NOTES
KING ROPES, SUPER NATURAL
RECORDING:
July 2021
East Gallatin Yacht Club, Bozeman & The Royal Room, Seattle
Tracking & Mixing, Ben Roth
MIXING AND MASTERING:
Paul Gold, Salt Mastering, Brooklyn
MUSICIANS:
Dave Hollier Guitars, Vocals, Noise, Songwriting
Ben Roth Bass, Guitars, Synths, Piano, Sorcery
Jeff Jensen Drums, Percussion, Vibe
LYRICS
Greedy
I’m getting greedy I want that other one hanging (there)just out of reach
The girls in the parking lot misinformed me now I’m standing in the rain at the beach
Tony Slacks can spin a good one Little Pants’ll tell one too
Pretty funny sonny like a monkey on Sunday with a date at the zoo
Oh baby
Pretty sweet my friend Schemey
He’d light his bike up at night like a Christmas tree
Fire it up and cruise the whole city
Kinda trippy kinda dreamy
Oh baby
Catey and Serafina drove up from Santa Fe
Have you seen ‘em yet
Ah but they’re weird and they’re wonderful
Kinda dreamy like Schemey
I live on the outside looking in
Astroland the tilt a wheel
hot day the mermaid parade
I'm on the outskirts eyes peeled
The Cyclone's a compact twister
floating on thin air
then late at night on the boardwalk
hot and steamy / still dreamy
Breathing
I'm having trouble breathing in and out
the doctors can't tell me why
it feels like a pretty bad metaphor
it's gets worse the harder I try
and it's not the thing I saw myself fighting for
the snow is melting the fields are all muddy now
the sink is piled full of dishes
nothing sounds quite as good as we wish it would
maybe just bury it all under reverb
and it's not the thing I saw myself fighting for
I met a woman who works helping organ donors
she works helping them find a good match
they need help cause they're already dead
help them do that one last thing
and it's not the thing she saw herself fighting for
all i want is some air in my lungs now
my red blood cells are starving for oxygen
the more I want it the more I cough spastically
I try to calm myself down and then try
again this thing I find myself fighting for
there's a spot on the wall that the painter missed
not far away a forest fire's burning
the faucet is dripping again
and another kid gave in to suicide
the dog thinks it's time for his dinner now
a guy I know his son died of an overdose
the kids are all out in the neighborhood
a friend of mine lost his dad way too early
So many people in so much pain
Keys and wallet on a bedside table
It isn't much of a monument
Now everyone’s afraid of everything
and it's not the thing we saw ourselves fighting for
My Brother's a Bear Now
My brother's a bear now I saw him swim across the river
he crashed through the woods and he went right in
a little black bear cub he's been waiting for months now
for our mother to come join him she's a little black bear now too
It's a pretty cold night but I'm warm on the inside
and the tall tall grass blowing in the wind
is telling a story we wish we all knew
I descend up this tranquil scene like a swarm of bees
and as much as we'd want it to end somehow different
on that night nothing nothing was resolved
after all their rehashing of old beefs and insults
Mike and I just burst out laughing
You’re in the north country now boys. You better watch out.
