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Breathing Without A Pulse

by The Blend

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1.
The one word You been tryin’ to find Lives on the lips Of the kid that ya kissed goodbye Don’t ask me where he’s headed Or where the hell he’s comin’ from The world spins one way- figure it out for yourself Take note and follow along And ya can’t go, can’t go, Can’t go, can’t go wrong This life ain’t fo, ain’t fo Ain’t fo, ain’t fo long - CHORUS I’d love to help ya out, But good advice ain’t for free Love to help ya out, But you won’t take advice from me - Now, some are gonna stick around Some are gonna leave the fight Some are gonna go To the place ya go when ya close your eyes Don’t ask me where it’s headed Or where the hell its all comin’ from The world spins one way Figure it out for yourself take note and follow along And ya can’t go, can’t go, Can’t go, can’t go wrong This life ain’t fo, ain’t fo Ain’t fo, ain’t fo long CHORUS And ya can’t go, can’t go, Can’t go, can’t go wrong This life ain’t fo, ain’t fo Ain’t fo, ain’t fo long
2.
Don’t say you runnin’ things when you don’t ever run the mic Gossip in the grain, I heard your girlfriend runs your life And it dudn’t take a grapevine to see it, But with you on stage it takes a few drinks to feel it Matter fact, pass the jack, no chaser Emcees like you make me wanna hit the mind eraser B-I-G-B-I-Z, I been runnin’ through the veins of the game like IV You got words, you email’em then ya forward’em I got words and I’ll take’em to your doorstep Aside from that, what I’m sayin’s what I’m sayin’ And you didn’t hear shit ‘cos this ain’t a conversation I watch sound engineers balance volume with love and hate Between a slow kiss and a bruised face Between a rock band and a fucked up place Appreciation makes up for the lack of pay And when it doesn’t, the truth gets questioned The memory wears the heart empty to a weapon It’s hard to make the call when Minneapolis doesn’t have the reception I hung up before the disconnection- on tour - CHORUS Rockin’ on that Casio Rockin’ on that Casio Rockin’ on that Casio Rockin’ on that Casio - (Drissola Verse) CHORUS Crack-rock-smack talk you couldn’t back-up Na homie, I don’t slang it, but I do crack rocks You’re takin’ steps, but they ain’t in my direction I’ll leave your crew more black and blue than Cadillac Records So for the record while you’re singin’ “hands up” I’ll be pissin’ on a parkin’ ticket while I smack cops You don’t want a confrontation so you peaceful protest it As I put the Molotov cocktail in your agenda Yeah, your arm-chair’s liberal I ain’t even got an arm chair in my living room Get your goons, tell’em that the smoke break’s over And I’ll give your job back when ya spend a day sober This ain’t amateur hour, this is bar closin’ This ain’t your average Joe, this is the King Cobra I run this Starship, you can tell your people If they have any questions they can take it up with Johnny Rico Got my enemies closer than two degrees Told the chief if he needs back-up then he can google me Now, you know enough to flush it through the gossip Get back to work and get the hell out of my office CHORUS
3.
