship is open
You rock my body with that sea sickness motion
And when I act jealous she gets mad rebellious
And gives me a million reasons to act jealous
Daily temptations got me flippin' like spatulas
I think we both need to confess with the catholics
Curious cats gonna run astray
Don't think you're gonna get away
I won't be fooled by your bad guy's game
No don't think you got me spayed
It's such a vicious cycle cheating and repeating
And she's such a twisted psycho pleading and deceiving
I wish she'd just sip Nyquil, so I could be leaving
She lies still, but I'm still disbelieving
And I find it displeasing so I admit I've been creeping
And she kisses me with teeth that leave my lips bleeding
And it's intriguing, how often we've got back down
That same road, both doing the tomcat prowl
When I come home, she gives me a long black scowl
So we don't have much physical contact now
We don't want that child that we once talked about
We just both want the freedom to keep shopping around
Round and round and round like a carousel
This is how common law marriages fail
Chasin' this tail brings out the dog in me
But there's no keeping a cat home when she's always in heat
Curious cats gonna run astray
Don't think you're gonna get away
I won't be fooled by your bad guy's game
No don't think you got me spayed
|
||||
9. |
||||
Seven Veils
Some of these feminist women want to try to tell me
That the recent resurgence of extreme porno’s
Gonna turn a lot of virgins into Aileen Wuournos
These ivy-league wardens on the female form
Have been sounding sore notes, but they’re really just stressed
‘Cause they’re too repressed to get thrills from jigglin’ breasts
So if you want to write a critical text about feminine
Oppression and subliminal messages and sexual images
Then, just do what you think is best
But when you’re finished with the righteous intellect you might just
Wanna visit with some women who get into burlesque
Who express their feminism in a crinoline dress
And shed their inhibitions by revealin’ some flesh
There’s no emotions closed off, no poppin’ Zoloft
Just pantyhose droppin’ and the takin’ of all clothes off
And shakin’ what you’ve got and showin’ all your poses off
And takin’ the yoke of male domination and throwin’ it off
Along with your robes and recently exposed bras
So don’t tell me there’s no romance in pole dancin’
It’s an optical erogenous zone expansion dammit
It’s the dance of the seven veils, with ruby red nails
But I can’t make heads or tails
Of whether this is meant to impress the males
Or let the females express themselves
I’m feelin’ quite confused by these women who get offended
By the vice and lewdness of the Moulin Rouge
It’s like a righteous Christian pro-lifer’s views
If you’re tryin’ to take away a woman’s right to choose
Whether to get pleasure from men’s eyes on their boobs
And if they really like it and the guys want it too,
Then who are you to say that it isn’t empowering
To make entertainment out of lesbians showering
Together, and oiling each other with ointment?
Are you trying to make a point by souring our enjoyment
Of the spectacle, or by cowering yes-men
And adding specimens to your collection of testicles
In a fishbowl? Tell me yes or no!
I’m an intellectual too, like Cecil Rhodes
I just wanna have my fetishes accepted though
I wanna see feminist academics stripping
In feather boas at my next burlesque show
I wanna see them dirty dancing to my vocals
I wanna see them flirting with me through their bifocals
I’m gonna hold my breath and expect to die hopeful
It’s the dance of the seven veils, with ruby red nails
But I can’t make heads or tails
Of whether this is meant to impress the males
Or let the females express themselves
Oh please oh please express yourself
Never feel like you oppress yourself
Even if it's just to impress the males
Just express yourself, express yourself
|
||||
10. |
||||
Valediction
Your broken heart is not my crime
There's something out there that I've got to find
When I'm in your arms I feel like I've come home
But I gotta keep on rollin' on my own
I wish there was a better way to say this without hurtin’ you
But I know you well enough to know you’re gonna take it personal
Tell me that you’ve heard it before and call me a turncoat
‘Cause I prefer to go from terminal to terminal
And keep searchin’ and roamin’ instead of returning home
But like a turtle, my only home is internal
My life is an open journal and I journey alone
You were the center of my circle at first
But there was more beneath the surface like the words of a poem
I’ve got my own version of eternal devotion
And your emotional nervousness is hurtin’ my growth
So for me uncertainty is all that’s currently known
I wish I could say truthfully that it isn’t you; it’s me
And the newness I seek is just stupidity
In fact, I would say that if I thought you would believe it
If we could mutually agree on a few good reasons to do what we need
To do, and if you could believe that you’re still beautiful to me
Then we could leave without either of us grievin’
You knew that I needed my freedom
And you said you were open to seein’ me leave
When I needed, but now I can see you were only deceivin’ me
Dreamin’ of keepin’ me, and now you accuse me of treason?
I told you the truth and you refused to believe me
So now how have you been mistreated?
Your broken heart is not my crime
There's something out there that I've got to find
When I'm in your arms I feel like I've come home
But I gotta keep on rollin' on my own
So close the door, you know I gotta do it right
One last time, before we say goodnight
It's only life, it's only life darling
But then again, who knows the way are heart' supposed to go
|
||||
11. |
||||
Apocalyptic Utopian Dreams in the Western Wilderness
I dreamed I was a butterfly, having a dream
I was a man having a dream I was a butterfly
So what am I? I’m a butterfly man
Like Aaron Nazrul, or maybe a pterodactyl
My mental state is very adaptable
I dreamed of a light in the sky and everybody
Was running from it terrified and trying to hide
Except some people had a light in their eyes
Like “Yes the apocalypse, now it’s our time”
And they were like parasites, and predators, with nothing
But lust and violence on their bloody minds
But where’s my tribe? Where’s my sister and my
Cousins and, wait, did my brother survive?
