6. If You Will (The Obsolete Man)

21 hours ago by @knobbyneggins815

Liner Notes

I think this may be one of the angriest songs I've written, and it was done in a way where it wouldn't SOUND angry, but still dripping with sarcasm and venom and contempt.

I fell out of love with music for the better part of a decade, and this song is why. I've had people in my life burn me. The music industry and the people who choose to climb it are just a different breed, one that I'll never understand as someone who needs it for therapy and survival.

Also, please enjoy the wonderful Rod Serling giving a classic monologue from The Twilight Zone: I thought it encapsulates a lot wrong with society, musically or otherwise, and the mic drop of "Logic is an enemy and truth is a menace" is such a great line.

Lyrics

Rod Serling Monologue (From The Twilight Zone episode "The Obsolete Man")

This is not a new world,
It is simply an extension of
What began in the old one.

It has pattered itself after
Every dictator who has ever planted
A ripping imprint of a boot
On the pages of history,
Since the beginning of time.

It has refinements;
Technological advances
And a more sophisticated approach
To the destruction of human freedom.

But, like every one of the
Superstates that preceded it,
It has one iron rule:

Logic is an enemy,
And truth is a menace.

Verse 1:
20/20 vision,
Indecision defines you,
In hindsight you were crawling
To the edge of the cliff.

Sparking up the match
For the band to burn out on,
But all the time wondering
"What could have been?"

You thought you were an artist,
And you thought you were genius,
So you would beat yourself up
When you made any mistakes.

Pushed it to the limit,
But your limit was lacking,
Now you're cracking from the pressure,
Just like a rat in a maze.

Pre-Chorus 1:
Oh, you thought you dodged a bullet, kid,
But you were shot from the hip.
Oh, you dreamed of all the glory,
But you never wanted any of this.

Chorus:
Could you believe,
Thinking you're the Good Guy?
Oh, there'd be something
Very wrong in your head.

Theoretically,
Idiots and Outlaws
Are only separated
By whose dead.

The losers.
The misfits.
The fuckups.
The dipshits.

Imagine, if you will.

Verse 2:
Holding back potential like a
Levy at high tide,
Remind me to remember
You're the prodigal son.

Though, I'm fairly certain prodigies
Are gifted and youthful
And useful in a broad sense.
Sorry, I swear I'm done.

Get yourself a job and
Get a little education,
Then break your fucking back
While you just act like you're fine.

Smug, aloof, and arrogant,
But your head is a nightmare:
Superior in your mouth,
With an inferior mind.

Pre-Chorus 2:
You're a cog in the machine, kid,
You're not above anyone.
You can walk right to the grave where you'll
Sleep when all of this shit is done.

Could you believe,
Thinking you're the Good Guy?
Oh, there'd be something
Very wrong in your head.

Theoretically,
Idiots and Outlaws
Are only separated
By whose dead.

The losers.
The misfits.
The fuckups.
The dipshits.

Imagine...

Outro:
Blink and wake up years from now,
Wonder why and when and how
You lost the plot and
Misplaced all you found.

Obsolete with no control,
Convince yourself it's rock and roll.
Leave the journal open
When you go.

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