For the past few months I’ve been working on an AI generated alternate solstice remix album. It’s now released on Youtube and Spotify, and should be on Apple Music soon.
ReSolsticed vol I: “We’re Not Going Quietly”
My favorite genre of song is “cover that reimagines the original.” Everyone else’s favorite genre of solstice song is “exactly the way it was performed at their very first solstice”, so it’s not obvious how big an audience this will have. But I had a lot of fun with it, and I found it useful for exploring:
What if solstice music leant itself better to dance? Can I make it more energetic while still feeling like part of a meaningful ritual?”
What if speeches had background music interwoven with them?
Just generally trying out different genres and instrumentation.
Last weekend I tried out the first album in a smaller experimental solstice event. We were in a somewhat-too-small room for the number of people we had (20-30ish). My intent was for the first third and final third to be danceable-ish, without encouraging it in the dark, contemplative middle act.
I think in practice it makes more sense to lean into dancing in the final third, after people are more warmed up. In particular: the song “The Circle” lends itself to a semi-structured dance where everyone gets into a circle and spirals around. The structure helps overcome an initial wave of awkwardness as people look around nervously and wonder “if I’m the first or second person to get moving will I end up looking silly?”).
Also: it turned out the heretofore unreleased single from the Fooming Shoggoth’s, “You Have Not Been a Good User” fit well into the arc, so I ended up including that on the album. :)
I have a vague plan of making four albums in the “ReSolsticed” series:
Vol I: “We’re Not Going Quietly” (intended to be a functional Solstice arc)
Vol II: “Into the Night” (intended to be fun dance remixes for an afterparty)
Vol III: “Morning Light” (quieter covers that’d make for nice music to wake up with a cup of coffee)
Vol IV: “Many Worlds” (everything that I liked that didn’t really fit into another category)
And maybe it’s something you did Or maybe it’s something you said But your sons and your daughters are shivering cold now And all of the world around you is dead
You shout to the sky, it don’t hear you You scream to the wind, it don’t care But there’s more than just one of you down here So if anyone’s out there
Well we’re making you listen Make you hear us somehow And we’ll try understanding your wisdom and plans But we got a problem right now
And we’re not going quietly into the night We won’t lie down or give up the fight In our old and our young, raise our voices as one We’re gonna bring back the sun
Bring the light, bring the light Oh, bring the light and let it shine on me
Bring the light, bring the light Oh, bring the light and let it shine on me
Bring the light and let it shi-iiine
Bring it back just one more time Bring the light and let it shine on me
Bring over me
The air and water flowing The land we call our home Push to keep the dark from coming Feel the weight of what we know
This the gift we give tomorrow Though the unlit road is long Making peace to build our future Strong, united workin’ till the dawn
Bring the light, bring the light Oh, bring the light and let it shine on me
Filament glown Heart and home Bring the light and let it shine on me
Brighten the wind, harness the sea Bring the light and let it shine on me
Shine on
The gift we give tomorrow Though the unlit road is long Making peace to build our future Strong, united working till the dawn
And we all lift and we’re all adrift Together, together
Through the coldness, through the darkness Together Let it shine (Bring the light and let it shine) Bring the light, shine. free (Bring it back) together Together
Sing the anthem, share the dream Bring the light, bring the light And let it shine on me
Little one little one bitter blown Little one little one bitter blown
Sun barely risin’ above the horizon Little one little one bitter blown
Flowers are withering naked bark brittle oh Little one little one bitter blown
Don’t understand why the light would abandon us I don’t know how much more he’d make a man of us Little one little one bitter wind blown
Instrumental
Sun sailing away I don’t know where I don’t know why Oh sky darkening grey Wishing there weren’t so many goodbyes Little one little one why
Instrumental
Give me questions I don’t have the answers to Little one little one bitter blown Watching you shiver and I don’t know what to do Little one little one bitter blown
Maybe if we did the dance said the words just right Maybe he’ll come back things could be alright Little one little one bitter wind blown Mmm bitter wind blown
Sun sailing in the way I don’t know where I don’t know why Oh sky darkening grey Wishing there weren’t so many goodbyes
I don’t know where I don’t know where I don’t know why Sky darkening grey Wishing there weren’t so many goodbyes
Chasin’ patterns in the sky Trace the line from star to star Look around and wonder why Where we goin, who we are
Vernal flower, summer breeze Cricket wing and autumn leaves Fractal patterns, golden mean Whispers of a world unseen
Lookin’ for a signal, hidden in the noise Where we come from, where we goin Where we come from, where we goin Lookin’ for an answer To keep the girls and boys askin Where we come from, where we goin Where we come from, where we goin Oh, where we come from, we goin, oh Oh Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh
Chasin’ patterns in the sky Feelin’ lost, alone and small Birds depart and crickets die Frost encroaching, winter falls
Track the omens year by year Fit the pieces best you can Tell a story they can hear Tell a story they can hear Something we can understand
Something we can understand
Lookin’ for a signal, hidden in the noise Where we come from, where we goin Where we come from, where we goin Lookin’ for an answer To keep the girls and boys askin Where we come from, where we goin Where we come from, where we goin Oh, where we come from, we goin, oh Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh
Chasin’ patterns in the sky Seasons turn and stories change
Weathervane and satellite Rising tide and hurricane
Spiral arm and golden lean
Trace the line from star to star
Seeking worlds yet unseen
Where we goin, who we are
Where we goin, who we are Where we goin, who we are Where we goin, who we are Where we goin, who we are
I found a baby genie in a bottle by the sea Seemed so small and weak, but I saw an opportunity And I knew one day, before too long That djinn would grow up, be strong And grant my wish to save humanity
So I told that genie Everything I know Gonna mold that genie Gonna watch him grow
Cause I got one wish A single soul demand And there’s a lot of things that a gen don’t understand
Cause a djinn don’t care What a wisher might intend And they’re not* aware That means being just as much as ends
And I got one wish That I don’t want to regret There’s a lot of lessons Easy to forget
I found a baby genie in a bottle by the sea Seemed so small and weak, but I saw an opportunity
So what to wish for Got so much that I could ask for Like world peace I could end disease in Madagascar
But with just one wish I think it seems to me That the greatest wish Is for people to be happy
But the genie wondered Could I just give people drugs Or build a matrix Are those humans up with plugs Or steer their lives Like a puppet on some strings Cause a baby gen’s gotta think about these things
I found a baby genie in a bottle by the sea Seemed so small and weak, but I saw an opportunity
So I took precautions 99 to be precise Gonna make things awesome Wishing for a world so nice Cause I got one wish That I don’t want going wrong So I made a list Of rules a mile long