I’m drifting on thin air and thin excuses
there's animals here and things to eat and ways to stay warm
backwards forwards man he knows something about being untethered
perhaps he could show me teach me what I don't know
Katie tried to explain it her affinity with the Statue of Liberty
but I could never follow her intricate and suspect logic
she's a little black bear now too
Heart Shaped Garden
He woke up dreaming of a heart shaped garden
The break of day a vision fully formed
A thousand bulbs wait in the frozen ground now
A riot of color waiting to explode
She crests the hill and she’s coming to me
A dream as real as anything I’ve known
She kneels over me in benediction
Spreads my blanket there to keep me warm
My brother’s gone and I can’t go with him
I’m needed here I’ve got to stick around
We're closer now than we ever have been
Time and space fold back around again
Thunderheads rush across the valley
Dust kicks up and gets in our eyes
Hunker down against the rain and sleet now
Sky hangs low and hard like iron
Fires and floods raging all around us
All this talk about end of times
Mind the water table and the soil now
Show your children that we’re kind
Place a finger upon my forehead
winter light and not a sound
Her other hand resting on my ribcage
Electric current fires up and down
Let my love grow bigger bigger
Breath it out and let it fill the void
All we’ve got is right here and right now
The days build up and fold into one
I hope to god I don’t pass it on now
The light breaks through and shines all around
Still the darkness is right beside us
Without the contrast we’d just be blind
Pockets
We’ve got pockets To keep our rocks in
Our little pebbles Our tiny gemstones
This frozen wonderland In which we’re living here
It gives us powers You can’t imagine
I’m in the darkness now Deep in the understory
Sometimes the light’ll flash Through a break in the trees
We ride our bikes here We follow game trails
We walk the creek beds We’re always looking for clues
You gave me everything I ever asked for
It wasn’t much though I should’ve asked you for more
You gave me everything I ever asked for
It wasn’t much though I should’ve asked you for more
I keep on stumbling I keep on falling down….
I wish I didn’t Have to keep on falling down…
And I told you don’t come back to me
And I still wish you’d come back to me
you can't imagine
We’re always looking for clues
you can't imagine
We’re always looking for clues
you never know you know
I should’ve asked you for more
you never know you know
we're always looking for clues
you never know you know
Blind Eye
My blind eye is milky and sightless My blind eye knows some tricks
My blind eye it cuts through the darkness My blind eye is a pretty good eye
Jesus Christ I wonder if my mother could feel the world of pain my brother did
Me and my sister and my other sister we mostly walked the line it mostly worked in our favor
If you asked me to leave I might walk away with you All I can promise is a world of trouble
It's not that I’m thirsty I just want something more All I can promise is a world of trouble
Hold me man just for a minute I need some human touch I’m pushing the limits
Of loneliness and emptiness and desperation and yeah loneliness loneliness…
I keep on angling for something better Surrounded by sky and unafraid
I keep on angling for something better Surrounded by sky and unafraid
Jesus Christ I wonder if my mother could feel the world of pain my brother did
Drunk Donny
Drunk Donnie and the Denim Devil spent the day outside the Conoco
Knowing their patience would be rewarded by those fools with their cars and their jobs
Now I'm standing on thin air I can't even see the ground
Nothing stands between me and disaster just my car and my job
Real Live Tiger
The earth lets go its fragile hold on me My body gently drifts away
Water cold enough to stop your heart Sun hot enough to fry an egg
I’m flying I’m flying now Over buildings and playgrounds trees and houses
Kids are looking up at me They’re all laughing and pointing
Saying who the hell is he Who the hell does he think he is
Laugh all you want kids I’m a real live tiger
Laugh all you want kids I’m a real live tiger
I hear you I know you hear me too
I see you I know you see me too
Not sure I want to But I can read between the lines
I think that you can too
An effervescent light seems to infuse me with buoyancy
As I effortlessly float many feet above the ground
Despite what you’d imagine I feel in control
As evening light fades to night
Laugh all you want kids I’m a real live tiger
Laugh all you want kids I’m a real live tiger
Mystery
Everything looks cool from the outside You can’t see the thing about to explode
A paper thin veneer holds things together We’ve gone down before but never this low
Hyperbolic diatribes rage against injustices imagined and real they’re everywhere
It’s not a mystery but it is
I pushed and I pulled until the damn thing broke and then I hit it and I broke it again
I’m afraid I’ve got a reputation for being difficult I hit it and I broke it again
It’s not a mystery but it is
An onion and a rutabaga walk into a bar and all the girls there dancing on the stage looked down and cry
Oh my god you must be kidding me
You must be kidding me Is this some kind of joke
You must be kidding me Is this some kind of joke
It’s not a mystery but it is It’s not a mystery but it is