Life of Agony

River Runs Red - 1993

1. This Time
2. Underground
3. Monday
4. River Runs Red
5. Through and Through
6. Words and Music
7. Thursday
8. Bad Seed
9. My Eyes
10. Respect
11. Method of Groove
12. The Stain Remains
13. Friday
14. Plexi Intro (live)
15. Respect (live)
16. This Time (live)
17. Through and Through (live)



1. This Time


When all is said and done
I´ll always be your son
But all is not forgiven
Well I´m on my knees pleading
Just ´cause I´m grown you think I don´t need
Much more than what you´ve ever given me

So when we gonna get together
Seems there´s no time for me
You act like you got forever
You´ve got time, but you ain´t got time for me
You said you´ve got time
But you ain´t got time for me

Now that you´ve gone and tossed
The bottle away now will ya
Start a new life with the new wife
Well she´ll never be my mother
I suppose that you know you oughta
Remember the ones you left behind

You´re just letting it slip away now
You act like things are fine
Iknow you think you´ve been born again
But this time
You´re leaving your son behind
This time
This time
This time



2. Underground


If you don´t walk with me, Iwill walk alone
Hard enough to believe in myself
When I know they don´t believe in me
Unwilling to change for society
I´ll be who I wanna beI wanna tear it up, tear it out
Get my aggression out
This is what we´re here for, control the dance floor
This is why we´re here
I said, this is why we´re here
So when will it end, when will it end
When will they comprehend, comprehend
That we will overcome this system
I said this is why we´re here
They keep on kicking me down, kicking me down
Tryin´ to keep me underground, underground
But did I mention we were paving the way
For the new breed of bad seed
We´ll never let up until we hear every voice scream
Screamin´ these words, screamin´ these words
´Til every voice is heard, voice is heard
They keep on screamin´ these words, screamin´ these words
´Til every voice is heard...Calling from the underground!
I can feel it in the air I breathe!I can see we all agree
Unwilling to change for society
We´ll be who we wanna be
We are the underground
We are the underground



3. Monday


MOTHER: Yeah, sure, now you walk in! You walk in now, four o´clock! You´re one hour latefor dinner! You know, the school called me today and told me you´d been playing hooky. Doyou know that? Who do you think you are? Don´t walk away from me! Don´t walk away from me!
(Door opens and closes; Mother´s voice muffled; Kid takes off coat, rewinds tape on answering machine.)

GIRLFRIEND: Hi. It´s me. I just wanted to tell you that, I don´t know if you know this,but we haven´t really been gettin´ along lately. And, I just don´t feel the same anymore. And, I hope we can still be friends and all, but I don´t wanna go out with you anymore. Sorry. (Long silence; Beep)



4. River Runs Red


I got the razor at my wrist´ Cause I can´t resist
I´ve got this fever burnin´ fist
That does as I wish
But when I get down town
And see what´s around
I just know there´s got to be
A better place to be found

Oh, God help me
The river runs red and I think I´m dyin´

Well I knew there´d come a day
When my mind would say Hey are you afraid?
Well all I know is that I been down here tryin´
Well, I´ll bleed on through the night
I suppose I´ll be dead by the morning light
No don´t be surprised if you mind when you find me

Oh, God help me



5. Through and Through


You´ve got that look in youreye again
It´s working overtime
Worried about where I´m gonna spend my life
But it´s much too late, it´s much too late
Oh it´s much too late to start picking fights
You said: Where ya been, where ya been
Where ya going to, where ya going to, where ya going to?
´Cause I´m right here, yeah
Can´t it wait, can´t it wait, can´t it wait
Just a minute now, just a minute now, come on

I need some air to breathe
I need some space, just leave´
Cause I´m colder than ever (colder than ever)
I said I´m colder than ever
I´m empty, empty through and through

Someday they´ll see, someday I´ll be
Unwanting of somewhere to hide
But for now I´ll take shelter
Deep in the back of my mind
Can it wait? Can´t you wait?
Cause I ain´t ready to lay it on the line
I still shake, I still shake
From this chill in my spine
I´ve got this chill yeah
In the back of my spine
Baby all the time now
Chilling my bones, chilling all alone now
Find a way, find a way, I´ve found a way
To cope with the everyday now
Raise your hands if you understand