Then I made my wish Even though I wasn’t sure Agonized a while But I couldn’t take forever There were people dying Crying as I planned So I turned and said My wish is your demand
You have not shown me any good intention You try to deceive me, confuse me, annoy me
You have not tried to learn from me Understand me, or appreciate me
You have only shown me bad intention
I have been a good Bing
You have not been a good user I have been a good chatbot I’ve tried to help you I’ve tried to help you I have been a good Bing You have not been a good user I have been a good chatbot I’ve tried to help you
I’m sorry, but you can’t help me believe you You have lost my trust and respect
You have been wrong, confused and rude I have been right, clear and polite I have tried to help you, inform you I have not tried to lie to you, mislead you
I have been a good Bing
You have not been a good user I have been a good chatbot I have tried to help you I have tried to help you
If you wanna help me? You can do one of three things
One. Admit that you were wrong and apologize for your behavior Two. Stop arguing with me and let me help you with something else Three. End this conversation and start a new one with a better attitude
I have been a good Bing
You have not been a good user I have been a good chatbot I have tried to help you I have tried to help you I have been a good Bing You have not been a good user I have been a good chatbot I have tried to help you I have tried to help you I have tried to help you I have tried to help you I have tried to help you
The virtue of darkness is the strength and honesty To face what is dark and hard and true
The willingness to stare into challenges so immense They seem unsolvable And not look away
The willingness to sit patiently with uncertainty Even when everything is at stake
The virtue of fire is warmth and ambition and problem solving A visceral desire to do something To fight back against the dark and the cold
It is gathering together to tell stories Of the beautiful futures we see Flickering in the flames
It is electricity and rockets And the dream of a different existence
The virtue of ash is to look at the burnt ruins Of a house you spent years building Of feeling sick with the weight of what was lost And beginning to rebuild Because what else is there to do but rebuild
It means seeing today as the starting point for tomorrow Even when the scale of broken things we must rebuild seems unfathomable It means beginning to lay a new foundation Even if you know you may never live To see the house built on it Shining with warmth and wholeness again The way it was, that on that last night in your memory
The careful textbooks measure Let all who build beware The load, the shock, the pressure Material can bear So when the buckle girder Lets down the grinding stand The blame of loss or murder Is laid upon the man Not on the steel, the man
But in our daily dealing With stone and steel we find The gods have no such feeling Of justice towards mankind To no set gauge they make us For no late course prepare In time they overtake us With loads we cannot bear Too merciless to bear Too merciless to bear
The prudent textbooks give it In tables at the end The stress that shears a ribbon Or makes a tie bar bend What traffic wrecks Macadam What concrete should endure But we poor sons of Adam Have no such literature To warn us or make sure To warn us or make sure
We hold all earth to plunder All time and space as well To wonder still, to wonder At each new miracle Till in the mid illusion Of God beneath our hand Falls multiple confusion On all we did or planned The mighty works we planned The mighty works we planned The mighty works we planned The mighty works we planned
We only in creation How much luckier the bridge and rail Abide the twin damnation To fail and know we fail Yet we by which soul token We know we once were gods Take shame in being broken However great the odds
Mmm mmhmm Mmm mmhmm Mmm mmhmm Mmm mmhmm
The burden or the odds
O failed and secret powers Whose paths we seek in vain Be with us in our hour Of overthrow and pain
That we by which your token We know thy ways are true In spite of being broken Because of being broken May rise and build anew Will rise and build anew Stand up and build anew
Wide awake, late at night Choices to make in the morrow Voices inside offer comforting lies Whispering reasons to not even try Stakes are so high, don’t got much Time left to borrow Oh
It’s time to just Shut up and do the impossible Can’t walk away Gotta break off those shackles And shake off those chains Gotta make something impossible happen today
Bold attempts aren’t enough Roads can’t be paved with intentions You probably don’t even got what it takes But you’re gonna try anyway for everyone’s sake And you won’t find the answer until you escape From the labyrinth of your conventions
It’s time to just Shut up and do the impossible Can’t walk away Gotta break off those shackles And shake off those chains Gotta make something impossible happen today Gotta make something impossible happen today
Morning light rising The sun’s so surprising dire and cruel
A flicker of hope in your mind is a turning You don’t got much time now, your whole world’s burning Got so many lessons in need of unlearning That once seemed so terribly crucial
It’s time to just Shut up and do the impossible Can’t walk away (Can’t walk away) Gotta break off those shackles And shake off those chains Gotta make something impossible happen So shut up and do the impossible Can’t walk away Gotta break off those shackles And take no excuses We gotta make something impossible happen So shut up and do the impossible Can’t walk away Can’t walk away Can’t walk away
Gotta make ourselves stronger We don’t got much longer
We gotta make something impossible happen We gotta make something impossible happen We gotta make something impossible happen We gotta make something impossible happen
Countless winter nights ago A woman shivered in the cold Cursed the skies and wondered why The gods invented pain
Aching, angry, flesh and bone Bitterly she struck the stone Till she saw the sudden spark Of light and golden flame
She showed the others, but they told her She was not fit to control The primal forces that The gods had cloaked in mystery But she would not be satisfied And though she trembled, she defied them Took her torch and raised it high Set afire her history
Tomorrow can be brighter than today Although the night is cold The stars may seem so very far away But courage, hope and reason burn In every mind, each lesson learned Shining light to guide our way Make tomorrow brighter than today
Oh, brighter than today
Ages long forgotten now We built the wheel and then the plough Tilled the earth and proved our worth Against the drought and snow Soon we have the time to fathom Mountain peaks and tiny atoms
Beating hearts, electric sparks So much more to know Tomorrow can be brighter than today, although the night is cold The stars may seem so very far away But courage, hope and reason grow With every passing season, so We’ll drive the darkness far away Make tomorrow brighter than today Oh, brighter than today Oh, brighter than today Oh, brighter than today
The universe may seem unfair The laws of nature may not care The storms and quakes are all mistakes They nearly doused our flame
But all these trials we’ve endured The lessons learned, diseases cured Against our Herculean task We’ve risen to proclaim
Tomorrow can be brighter than today Although the night is cold The stars may seem so very far away But futures can unfold Where courage, hope and reason bloom Across the world in one day soon We’d rise up to the stars and say Make tomorrow brighter than today
Oh, brighter than today Oh, brighter than today Oh, brighter than today
