I saw a picture and I thought of you
and the gloomy Christ on your bedroom door:
a clown sits in a giant swing
in the shadows high above the forest floor.
The same tempera blare,
the same tenebrous eyes that dogged your little friends around the room.
Somehow you told yourself a secret joke
and I envied you because I couldn't laugh.
The house is burning and the clowns are down
in the basement slaughtering a fatted calf.
And as they crackle like thorns blazing under a pot
you cross your eyes and cross yourself and grin
like its some sort of play we're in.
Well, I was wrong, but I thought at the time
that you were after that calfskin.
Remember, sister, when the baby comes,
that to miss the mark's the only mortal sin.
Our father hit it running eggs for years
to the local stores until the chains came in,
and if he blackened at Christmas and totaled the truth
he'd find his way into the velvet booth.
Starting to think something happened here
in the dead of night when you and I were small.
A man broke in, left a pile of gifts,
and took the Kennedys from the parlor wall,
Saying I know that you're good for it brother,
like all the shlubs who drive their own sun out to shine
from nine to nine,
park it downtown, ride home on the red line.
I was alive when that blizzard hit,
I don't remember but I've seen the super-8s.
People asphyxiating in their cars
and there was martial law in parts of some Northeastern states.
And there's Miracle Car Wash, and you and your friends
are making high-speed angels in the road.
credits
from Repetitions of the Old City - II,
released June 1, 2018
Damon Waitkus - vocals, acoustic, electric, and baritone guitars, hammer dulcimers, banjo, mandolin, keyboards, flute, percussion, car horn, field recordings
Emily Packard - violin, melodica, car horn
Kate McLoughlin - bassoon, vocals, car horn
Jason Hoopes - bass, car horn
Jordan Glenn - drums, percussion, vibraphone, marimba, bells, car horn
Thea Kelley - vocals
Ivor Holloway - tenor saxophone, clarinet
***
with
Darren Johnston - trumpet
Dave McNally - piano blizzard
Sarah Whitley - samples
JACK O' THE CLOCK "presents a fine lesson on what it means to write songs that are at once approachable and human while simultaneously being incredibly profound in terms of timbre, depth of emotion, and harmonic complexity," Progulator.
supported by 63 fans who also own “Miracle Car Wash, 1978”
This rather astounding record can't really be categorized - musically, it's so full of everything and so original that a short description is impossible. It is superbly played. The words are FANTASTIC and I would have chosen The Butcher as my favourite if the app had allowed me to ;-) Tom Landon
supported by 36 fans who also own “Miracle Car Wash, 1978”
This is a fantastic, cinematic listen of precise movements and virtuosic rhythmic switch ups. Zero dull moments, a rollercoaster ride of prog rock. Egg Wizard
supported by 32 fans who also own “Miracle Car Wash, 1978”
This album is legendary. Prog fans of all flavors will find something to appreciate within Edit Peptide, because it's an incredibly flavorful piece of pie. aimee
On “Meet Me By the River,” Dawn Landes’s self-described “Nashville record,” buoyant country melodies settle deep into lush instrumentation. Bandcamp New & Notable May 7, 2018
supported by 32 fans who also own “Miracle Car Wash, 1978”
In 2019, I was in Salisbury and attended the Alphabet Business Convention without knowing any artist. Lost Crowns was my favourite band that played there. Pablo P.