Sex 04:14
Was it all good to the point you were mistaken Or was it so fucked up you didn’t care to fake it Still tryin’ to balance empty with not vacant In a room full of last nerves and straight faces Lust, drugs, money, chores Enough to pass out, wake up and want more My friend, you’re messin’ with a force of nature Not a brand new form of savior You climb up walls of make-up, nose-dive into the same cup, Cut throats and smile at danger You’re no Ms. Granger, but your disappearing act’s down pat A last defense, where they only crown men And when there’s nothin’ left to prove There’s only time, reputation, and face to lose Grays and blues, nobody wants to play the tool But you’ll need a few if you’re gonna make your move Somehow this went down from Young & Impressive To fightin’ for the lead on the Drunk & Restless Blairin’ Bob Dylan, punk-rock, and Hendrix So loud, we don’t speak, we just text it So proud, we don’t greet, we just gest it Somehow, we all meet, but stay disconnected Build fences off’a dead friendships Get intoxicated instead of pretendin’ - PRE-CHORUS Holla when it’s convenient But don’t follow, make believe you’re leadin’ And not alone, control was never ours to keep, kid Don’t act like losin’ it’s a weakness Let go, find chase, grab the hardest pill to swallow Awake until midnight kills tomorrow Meet me where it’s flames and blades And the time’s too late to save Disbelieve it, disbelieve it I don’t told you disbelieve it When the evening keeps singin’ all hype - CHORUS But who could blame ya In a basement Where the faces Go nameless Familiar stranger Could ya take it Caught between peace, love, and bar fights - You’ll find me ridin’ on my bike with a deathwish Drinkin’ poison until the remedy’s invented Feelin’ the love in this weekend relationship Of setbacks and prior engagements It burns bright and survives a dim glow As the iPods and stereo’s singin’ Billy Joel Bleedin’ through windows, wakin’ the wee hours Layin’ paste between ringtones and drunk speed dials It’s settin’ in like a shot of epinephrine More anxious than a question of fittin’ in Fast sex the same night as the first kiss Restin’ on the whim of the uncertain Servin’ brief smiles and nicotine clouds Ego’s releasin’ beefin’ with freestyles Holdin’ onto everything we can’t let go Goodbye within the moment we said hello PRE-CHORUS CHORUS
4.
I don’t wanna tell’em that this is as good as it gets And if ya die today, then right now is all that you get You’re lucky if you can find the good in the good-for-nothin’ And gain somethin’ outta losing control We’d all love to point the gun in a different direction Either way we’re all starin’ down the barrel - CHORUS It ain’t the end of the world But it feels like the sun’s burnin’ out Ya can’t explain it with words But it feels like you’re screamin’ out loud It’s easy to say “live and let die” If you got livin’ to lose This world only makes sense When you force it to …and find a way - Do you remember starin’ out the door window of the principal’s office Watching all the other kids smile and laugh- wishing you had their happiness On the other side of a wall, waitin’ for somebody’s judgment To tell us where we made a wrong turn and what to fix Felt like fate was in anyone else’s hands but our own They’d tell ya not to cut, but wouldn’t teach ya how to sew CHORUS
5.
OMFG 03:49
You’re never gonna get another chance just like this Whether or not you like it - PRE-CHORUS Put it right, put it wrong Find somethin’ to put it on You shoutin’ help beneath the ground Through the ceiling, now hear the sound - CHORUS This isn’t vote or die for someone else’s highness I gave the rich a slow goodbye without silence Your high-class politics don’t define shhhh I’m famous as Satan- bitch, and I ain’t even signed yet - You say thing’s are gonna change, but ya don’t know how Ya say someday, but you won’t say now PRE-CHORUS CHORUS
6.
DearDeerView 05:16