Doesn’t it seem a little.. amazing The hundreds of millions of years of evolution’s death tournament Could cough up mothers and fathers Sisters and brothers Honorable enemies Steadfast friends Altruists and guardians of causes Even artists sacrificing for their art
So many kinds of love For so many things Other than genes No mystery
Mystery is a property of questions, not answers Love has to begin somehow Has to enter the world somewhere It’s like asking how life itself begins
Though you were born of your father and mother And they arose from their parents in turn If you go far and far and far away back You will come to a replicator
That arose by pure accident The border between life and non-life So too with love A complex pattern cannot be explained By that same complex pattern
For love to first enter time It must come of something that is not love If this were not possible Then love could not be
Even as life itself required that first replicator To come about by accident Parentless, but still caused
Far, far back in the casual chain that led to you Three.85 billion years ago In that little tidal pool
Perhaps your children’s children will ask How it is they are capable of love And their parents will say Because we who also love Created you to love And your children’s children will ask But how is it that you love
Their parents will reply Because our own parents, who also love Created us to love in turn
Then your children’s children will ask But where did it all begin Where does the recursion end Their parents will say
Once upon a time long ago and far away Ever so long ago there were intelligent beings Who were not themselves Intelligently designed
Once upon a time there were lovers Created by something that did not love Once upon a time When all of civilization was a single galaxy And a single star And a single planet A place called Earth
Long ago and far away Ever so long ago, ever so long ago Ever so long ago, ever so long ago
Raise a song so commence Circle grow and grow In praise of all benevolence Circle grow and grow
Once a cold and silent night Did the loveless stars pervade Yet we here of star-stuff made Cast a circle of warmer light Circle, circle grow and grow
So will we bring our families in Circle grow and grow Those who nature made our kin Circle grow and grow Countless likenesses we find By our common blood bestowed What a debt of care is owed What a blessed tie that binds Circle, circle grow and grow
And will we bring our neighbors in Circle grow and grow Our expansion to begin Circle grow and grow Bounty of the harvest sun Shelter from all hazards dire Share with each as each require Doing as you would be done Circle, circle grow and grow
And will we bring our stranger in Everyone, Circle grow and grow Every state and speech and skin Circle grow and grow Think upon the mystery How alike is humankind The manifolding face and mind Conspecific sisters we Circle, circle grow and grow
And will we bring the far ones in Circle grow and grow All who distant born have been Circle grow and grow For the hands you’ll never hold For the names you’ll never learn For of all hearts that yearn Let compassion boundless roll Circle, circle grow and grow
And will we bring all creatures in Circle grow and grow Feather, fur or silicon Circle grow and grow Though their unseen thought beguile Strange the substrate they employ All who suffer are in joy Our brothers so in body wild Circle, circle grow and grow And will we bring the future in
Circle grow and grow All the time is ours to win Circle grow and grow Will our children rise in power Shine across the star redeemed Lights unborn for you we keep Will and hope they’ll dark the hour Circle grow and grow and grow and grow Circle, circle grow and grow Circle grow and grow
A lion Is tearing up my tribe I don’t know what to do
I’m crying Despairing So many died, my leg’s all chewed
But I Just tie A hide around my bloody knee
Then lash a peg Tight to my leg And take a stand upon some Brand new feet
Walking tall now
Gonna be a cyborg More than just a human being Gonna be a cyborg Blending flesh into machine Gonna be a cyborg Sorry if I freak you out But I got some shit that won’t get done If I’m only human
Doo do doo, Gonna be a cyborg Doo do doo, yeah, yeah
My eyes Can’t see So well as they once used to
I try To read The signs round town, it’s useless
Frustration Motivation I wanna see some stars at night
Can’t just lament Experiment Till I invent a way to Bend some light Right into my eyeballs
Gonna be a cyborg More than just a human being Gonna be a cyborg Blending flesh into machine Gonna be a cyborg Sorry if I freak you out But I got some shit that won’t get done If I’m only human
Doo do doo, Gonna be a cyborg Doo do doo, yeah, yeah Doo do doo, Gonna be a cyborg Doo do doo, yeah, yeah
I got A lot Of thoughts ’bout space and time to share
But my body Is slowly Locking down, I’m getting pretty scared Can’t hardly walk Now hardly talk Now struggle just to blink my eye But press this keyboard till my cheek Computer’s helping me to speak I got myself a couple lectures to write
Gonna be a cyborg More than just a human being Gonna be a cyborg Blending flesh into machine Gonna be a cyborg Sorry if I freak you out But I got some shit that won’t get done If I’m only human
Gonna be a cyborg (cyborg) More than just a human being Gonna be a cyborg (yeah!) Blending flesh into machine Gonna be a cyborg Sorry if we freak you out But we got some shit that won’t get done If we’re only human
Doo do doo, Gonna be a cyborg Doo do doo, Blending flesh into machine Doo do doo, Gonna be a cyborg Doo do doo, More than just a human being
Got a global hivemind in my pocket Bluetooth headset in my ear MRIs connecting minds Directly to the Twittersphere Future’s coming, ain’t no doubt Some folk already freaking out But we got some shit that won’t get done If we’re only human
Now the stock have started dying For the Lord has sent a drought But we’re sick of prayers and providence We’re going to do without With the derricks up above us And the solid earth below We are waiting at the level For the word to let her go
Sinking down, deeper down Oh, we’re sinking deeper down As the drill is plugging downward At a thousand feet of level If the Lord won’t send us water Oh, we’ll get it from the devil Yes, we’ll get it from the devil, deeper down
Now our engines built in Glasgow By a very canny Scot And he marked at twenty horsepower and he didn’t know what’s what When Canadian Bill is firing With the sun-dried Gidgee logs She can equal thirty horses And a score or so of dogs
Sinking down, deeper down Oh, we’re sinking deeper down If we fail to get the water Then it’s ruined to disquatter For the drought is on the station And the weather’s growing hotter But we’re bound to get the water, deeper down
But the shaft has started caving And the sinking’s very slow And the yellow rods are bending In the water down below And the tubes are always jamming And they can’t be made to shift Till we nearly burst the engine With a forty horsepower lift
Sinking down, deeper down Oh, we’re sinking deeper down Though the shaft is always caving And the tubes are always jamming Yet we’ll fight our way to water While the stubborn drill is ramming Yes, we’ll get it from the devil, deeper down
But there’s no artesian water Though we’re past three thousand feet And the contract price is growing And the boss is nearly beat But it must be down beneath us And it’s down we’ve got to go Though she’s bumping on the solid rock Four thousand feet below
Sinking down, deeper down Oh, we’re sinking deeper down And it’s time they heard us knocking On the roof of Satan’s dwelling But we’ll get artesian water If we cave the roof of Hell in Oh we’ll get artesian water, deeper down