I find them in a secret village filled with people
Singing about civilization and how we killed it
Like “it’s time to destroy and rebuild it”
“It’s time to destroy and rebuild it
The cities are poisoned and filled with noise
And filth and we always feel sick and joyless
So it's time to destroy and rebuild it
Apocalyptic utopian dreams
In the western wilderness, goin’ insane
Thinkin’ like nothin’ exists but this place
That’s how we get away from the stress of the everyday
I dreamed I was a soldier, fighting in a war
I didn’t understand, just wishing it was over
I was shoulder to shoulder with some brave men and women
Thinkin' if I could just save them, then that made sense
I dreamed I was a politician full of positive intentions
But every policy I followed went the wrong direction
And all the people really wanted was a strong protector
So that’s what they got, with all the consequences
I dreamed I was a rap phenomenon makin’ the hottest
Songs, livin’ like the Shah of Iran, drivin’ the Audubon
In August in an Audi with some hot mamas in thongs;
But then I lost the common touch and it all went wrong
I dreamed I was a woman who wasn’t in love with me
Even though I wanted her to be, I disgusted me
Watching myself grovel, like, “what a freak”
While I kept on pleading with her, like: “Touch me please!”
Apocalyptic utopian dreams
In the western wilderness, goin’ insane
Thinkin’ like nothin’ exists but this place
That’s how we get away from the stress of the everyday
I dreamed of a paradigm shift
The kind that only happens after a terrible crisis
And I didn’t know what the crisis was and I didn’t care
Lives were lost and not mine and that isn’t fair
But I was a witness to it all, sitting there
Watching as the dynamic shifted
As if the Titanic had drifted into that cataclysmic
Collision, only instead of panicked and cannibalistic
People actually acted in their collective
Rational interests, the whole planet was pacifistic
And yet somehow it still had defenses
Against the animalistic instincts of degenerate
Misfits, and instead of massive weapons
All we manufactured was cures for cancer and sickness
And new games to play and ways to explore space
I just wish I could remember what provoked the change
Apocalyptic utopian dreams
In the western wilderness, goin’ insane
Thinkin’ like nothin’ exists but this place
That’s how we get away from the stress of the everyday
|
||||
12. |
Requiem for Heaven
05:02
|
|||
Requiem for Heaven
I don’t know what heaven is, I just know what heaven isn’t
It isn’t a position in the VIP section
Where you sit forever, flicking your pleasure switches
It isn’t just an incentive to pick the best religion
Like a raffle ticket – forget the metaphysics
Anyone who threatens you with invisible gimmicks
Is just trying to sell you some gibberish
So what about a heaven that we actually get to live in?
One that’s not just a place in the clouds, please
I’m not stupid, this ain’t Jesus Walks music
And if you really believe Jesus talks to you
Then you should read The God Delusion
Schizophrenia’s obviously got you losin’ it
So relax and move in to a new paradigm
A place where you’re no longer aware of time
It’s called the present, and it’s a true paradise
Plus it’s right there in front of your eyes
What a surprise
Some float away on a dream
They can’t wait to believe in
Some find their heaven right here
In a place they can dream into being
Imagine this isn’t a dress rehearsal, imagine
There’s one life to live, and yes, it’s terminal
And religion isn’t really the source of our personal
Morals, it’s just how we make them feel more personal
And less like a vicious circle, but the purpose
Is more horizontal and less vertical
More about co-existence than a test of virtue
And heaven is just a world less hurtful
Where respect is universal, instead of seasonal
International instead of inter-regional
A real pessimist would say “inconceivable”
But I see it as a symbol of the best in people
A utopian dream, but not just a metaphor
An image of a world where there isn’t war
Not a hidden reward behind a mystery door
But a principle that’s really worth living for
And if you think it’s the afterlife, you’re misinformed
It’s time to wake up and shake off the melatonin
Go ahead and live in the moment and smell the roses
And experience the infinite present unfolding
Just direct some of your efforts and mental focus
Into the collective magnum opus of helping the hopeless
And then just watch as the entrance to heaven opens
So slowly that we hardly even notice it
Some float away on a dream
They can’t wait to believe in
Some find their heaven right here
In a place they can dream into being
If this is all we get
It's not a test for what comes next
And in this moment
We can get our heaven on and
Make a joyful sound
With everyone around
And leave this place just a little better
Than we found it
As soon as we stop waiting for the
End to just descend and take us
Where we've always been we'll find our
Heaven in this present tense
If you're waiting to be born
Again my friend
Why pretend it's not within
We'll find our heaven in this present tense
|
Baba Brinkman New York, New York
Science rapper and inventor of several novel hip-hop variants. Canadian transplant to New York. Pathological optimist.
Streaming and Download help
If you like Baba Brinkman, you may also like:
Bandcamp Daily your guide to the world of Bandcamp