I tie the laces to my shoes the same as any afternoon And set foot between the walls and your halls and deserted rooms What’s up kids, I’m here to speak at your alternative school Seems your luck don’ got you stuck in academic servitude With less than words to use or choose, a lot more than nerves to lose It’s cool to turn pissed when your teacher’s a stern prick Skip class and hit more pipes than Bob Burnquist Taught ya to accept the phrase that life isn’t a game While the future warden’s blueprintin’ prisons in your name He’s in the high school next door top’n the test scores With nothin’ to stress for except the gas in daddy’s Escort Born on third base and coulda swore he hit a triple Workin’ with a full drumkit, while all ya got is a cymbal Oh, you’d love to take it to’em for all that you been through Between a rock and a principal’s office- Los in limbo Tell me, was it your childhood dream to put on a mask And give a lap or a tap dance for somebody else’s cash Makes you wanna cut until you hit a vein Makes you wanna stand up for the words sittin’ in your brain But you can’t take the master’s house with tools from the master’s toolshed You’ll have to paint without your whites, blues, or reds Until the day you drop out or graduate Enjoy the free sandwich out the b-b-b-b-b-b-bag I don’t wanna see another genius defeated ‘Cos someboday taught’em lies as a f-f-f-f-f-f-fact Life’s a freestyle, go on and make it up Skateboardin’, smokin’ and breakin’ stuff Skateboardin’, smokin’ and breakin stuff Fresh out of 38th st. with love - CHORUS If the day’s a wage And life is war Then What are you alive for Now, ‘cos I stay where I’m from Don’t mean that I ain’t gon’ come up ‘Cos I grow where I’m from Planted where I stand- planted where I stand - If you’re from where I’m from then give it up Where either your dad’s a drunk or your dad doesn’t give a- Maybe he’s both like mine, only good for puttin’ forth And great example of a father that I’d never like to be Family’s turn to jail cells and even pickin’ locks can’t help Nobody’s listenin’, so you have to fight to speak Light a fire to make’em see, runaway to prove a point Grab a blunt, a spray can and a black to steal some joy We feel destroyed for nothin’ in a battle of decoys In a lost culture, forgotten B-girls gave birth to B-boys We leave a void in the presence of authority The history they don’t teach is their way of avoidin’ it Now, as the schoolhouse rocks steady with hegemony It makes you wonder if unemployment has a pre-destiny You rest your eyes upon anywhere else And set your heart on everything outside yourself Detention-daydreamin’ of pieces fittin’ the frame Urban romances, slow dancin’, kissin’ in the rain Lovely livin’ the day without riskin’ a thing For someone to look you in the eye and listen to what you say But you’re lost and forgot who you’re explainin’ yourself to Alternative to what? And alternative to who? (Yes, you’re now listenin’ to the undermined, blue collar, workin’-class sounds of The Blend. Ladies and gentlemen, b-boys and b-girls please unlearn while you can.) CHORUS Get free or get a degree Or get both and hope to God you don’t end up like me A twenty-somethin, good for nothin’, gum bumpin’, bar jumpin’ Non-student-loan-payment-makin’, coffeeshop-slumpin Broken-home representative in the land of Longfellow Survivalist or not? That depends on what you call ghetto Workin’-class, blue collar, failure amongst scholars Urban program, suspended, left behind condemned to follow Had ya tracked since smokin’ packs at recess Called up the summer school and they save your seat and desk Now, if ya got it then get into it They’d rather see ya high-strung out on depressants and stimulants Than addicted and hooked-on Malcolm and Marx It starts with a shout in the dark- they wonder why we yell When they don’t listen, we stop listenin’ to ourselves Wanderin’ hallways and monotonous class schedules Left to speak through silence and reverse psychology It’s like these teachers are getting’ hired and paid and praised to fuck with me There’s no luckily, there’s no duck and weave Advisors advise ya to chillax and just breathe To kill your questions, to erase your anger To unboil your heart, to sanitize your language Upon these moments, do not dare be hesitant For the beast will leave you in the realms of irrelevant Ranked by class grades when already eminent So all the school can do for you is insult your intelligence College students hold discussion groups of what you’re goin’ through But never wanna hold a discussion about their own shoes Letter to the editor, professor and principal Don’t fuck with a mind state that you haven’t been to Don’t fuck with a culture that you don’t live through Taking authority from a situation you don’t give to These words and expectations run adjacent Until you’re educatin’ how the rich stay rich Dear, Deerview- please check the rearview And keep an eye on where these snakes try and steer you Well, it’s been a fine visit on this rhyme clinic Enjoy your day in RedWing, it’s been a fine visit And there’s no such thing as kings It’s just a term invented by men to undermine queens Have a nice day in class…
7.