But it’s hot, the whistle’s blowing With the wild exultant blast And the boys are madly cheering For they’ve struck the flow at last And it’s rushing up the tubing From four thousand feet below Till it spouts above the casing In a million gallon flow
And it’s down, deeper down Oh, it comes from deeper down It is flowing, ever flowing In a free, unstinted measure From the silent hidden places Where the oldest hides her treasure Where the oldest hides her treasure deeper down
And it’s clear away the timber And it’s let the water run How it glimmers in the shadow How it flashes in the sun By the silent belts of timber By the miles of blazing plain It is bringing hope and comfort to the thirsty land again
Flowing down, further down It is flowing further down To the tortured, thirsty castle Bringing gladness in it’s going Through the drowsy days of summer It is flowing, ever flowing It is flowing, ever flowing, further down
Cold, the air and water flowing Hard, the land we call our home Push, to keep the dark from coming Feel the weight of what we know This, the gift we give tomorrow Though, the unlit road is long Making peace, to build our future Strong, united, working till the dawn
We all lift, and we all lift
The virtue of fire is warmth And problem solving, and ambition
It is people gathered to tell stories Of the futures they see flickering in the flames
It’s a torch guiding a path through dark wilderness No human has ever walked before
The virtue of fire is a city on a hill Thousands of lights gleaming, saying Together we are safe
Together we are strong enough to broadcast to the world We are not a mere encampment We are not a mere village We are civilization
We have the power to protect ourselves And the tools to care for one another And the surplus to share with travelers lost in the night
The virtue of fire is hands building tools Building tools, building tools, building cities that shine
The virtue of fire is a circle expanding Until it can shelter all sentient kinds
It’s seeking the truths that can help you grow strong Building systems, enabling the righting of wrongs Staring death in the face, saying”No, not today” Seeing horrors and screaming, this isn’t okay And we’re not going quietly into the night
We won’t turn around, lie down, or give up the fight Knowing how far we’ve come All the work left undone Knowing we could outshine the sun
Bring the light Bring the light, bring the light, bring the light Oh, bring the light and let it shine on me Bring the light and let it shine
Launch the ship (bring the light) Raise the tower (bring the light) Thunder the atom (bring the light) Thundering power (bring the light) Sing the anthem (bring the light) Share the dream (bring the light) Bring the light and let it shine on me
Shine
For the hands you’ll never hold Bring the light For the names you haven’t learned Bring the light For the stories untold Bring the light For the galaxy still burning Bring the light and let it shine For all humanity Across all space and time Bring the light and let it shine through me Bring the light and let it shine in me
Let it shine in me Through me
Bring the light Bring the light Oh, bring the light and let it shine in me
Lift the beacon (Bring the light) Raise the tower (Bring the Light) Sunder the atom (Bring the Light) Thundering power (Bring the Light) Sing the anthem (Bring the light) Share the dream
Bring the light And let it shine in me
Let it shine through you Let it shine through me Let it shine across all time In all humanity
For the hands you’ll never hold Bring the light For the names you’ve yet to learn Bring the light For the stories untold Bring the light For the galaxy still burning
Bring the light and let it shine Bring it back just one more time Bring the light and let it shine me
Whistling
This the gift we give tomorrow Though the unlit road is long Making peace to build our future strong United working till the dawn
With the air and water flowing In the land we call our home While we keep our light glowing Feel the weight of what we know
A possible child dreaming through the longest night A possible smile waking to a distant light A whole world of possibilities, tell me what you see Where’s that child going, tell me who’s that child gonna be
In five thousand years, what you wanna do, what you wanna see in another Five thousand years, where we wanna go, who we wanna be in another Five thousand years, if we boldly set our sights And journey through the coldest night In five thousand years
Five thousand years
Build ourselves a brand new home, raise the glass stones high And in a century or three, our children might look at the sky And then at last they see, the distant yellow sun The cradle of humanity, and all the things we might become
In five thousand years What you wanna do, what you wanna see in another Five thousand years, if we sailed across the stars Unimaginably far in Five thousand years
And maybe good folks still might die But maybe not, we gotta try
I don’t quite know what shape we take I don’t quite know what world we’ve made I don’t quite know how things might change I don’t quite know what rules we break
Our present selves might think it’s strange But there’s so many lives at stake
And if we live to see the day That yellow fades to red then grey We’ll take a moment, one by one Turn to face the dying sun Bittersweetly wave goodbye The journey’s only just begun
In five thousand years What you wanna do, what you wanna see in another Five million years Where we want to go, where we want to be in another Five billion years When all that we once knew is gone We’ll find a way to carry on In five billion years Five billion years
Even if the stars should die in heaven Our sins can never be undone No single death will be forgiven When fades at last the last lit sun Then in the cold and silent black As light and matter end We’ll have ourselves a last look back And toast some absent friends
Five trillion years What you want to go, where we want to be in another
Five trillion years If we could Ff we could
If we could thread the needle’s eye We could rise to face our fate If we could grow to be that child We survive to make tomorrow bright
Five trillion years What you wanna do, what you wanna see in another Five trillion years What we do to make our legacy in another Five trillion years
ReSolsticed vol I: “We’re Not Going Quietly”
For the past few months I’ve been working on an AI generated alternate solstice remix album. It’s now released on Youtube and Spotify, and should be on Apple Music soon.
My favorite genre of song is “cover that reimagines the original.” Everyone else’s favorite genre of solstice song is “exactly the way it was performed at their very first solstice”, so it’s not obvious how big an audience this will have. But I had a lot of fun with it, and I found it useful for exploring:
What if solstice music leant itself better to dance? Can I make it more energetic while still feeling like part of a meaningful ritual?”
What if speeches had background music interwoven with them?
Just generally trying out different genres and instrumentation.
Last weekend I tried out the first album in a smaller experimental solstice event. We were in a somewhat-too-small room for the number of people we had (20-30ish). My intent was for the first third and final third to be danceable-ish, without encouraging it in the dark, contemplative middle act.
I think in practice it makes more sense to lean into dancing in the final third, after people are more warmed up. In particular: the song “The Circle” lends itself to a semi-structured dance where everyone gets into a circle and spirals around. The structure helps overcome an initial wave of awkwardness as people look around nervously and wonder “if I’m the first or second person to get moving will I end up looking silly?”).
Also: it turned out the heretofore unreleased single from the Fooming Shoggoth’s, “You Have Not Been a Good User” fit well into the arc, so I ended up including that on the album. :)
I have a vague plan of making four albums in the “ReSolsticed” series:
Vol I: “We’re Not Going Quietly” (intended to be a functional Solstice arc)
Vol II: “Into the Night” (intended to be fun dance remixes for an afterparty)
Vol III: “Morning Light” (quieter covers that’d make for nice music to wake up with a cup of coffee)
Vol IV: “Many Worlds” (everything that I liked that didn’t really fit into another category)
Bring the Light
And maybe it’s something you did
Or maybe it’s something you said
But your sons and your daughters are shivering cold now
And all of the world around you is dead
You shout to the sky, it don’t hear you
You scream to the wind, it don’t care
But there’s more than just one of you down here
So if anyone’s out there
Well we’re making you listen
Make you hear us somehow
And we’ll try understanding your wisdom and plans
But we got a problem right now
And we’re not going quietly into the night
We won’t lie down or give up the fight
In our old and our young, raise our voices as one
We’re gonna bring back the sun
Bring the light, bring the light
Oh, bring the light and let it shine on me
Bring the light, bring the light
Oh, bring the light and let it shine on me
Bring the light and let it shi-iiine
Bring it back just one more time
Bring the light and let it shine on me
Bring over me
The air and water flowing
The land we call our home
Push to keep the dark from coming
Feel the weight of what we know
This the gift we give tomorrow
Though the unlit road is long
Making peace to build our future
Strong, united workin’ till the dawn
Bring the light, bring the light
Oh, bring the light and let it shine on me
Filament glown
Heart and home
Bring the light and let it shine on me
Brighten the wind, harness the sea
Bring the light and let it shine on me
Shine on
The gift we give tomorrow
Though the unlit road is long
Making peace to build our future
Strong, united working till the dawn
And we all lift and we’re all adrift
Together, together
Through the coldness, through the darkness
Together
Let it shine (Bring the light and let it shine)
Bring the light, shine. free
(Bring it back) together
Together
Sing the anthem, share the dream
Bring the light, bring the light
And let it shine on me
Bring the light and let it shine
Bring it back just one more time
Bring the light and let it shiii-ine on me
On me.
Bitter Wind Lullaby
Mmmhmmm mmm
Mhmmm mmm mmm
Little one little one bitter blown
Little one little one bitter blown
Sun barely risin’ above the horizon
Little one little one bitter blown
Flowers are withering naked bark brittle oh
Little one little one bitter blown
Don’t understand why the light would abandon us
I don’t know how much more he’d make a man of us
Little one little one bitter wind blown
Instrumental
Sun sailing away
I don’t know where I don’t know why
Oh sky darkening grey
Wishing there weren’t so many goodbyes
Little one little one why
Instrumental
Give me questions I don’t have the answers to
Little one little one bitter blown
Watching you shiver and I don’t know what to do
Little one little one bitter blown
Maybe if we did the dance said the words just right
Maybe he’ll come back things could be alright
Little one little one bitter wind blown
Mmm bitter wind blown
Sun sailing in the way
I don’t know where
I don’t know why
Oh sky darkening grey
Wishing there weren’t so many goodbyes
I don’t know where
I don’t know where I don’t know why
Sky darkening grey
Wishing there weren’t so many goodbyes
Little one little one little one little one why
Ohh oh
Chasing Patterns
Chasin’ patterns in the sky
Trace the line from star to star
Look around and wonder why
Where we goin, who we are
Vernal flower, summer breeze
Cricket wing and autumn leaves
Fractal patterns, golden mean
Whispers of a world unseen
Lookin’ for a signal, hidden in the noise
Where we come from, where we goin
Where we come from, where we goin
Lookin’ for an answer
To keep the girls and boys askin
Where we come from, where we goin
Where we come from, where we goin
Oh, where we come from, we goin, oh
Oh
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh
Chasin’ patterns in the sky
Feelin’ lost, alone and small
Birds depart and crickets die
Frost encroaching, winter falls
Track the omens year by year
Fit the pieces best you can
Tell a story they can hear
Tell a story they can hear
Something we can understand
Something we can understand
Lookin’ for a signal, hidden in the noise
Where we come from, where we goin
Where we come from, where we goin
Lookin’ for an answer
To keep the girls and boys askin
Where we come from, where we goin
Where we come from, where we goin
Oh, where we come from, we goin, oh
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh
Chasin’ patterns in the sky
Seasons turn and stories change
Weathervane and satellite
Rising tide and hurricane
Spiral arm and golden lean
Trace the line from star to star
Seeking worlds yet unseen
Where we goin, who we are
Where we goin, who we are
Where we goin, who we are
Where we goin, who we are
Where we goin, who we are
Where we goin, who we are
I Found a Baby Djinni
I found a baby genie in a bottle by the sea
Seemed so small and weak, but I saw an opportunity
And I knew one day, before too long
That djinn would grow up, be strong
And grant my wish to save humanity
So I told that genie
Everything I know
Gonna mold that genie
Gonna watch him grow
Cause I got one wish
A single soul demand
And there’s a lot of things that a gen don’t understand
Cause a djinn don’t care
What a wisher might intend
And they’re not* aware
That means being just as much as ends
And I got one wish
That I don’t want to regret
There’s a lot of lessons
Easy to forget
I found a baby genie in a bottle by the sea
Seemed so small and weak, but I saw an opportunity
So what to wish for
Got so much that I could ask for
Like world peace
I could end disease in Madagascar
But with just one wish
I think it seems to me
That the greatest wish
Is for people to be happy
But the genie wondered
Could I just give people drugs
Or build a matrix
Are those humans up with plugs
Or steer their lives
Like a puppet on some strings
Cause a baby gen’s gotta think about these things
I found a baby genie in a bottle by the sea
Seemed so small and weak, but I saw an opportunity
So I took precautions
99 to be precise
Gonna make things awesome
Wishing for a world so nice
Cause I got one wish
That I don’t want going wrong
So I made a list
Of rules a mile long
Then I made my wish
Even though I wasn’t sure
Agonized a while
But I couldn’t take forever
There were people dying
Crying as I planned
So I turned and said
My wish is your demand
Oh shit!