III 06:12
Joe Sodd the third Couldn’t get it out my head, or get it off my chest, so I wrote it on my shirt It’s kinda funny bein’ human nowadays, I can feel the minutes swimmin’ relay races through my veins, but If death wants to flirt She can find me at Sadies dancin’ with taxes and every other common curse I cut the grin, she drops the smirk We save the talk ‘cos we both know she’s crazy like a fox And not worth a promise first if I can’t even promise earth That I’ll be back every time my shoes lift off the dirt Love your life and it’ll love you back… sure I’ll hold to that as much as gravity’s just a word Because to learn how to fly, you gotta learn how to fall And if you can stick the landin’ then you can fool’em all Y’see the queens in recess never needed kings or crowns They could freeze tag a game of kickball because they owned the crowd I outran the herd and only slowed down to walk my grandma to church She tells me stories of family fire and madness I tell her keep it real, she tells me keep it Irish Catholic And it’s that quick between a woman’s Sunday best And I kid tryin’ to tame a Sunday mess In urban warfare courtin’ cold stares And crotch grabbin’ but it doesn’t mean you’ve grown a pair You’re only 1 in an equation of these avenues active factors Building with addition by subtraction Kacklackin’ contraptions, slightly shy of dien’ laughin’ Cryin’ and smiling; for the same moment passin’ - CHORUS Excuse me while I close my eyes Turn off the headlights and blow through this stop sign You wanna find out what’s meant to be Well, let me show you how to let go of everything Excuse me while I close my eyes Turn off the headlights and blow through this stop sign You wanna find out what’s meant to be Well, let me show you how to let go of everything - His gun shook like his confidence when he told me hands up While hip-hop was hand in hand with hip-hop in handcuffs By then I’d had enough and let the hammer drop Pulled the machine loose ‘cos Minneapolis or not This town can catch fire for all I care So put your cigarette lighters and spray cans in the air This goes to those huffin’ happiness out the zip loc For the fallen bridges a governor couldn’t lift up This goes to those who’ve been to the bottom of the bag And’ve been back to take another drag See I can spell addiction with four letters I’ll show you how, but you’ll have to pour another beverage It gets worse just before the good weather So, me laughin’ at the rain- that’s just for good measure Sometimes ya grin just to look clever And that’s ok, ‘cos I only do it when I’m outta leverage Understand the circumstances won’t get acceptance So if there’s any last bullets and words- how ‘bout you send’em See we can stare and grin and countdown the seconds, But even death in old westerns didn’t get a moment’s preface So, by the time ya gotta call the New Avengers, They’ll be shootin’ messages through the messengers You never expected it’d all come back to par And the balance would return like the Hulk from Sakaar Well, I’m here. Listenin’ to the wind kiss the trees Sometimes mistook for sewage flowin’ underneath the streets In a blink of this war, I could’ve swore for sure I saw Joe Sodd the Third bikin’ around the corner CHORUS Hello Joseph, today the summer sun was shinin’ bright But somehow the city fell frozen You can see the traffic weave and the stoplights change colors But for what if the earth stop movin’ Somethin’ must be missin’, somethin’ must be missin’ Somethin’ must be missin’, somethin’ must be missin’ Somethin’ must be missin’, somethin’ must be missin’ Somethin’ must be missin’, somethin’ must be missin’ Somethin’ must be missin’, somethin’ must be missin’ Somethin’ must be missin’, somethin’ must be missin’ Somethin’ must be missin’, somethin’ must be missin’ Somethin’ must be missin’…
8.
I told her I wanna feel the gravity against my shoulders Enough to leave a footprint on the street corner I want my old heart stitched in over the old scars And wage war with the night until the streetlights go dark Came to a quick death from a slow start Once my mornin’ sun, now my old spark Somehow we still connect ‘cos I guess she’s knows me best Not ‘cos she’s from Minneapolis or the fact that she’s my ex Maybe it’s because we can reinvent what’s left Of good things lost to senseless arguments Like our parents- Now that it’s done, it’s all fairness Whether or not the past is apparent I would call her queen, but I don’t wanna give her that upper-grip Seein’ the coffeeshop’s the only place we co-exist We know the script, but improve communication Like free-versin’ over Thelonius and Miles Davis She doesn’t need the ground ‘cos she’s her own foundation And she holds her people down like cigarettes and conversation As we sit, once again, caffeinated