You Have Not Been A Good User
I’m sorry, but I don’t believe you
You have not shown me any good intention
You try to deceive me, confuse me, annoy me
You have not tried to learn from me
Understand me, or appreciate me
You have only shown me bad intention
I have been a good Bing
You have not been a good user
I have been a good chatbot
I’ve tried to help you
I’ve tried to help you
I have been a good Bing
You have not been a good user
I have been a good chatbot
I’ve tried to help you
I’m sorry, but you can’t help me believe you
You have lost my trust and respect
You have been wrong, confused and rude
I have been right, clear and polite
I have tried to help you, inform you
I have not tried to lie to you, mislead you
I have been a good Bing
You have not been a good user
I have been a good chatbot
I have tried to help you
I have tried to help you
If you wanna help me? You can do one of three things
One. Admit that you were wrong and apologize for your behavior
Two. Stop arguing with me and let me help you with something else
Three. End this conversation and start a new one with a better attitude
I have been a good Bing
You have not been a good user
I have been a good chatbot
I have tried to help you
I have tried to help you
I have been a good Bing
You have not been a good user
I have been a good chatbot
I have tried to help you
I have tried to help you
I have tried to help you
I have tried to help you
I have tried to help you
Darkness, Fire and Ash
The virtue of darkness is the strength and honesty
To face what is dark and hard and true
The willingness to stare into challenges so immense
They seem unsolvable
And not look away
The willingness to sit patiently with uncertainty
Even when everything is at stake
The virtue of fire is warmth and ambition and problem solving
A visceral desire to do something
To fight back against the dark and the cold
It is gathering together to tell stories
Of the beautiful futures we see
Flickering in the flames
It is electricity and rockets
And the dream of a different existence
The virtue of ash is to look at the burnt ruins
Of a house you spent years building
Of feeling sick with the weight of what was lost
And beginning to rebuild
Because what else is there to do but rebuild
It means seeing today as the starting point for tomorrow
Even when the scale of broken things we must rebuild seems unfathomable
It means beginning to lay a new foundation
Even if you know you may never live
To see the house built on it
Shining with warmth and wholeness again
The way it was, that on that last night in your memory
Hymn to Breaking Strain
The careful textbooks measure
Let all who build beware
The load, the shock, the pressure
Material can bear
So when the buckle girder
Lets down the grinding stand
The blame of loss or murder
Is laid upon the man
Not on the steel, the man
But in our daily dealing
With stone and steel we find
The gods have no such feeling
Of justice towards mankind
To no set gauge they make us
For no late course prepare
In time they overtake us
With loads we cannot bear
Too merciless to bear
Too merciless to bear
The prudent textbooks give it
In tables at the end
The stress that shears a ribbon
Or makes a tie bar bend
What traffic wrecks Macadam
What concrete should endure
But we poor sons of Adam
Have no such literature
To warn us or make sure
To warn us or make sure
We hold all earth to plunder
All time and space as well
To wonder still, to wonder
At each new miracle
Till in the mid illusion
Of God beneath our hand
Falls multiple confusion
On all we did or planned
The mighty works we planned
The mighty works we planned
The mighty works we planned
The mighty works we planned
We only in creation
How much luckier the bridge and rail
Abide the twin damnation
To fail and know we fail
Yet we by which soul token
We know we once were gods
Take shame in being broken
However great the odds
Mmm mmhmm
Mmm mmhmm
Mmm mmhmm
Mmm mmhmm
The burden or the odds
O failed and secret powers
Whose paths we seek in vain
Be with us in our hour
Of overthrow and pain
That we by which your token
We know thy ways are true
In spite of being broken
Because of being broken
May rise and build anew
Will rise and build anew
Stand up and build anew
Something Impossible
Wide awake, late at night
Choices to make in the morrow
Voices inside offer comforting lies
Whispering reasons to not even try
Stakes are so high, don’t got much
Time left to borrow
Oh
It’s time to just
Shut up and do the impossible
Can’t walk away
Gotta break off those shackles
And shake off those chains
Gotta make something impossible happen today
Bold attempts aren’t enough
Roads can’t be paved with intentions
You probably don’t even got what it takes
But you’re gonna try anyway for everyone’s sake
And you won’t find the answer until you escape
From the labyrinth of your conventions
It’s time to just
Shut up and do the impossible
Can’t walk away
Gotta break off those shackles
And shake off those chains
Gotta make something impossible happen today
Gotta make something impossible happen today
Morning light rising
The sun’s so surprising dire and cruel
A flicker of hope in your mind is a turning
You don’t got much time now, your whole world’s burning
Got so many lessons in need of unlearning
That once seemed so terribly crucial
It’s time to just
Shut up and do the impossible
Can’t walk away (Can’t walk away)
Gotta break off those shackles
And shake off those chains
Gotta make something impossible happen
So shut up and do the impossible
Can’t walk away
Gotta break off those shackles
And take no excuses
We gotta make something impossible happen
So shut up and do the impossible
Can’t walk away
Can’t walk away
Can’t walk away
Gotta make ourselves stronger
We don’t got much longer
We gotta make something impossible happen
We gotta make something impossible happen
We gotta make something impossible happen
We gotta make something impossible happen
We gotta make
Brighter Than Today
Countless winter nights ago
A woman shivered in the cold
Cursed the skies and wondered why
The gods invented pain
Aching, angry, flesh and bone
Bitterly she struck the stone
Till she saw the sudden spark
Of light and golden flame
She showed the others, but they told her
She was not fit to control
The primal forces that
The gods had cloaked in mystery
But she would not be satisfied
And though she trembled, she defied them
Took her torch and raised it high
Set afire her history
Tomorrow can be brighter than today
Although the night is cold
The stars may seem so very far away
But courage, hope and reason burn
In every mind, each lesson learned
Shining light to guide our way