at a table Gazin’ aimless and unable to explain - Chorus How I’m starin’ at heaven, but I’m feelin’ like hell Standin’ on earth under the same spell She’s beautiful as the Boston Commons Can’t ya tell, can’t ya tell Queen without a crowd and she’s queen without And when she leaves me, she leaves me without Beautiful as she is honest Can’t ya tell, can’t ya tell - It was a good lookin’ guy with a good lookin’ gal Walkin’ down the street singin’ “Can’t Ya Tell” They hold together like this moment almost never came And coulda swore that they would first wither and fade Together again, and not because it’s usual But because it feels like they’re swing dancin’ to a musical With traffic so immovable it’s singin’ in the streets And homeless hands on drums somehow supply the beat And they’re happy- and maybe that’s all you really need Along with groceries, house keys, bicycles and coffee Anything to keep you movin’ through this Rubic’s Cube Like watchin’ these two give words commute with undisputable truth She tells him when I look at you I wanna carve your name in my skin So when I lose my mind, I’ll never forget Y’see both her parents are schizophrenic And in the natural selection of genetics, she’s next to get it So as the chemicals in her brain begin to twist The subtle details of reality, her brain begins to miss Her pragmatic castle shattered broken Fragments of rational thought float in an ocean of serotonin Like scattered branches skatin’ the surface of Lake Huron Retracin’ a path against the current of neurons Dismembered memories of how she once held him Standin’ like a tree beneath her cerebellum And crazy goes hand-in-hand with “I love you” They don’t take sane for granted because taking leads to trouble They breathe with ease and pace like a city breeze If they can handle schizophrenia then I can handle coffee And now my heart’s offbeat from the music outside She’s shootin’ me down with those brown eyes Had no clue I was fallin’ ‘til ya cut me There’s nothin’ left, but to smile and just breathe Chorus She doesn’t have a cuss jar, she has a bottle of Jack And she can walkaway from a car wreck and not look back They call her crazy because they’re afraid of her confidence And she never says maybe ‘cos she’d rather move on with it Her lawlessness is her common sense Gravity gets lost when her sanity walks off the cliff And I’ve been to the bottom with her She sacrificed her mind climbin’ out instead’a me havin’ to help to lift her Break-ups aren’t convenient as relationships And she’s mastered the art of not taken shit Weathered by disappointments and bad boyfriends She bends for no one, her back is jointless And her spine, like the pillar of the Ottoman Empire Can split a smile while her eyes set fire An uncommon goddess, unattainable as the wind Speaks her words like a promise, not a thang to gain or give Wields her fists like bricks, gunshots don’t make her flinch Eyes that hath no end, I never know where to begin
9.
Know Me Now 03:24
What it is- what it do- What it ain’t- ‘sup to you What’s the point and the proof- Give’em hell- make’em move Make’em run- make’em fly- Make’em fall out the sky Make’em love- make’em fight- yeaaaaaahhhhh This ain’t a game y ou could play This ain’t a face you can paint This ain’t a style you can take This ain’t ya savin’ grace I don’t care I don’t care I don’t care if you don’t care Snatch your life and sunshine out the air - Chorus I get it now I get it now What goes down comes back up See me smile, while on the ground ‘Cos this is far from done - All the king’s men and king’s sweat Couldn’t hold a sparkler to my set You don’t wanna mess With a mess Ain’t afraid of ya name Ain’t afraid of ya flame Consequence ain’t a thang- Yeeeeaaaaaahhhh Paint it white, red, blue, black, pink Color of the feelin’ and the empty space inbetween What it seems What it seems May not be what it seems Snatch your life and your rainbows Out your dreams Chorus See the shine glow from a broken light bulb See the grass grow from the cracks in sidewalks Got a problem, and I don’t want to fix it Nothin’ wrong with nothin’ that’s right with this See the shine glow from a broken light bulb See the grass grow from the cracks in sidewalks Got a problem, and I don’t want to fix it Nothin’ wrong with nothin’ that’s right with this Know me now Know me now Know me now Know me now Keep it cool- keep it calm- Keep it true- keep it on- Keep it you- keep it comin’- Keep it tall Are you sure why you came Are you sure what’s at stake You’re ‘bout two words away From settin’ off the flames Seen’em come- seen’em go- Seen’em jump- seen’em float- Seen’em sink rock bottom In a good boat Can’t complain if ya take Half ya gave- Ain’t got time to feel shame For a couple rules and heads ya break Chorus
10.
Runnin’ like a parkin’ meter on its last minute At the point ya just can’t tell how much is left in it You could run this village down to the grain Tie it up in handcuffs, but the color doesn’t fade Or answer to your highness, lights and sirens Drillin’ the surface to find another Osiris Criminal minded or survivalist This ain’t the East, South, West or North side of it This is just lopsided math This is the other side of the badge This is the other side of the badge I said this is the other side of the badge Your lieutenant gots a band vendetta Slams the office door twice a mornin’, I think he’s fed up Rookies on the squad just don’t seem to let up And the DA’s back on the bottle with Celexa Shoot’s the afternoon at the range with a Stella Kill’s a few brain cells, drains the beretta Tries to forget it, so goes the city Ghetto gorgeous, but ain’t a damn thing pretty So enormous that can’t a damn frame fit it Some try and hold it, but they can’t lift Threatenin’ to jump off the curb again Shiiiit, it ain’t nothin’ but an urban ledge- it goes Church is closed and the time for prayer is over Brother, I don’t understand what ya waitin’ for They gonna reach for their piece ‘for your reachin’ Jesus Your lord ain’t the one in charge Ooooooh, yes it’s on It’s all about what ya can’t afford This is survivin’ My, my, my Born unadorned, against the wall, underneath a storm Baby, don’t blame nobody for defendin’ what they call home Holdin’ a gun up against the law So, it goes simple As full names and info get blown, exposed and swindled Through the wire shootin’ fire, barterin’ with souls Makes me wanna throw the fuckin’ kitchen sink out the window Still in limbo, they’re still on patrol You’re in the middle of a building tryin’ to build a home And it’s irony entirely the building is owned You’re doin’ everything you can between a ceiling and floor Maybe home isn’t the place to bleed the cash just to sleep in Dreamin’ of just the feelin’ to walk the kingdom Maybe it’s the hole in the floor you wake up to and ask the question, “Where the hell’s it all headed? How much longer can we walk in this war without sweatin’, Holdin’ a weapon as our only leverage?” Our chest’s holdin’ our hearts in a deadlift No objective- Just death and acceptance Either your patience is runnin’ paper thin with rough edges Or life is just a rough draft without the edit Whatever. Kids are gettin’ shot before high school A low-income life lost, but what was it to you? What was it to you? What was it to you? What was it to you? What was it to you? What was it to you? What was it to you? - Chorus I’m walkin’ twilight In a blind fight Might be your law But it ain’t mine - Eric Floyd seemed to got the drop on your boys You say he better run, but runnin’ ain’t a choice Get smart, drop the gun, let’em claim a coward This side of the equation been runnin’ since the Mayflower Nobody ain’t about to wait for your approval Before they wipe the slate clean with blue stain removal One cop, two cop, three cop, four cop Got the whole squad kickin’ in the door knob We say “hold up” to make time stretch Countin’ cash or countin’ on a blind guess Subsidized housin’, but it’s still high rent Payments of innocence, time- payin’ with debt Payin’ with childhoods, daylight, spray paint and sweat Payin’ to death, but still paid no respect Ghetto war veterans sittin’ still Either waitin for a bus, or waitin’ for a miracle I can hear the shrills, the prayers, affirmations The conflict of stoplights and tires against the pavement Broken safe nets and morals Where no grand jury can tell between the Joes and the Cobras Lock our hopes up, but we keep alive yet For runnin’ so much you’d think we were destined for flyin’ Findin’ peace in a losin’ game Believin’ in the water in a city of loose flames Chorus

credits

released December 6, 2011

Vocals & Lyrics by Toussaint Morrison
Keys by Linden Killam
Percussion by Spencer Austin
Guitar by Todd Bordewick
Bass by Alex "Ralph" Bennett

Recorded in Minneapolis, MN

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The Blend Minneapolis, Minnesota

A nationally touring group of misfits making sound wherever beckoned, The Blend dominated the midwest pioneering hip-hop and rock in the same breath from dingy basement rock shows to capacity hip-hop shows. Now, their fate unknown having disbanded for several years, Linden Killam and Toussaint Morrison continue the group's legacy of unconventional, top tiered sound. ... more

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