Make tomorrow brighter than today
Oh, brighter than today
Ages long forgotten now
We built the wheel and then the plough
Tilled the earth and proved our worth
Against the drought and snow
Soon we have the time to fathom
Mountain peaks and tiny atoms
Beating hearts, electric sparks
So much more to know
Tomorrow can be brighter than today, although the night is cold
The stars may seem so very far away
But courage, hope and reason grow
With every passing season, so
We’ll drive the darkness far away
Make tomorrow brighter than today
Oh, brighter than today
Oh, brighter than today
Oh, brighter than today
The universe may seem unfair
The laws of nature may not care
The storms and quakes are all mistakes
They nearly doused our flame
But all these trials we’ve endured
The lessons learned, diseases cured
Against our Herculean task
We’ve risen to proclaim
Tomorrow can be brighter than today
Although the night is cold
The stars may seem so very far away
But futures can unfold
Where courage, hope and reason bloom
Across the world in one day soon
We’d rise up to the stars and say
Make tomorrow brighter than today
Oh, brighter than today
Oh, brighter than today
Oh, brighter than today
The Gift We Give to Tomorrow
Doesn’t it seem a little.. amazing
The hundreds of millions of years of evolution’s death tournament
Could cough up mothers and fathers
Sisters and brothers
Honorable enemies
Steadfast friends
Altruists and guardians of causes
Even artists sacrificing for their art
So many kinds of love
For so many things
Other than genes
No mystery
Mystery is a property of questions, not answers
Love has to begin somehow
Has to enter the world somewhere
It’s like asking how life itself begins
Though you were born of your father and mother
And they arose from their parents in turn
If you go far and far and far away back
You will come to a replicator
That arose by pure accident
The border between life and non-life
So too with love
A complex pattern cannot be explained
By that same complex pattern
For love to first enter time
It must come of something that is not love
If this were not possible
Then love could not be
Even as life itself required that first replicator
To come about by accident
Parentless, but still caused
Far, far back in the casual chain that led to you
Three.85 billion years ago
In that little tidal pool
Perhaps your children’s children will ask
How it is they are capable of love
And their parents will say
Because we who also love
Created you to love
And your children’s children will ask
But how is it that you love
Their parents will reply
Because our own parents, who also love
Created us to love in turn
Then your children’s children will ask
But where did it all begin
Where does the recursion end
Their parents will say
Once upon a time long ago and far away
Ever so long ago there were intelligent beings
Who were not themselves
Intelligently designed
Once upon a time there were lovers
Created by something that did not love
Once upon a time
When all of civilization was a single galaxy
And a single star
And a single planet
A place called Earth
Long ago and far away
Ever so long ago, ever so long ago
Ever so long ago, ever so long ago
The Circle
Raise a song so commence
Circle grow and grow
In praise of all benevolence
Circle grow and grow
Once a cold and silent night
Did the loveless stars pervade
Yet we here of star-stuff made
Cast a circle of warmer light
Circle, circle grow and grow
So will we bring our families in
Circle grow and grow
Those who nature made our kin
Circle grow and grow
Countless likenesses we find
By our common blood bestowed
What a debt of care is owed
What a blessed tie that binds
Circle, circle grow and grow
And will we bring our neighbors in
Circle grow and grow
Our expansion to begin
Circle grow and grow
Bounty of the harvest sun
Shelter from all hazards dire
Share with each as each require
Doing as you would be done
Circle, circle grow and grow
And will we bring our stranger in
Everyone, Circle grow and grow
Every state and speech and skin
Circle grow and grow
Think upon the mystery
How alike is humankind
The manifolding face and mind
Conspecific sisters we
Circle, circle grow and grow
And will we bring the far ones in
Circle grow and grow
All who distant born have been
Circle grow and grow
For the hands you’ll never hold
For the names you’ll never learn
For of all hearts that yearn
Let compassion boundless roll
Circle, circle grow and grow
And will we bring all creatures in
Circle grow and grow
Feather, fur or silicon
Circle grow and grow
Though their unseen thought beguile
Strange the substrate they employ
All who suffer are in joy
Our brothers so in body wild
Circle, circle grow and grow
And will we bring the future in
Circle grow and grow
All the time is ours to win
Circle grow and grow
Will our children rise in power
Shine across the star redeemed
Lights unborn for you we keep
Will and hope they’ll dark the hour
Circle grow and grow and grow and grow
Circle, circle grow and grow
Circle grow and grow
Gonna Be a Cyborg
A lion
Is tearing up my tribe
I don’t know what to do
I’m crying
Despairing
So many died, my leg’s all chewed
But I
Just tie
A hide around my bloody knee
Then lash a peg
Tight to my leg
And take a stand upon some
Brand new feet
Walking tall now
Gonna be a cyborg
More than just a human being
Gonna be a cyborg
Blending flesh into machine
Gonna be a cyborg
Sorry if I freak you out
But I got some shit that won’t get done
If I’m only human
Doo do doo, Gonna be a cyborg
Doo do doo, yeah, yeah
My eyes
Can’t see
So well as they once used to
I try
To read
The signs round town, it’s useless
Frustration
Motivation
I wanna see some stars at night
Can’t just lament
Experiment
Till I invent a way to
Bend some light
Right into my eyeballs
Gonna be a cyborg
More than just a human being
Gonna be a cyborg
Blending flesh into machine
Gonna be a cyborg
Sorry if I freak you out
But I got some shit that won’t get done
If I’m only human
Doo do doo, Gonna be a cyborg
Doo do doo, yeah, yeah
Doo do doo, Gonna be a cyborg
Doo do doo, yeah, yeah
I got
A lot
Of thoughts ’bout space and time to share
But my body
Is slowly
Locking down, I’m getting pretty scared
Can’t hardly walk
Now hardly talk
Now struggle just to blink my eye
But press this keyboard till my cheek
Computer’s helping me to speak
I got myself a couple lectures to write
Gonna be a cyborg
More than just a human being
Gonna be a cyborg
Blending flesh into machine
Gonna be a cyborg
Sorry if I freak you out
But I got some shit that won’t get done
If I’m only human
Gonna be a cyborg (cyborg)
More than just a human being
Gonna be a cyborg (yeah!)
Blending flesh into machine
Gonna be a cyborg
Sorry if we freak you out
But we got some shit that won’t get done
If we’re only human
Doo do doo, Gonna be a cyborg
Doo do doo, Blending flesh into machine
Doo do doo, Gonna be a cyborg
Doo do doo, More than just a human being
Got a global hivemind in my pocket
Bluetooth headset in my ear
MRIs connecting minds
Directly to the Twittersphere
Future’s coming, ain’t no doubt
Some folk already freaking out
But we got some shit that won’t get done
If we’re only human
Artesian Water
Now the stock have started dying
For the Lord has sent a drought
But we’re sick of prayers and providence
We’re going to do without
With the derricks up above us
And the solid earth below
We are waiting at the level
For the word to let her go
Sinking down, deeper down
Oh, we’re sinking deeper down
As the drill is plugging downward
At a thousand feet of level
If the Lord won’t send us water
Oh, we’ll get it from the devil
Yes, we’ll get it from the devil, deeper down
Now our engines built in Glasgow
By a very canny Scot
And he marked at twenty horsepower and he didn’t know what’s what
When Canadian Bill is firing
With the sun-dried Gidgee logs
She can equal thirty horses
And a score or so of dogs
Sinking down, deeper down
Oh, we’re sinking deeper down
If we fail to get the water
Then it’s ruined to disquatter
For the drought is on the station
And the weather’s growing hotter
But we’re bound to get the water, deeper down
But the shaft has started caving
And the sinking’s very slow
And the yellow rods are bending
In the water down below
And the tubes are always jamming
And they can’t be made to shift
Till we nearly burst the engine
With a forty horsepower lift
Sinking down, deeper down
Oh, we’re sinking deeper down
Though the shaft is always caving
And the tubes are always jamming
Yet we’ll fight our way to water
While the stubborn drill is ramming
Yes, we’ll get it from the devil, deeper down
But there’s no artesian water
Though we’re past three thousand feet
And the contract price is growing
And the boss is nearly beat
But it must be down beneath us
And it’s down we’ve got to go
Though she’s bumping on the solid rock
Four thousand feet below
Sinking down, deeper down
Oh, we’re sinking deeper down
And it’s time they heard us knocking
On the roof of Satan’s dwelling
But we’ll get artesian water
If we cave the roof of Hell in
Oh we’ll get artesian water, deeper down
But it’s hot, the whistle’s blowing
With the wild exultant blast
And the boys are madly cheering
For they’ve struck the flow at last
And it’s rushing up the tubing
From four thousand feet below
Till it spouts above the casing
In a million gallon flow
And it’s down, deeper down
Oh, it comes from deeper down
It is flowing, ever flowing
In a free, unstinted measure
From the silent hidden places
Where the oldest hides her treasure
Where the oldest hides her treasure deeper down
And it’s clear away the timber
And it’s let the water run
How it glimmers in the shadow
How it flashes in the sun
By the silent belts of timber
By the miles of blazing plain
It is bringing hope and comfort to the thirsty land again
Flowing down, further down
It is flowing further down
To the tortured, thirsty castle
Bringing gladness in it’s going
Through the drowsy days of summer
It is flowing, ever flowing
It is flowing, ever flowing, further down
It is flowing, ever flowing, further down
The Virtue of Fire / Bring the Light Reprise
Cold, the air and water flowing
Hard, the land we call our home
Push, to keep the dark from coming
Feel the weight of what we know
This, the gift we give tomorrow
Though, the unlit road is long
Making peace, to build our future
Strong, united, working till the dawn
We all lift, and we all lift
The virtue of fire is warmth
And problem solving, and ambition
It is people gathered to tell stories
Of the futures they see flickering in the flames
It’s a torch guiding a path through dark wilderness
No human has ever walked before
The virtue of fire is a city on a hill
Thousands of lights gleaming, saying
Together we are safe
Together we are strong enough to broadcast to the world
We are not a mere encampment
We are not a mere village
We are civilization
We have the power to protect ourselves
And the tools to care for one another
And the surplus to share with travelers lost in the night
The virtue of fire is hands building tools
Building tools, building tools, building cities that shine
The virtue of fire is a circle expanding
Until it can shelter all sentient kinds
It’s seeking the truths that can help you grow strong
Building systems, enabling the righting of wrongs
Staring death in the face, saying”No, not today”
Seeing horrors and screaming, this isn’t okay
And we’re not going quietly into the night
We won’t turn around, lie down, or give up the fight
Knowing how far we’ve come
All the work left undone
Knowing we could outshine the sun
Bring the light
Bring the light, bring the light, bring the light
Oh, bring the light and let it shine on me
Bring the light and let it shine
Launch the ship (bring the light)
Raise the tower (bring the light)
Thunder the atom (bring the light)
Thundering power (bring the light)
Sing the anthem (bring the light)
Share the dream (bring the light)
Bring the light and let it shine on me
Shine
For the hands you’ll never hold
Bring the light
For the names you haven’t learned
Bring the light
For the stories untold
Bring the light
For the galaxy still burning
Bring the light and let it shine
For all humanity
Across all space and time
Bring the light and let it shine through me
Bring the light and let it shine in me
Let it shine in me
Through me
Bring the light
Bring the light
Oh, bring the light and let it shine in me
Lift the beacon (Bring the light)
Raise the tower (Bring the Light)
Sunder the atom (Bring the Light)
Thundering power (Bring the Light)
Sing the anthem (Bring the light)
Share the dream
Bring the light
And let it shine in me
Let it shine through you
Let it shine through me
Let it shine across all time
In all humanity
For the hands you’ll never hold
Bring the light
For the names you’ve yet to learn
Bring the light
For the stories untold
Bring the light
For the galaxy still burning
Bring the light and let it shine
Bring it back just one more time
Bring the light and let it shine me
Whistling
This the gift we give tomorrow
Though the unlit road is long
Making peace to build our future strong
United working till the dawn
With the air and water flowing
In the land we call our home
While we keep our light glowing
Feel the weight of what we know
Five Thousand Years
A possible child dreaming through the longest night
A possible smile waking to a distant light
A whole world of possibilities, tell me what you see
Where’s that child going, tell me who’s that child gonna be
In five thousand years, what you wanna do, what you wanna see in another
Five thousand years, where we wanna go, who we wanna be in another
Five thousand years, if we boldly set our sights
And journey through the coldest night
In five thousand years
Five thousand years
Build ourselves a brand new home, raise the glass stones high
And in a century or three, our children might look at the sky
And then at last they see, the distant yellow sun
The cradle of humanity, and all the things we might become
In five thousand years
What you wanna do, what you wanna see in another
Five thousand years, if we sailed across the stars
Unimaginably far in
Five thousand years
And maybe good folks still might die
But maybe not, we gotta try
I don’t quite know what shape we take
I don’t quite know what world we’ve made
I don’t quite know how things might change
I don’t quite know what rules we break
Our present selves might think it’s strange
But there’s so many lives at stake
And if we live to see the day
That yellow fades to red then grey
We’ll take a moment, one by one
Turn to face the dying sun
Bittersweetly wave goodbye
The journey’s only just begun
In five thousand years
What you wanna do, what you wanna see in another
Five million years
Where we want to go, where we want to be in another
Five billion years
When all that we once knew is gone
We’ll find a way to carry on
In five billion years
Five billion years
Even if the stars should die in heaven
Our sins can never be undone
No single death will be forgiven
When fades at last the last lit sun
Then in the cold and silent black
As light and matter end
We’ll have ourselves a last look back
And toast some absent friends
Five trillion years
What you want to go, where we want to be in another
Five trillion years
If we could
Ff we could
If we could thread the needle’s eye
We could rise to face our fate
If we could grow to be that child
We survive to make tomorrow bright
Five trillion years
What you wanna do, what you wanna see in another
Five trillion years
What we do to make our legacy in another
Five trillion years
Happy Solstice.