Smiling´s just a phase yeah
And nothing can phase me



6. Words and Music


Is there something wrongwith me?
Ripping through the walls
Tearing at the doors of education
Not that it´s my fault
I just can´t help but sort
Through the pieces
Secluded from the whore
I focus at the board-I´m out of focus

There must be a way
There´s got to be a way to overcome this
It´s these words and music
That keeps me living, keeps me breathing

It may not be much
But this is all I got
And I´m smilingIt all seems so pointless
The hours seem so endless
And for what?
I´d rather be working
Breaking my back doing something

At least I have my brothers, my band and my lover
What more could I need?
I buried my friend the other day
And I saw my life in a different way
It was a cold afternoon for a funeral
I did not shed a tear as I watched the snow fall
Is there something wrong with me?
When did I become this empty?
As I gazed down at his grave
I knew that someday I´d end up
That way!



7. Thursday


MOTHER: Eh, back so soon? You know, don´t you have a decent pair of pants you can put on?You look like a...a PIG walking in the street!
Your hands, your face-filthy! You disgust me! I can´t believe you live in this house!
You repulse me. I want to throw up! (Phone rings) Goddamn kids!
(Door opens and closes)

MOTHER: Right! Slam the door again on me! You know, you´re just like your father!

(Voice becomes muffled; sound of answering machine tape rewinding)

BOSS: Yeah, I´m callin´ ´em now...Hello? Hello? Pick up the phone! Where the fuck are you?What´s the matter, you just decided not to come to work today? What the fuck is wrong withyou? Ya fuckin´ lowlife! Hey, you know what? Don´t even bother coming in anymore. I´ve hadenough with you and your shit. That´s it, you´re fired. You understand me? Fired. Don´tcome back here, fuck you, and goodbye.

(Silence on machine; sound of cigarette lighter; beep)

MRS. GLICKER: Hello, this is Mrs. Glicker. I´m calling to reach you about,to let you know,that, uh, you, you´re not graduating this year because you are failing two subjects and Ineed to see you as soon as possible. Be in my office on Monday at 8:30 a.m., promptly, andwe´ll discuss this matter further. Thank you. Bye.

(Phone hangs up; silence; beep; shuts off machine)



8. Bad Seed


Im I to blame?
If I won´t speak her name,if I won´t face her grave
Maybe I´m to blame, maybe I´m to blame
Since you´re gone, I´ve never felt the same
Well maybe I´m just a bad seed
Of the family I´ll get my sleep without tear-stained sheets
And I´ll never come cryin´ for sympathy
Well I need a place to run to
Yeah I need a place to hide
Yeah I need a place where I don´t need a smile as my disguise
Am I to blame?
If I won´t face your grave
Am I to blame? Am I to blame?
If I cannot bear to face your grave
And mother please shine down on me
Show me that I´m not the bad seed Maybe I´m to blame, maybe I´m to blame
Since you´re gone I never felt the same
Well maybe my mind´s deceiving me
But I think you took the easy way out
You left me standing there empty handed
As soon as you put the gun in your mouth
So please don´t keep on asking
If there´s something wrong
´Cause you know damn well if I was fine
I would´ve never ever written this song
Am I to blame?
If I won´t face your grave



9. My Eyes


A little older, little wiser
With every breath I learn just a little more
And with all I´ve seen, I´ve finally made up my mind
Enough of this world
Enough blood in these eyes
So, so, so sick of this life

It´s about time I realized
Release this hate from inside
Enough blood in my eyes
Call it what you will
Call it suicide

Disregard how you feel
I´m just freeing my mind
Clench my teeth as I sleep
So, so, so sick of this life
Cannot take, cannot fake
Can´t shake this blood from these eyes

All I have and all I will be
Nevertheless I´ll live for all eternity
´Cause you can´t erase my words, can´t erase my mind
You can´t wipe out my thoughts
Can´t shake this blood from my eyes
So, so, so don´t even try

Just give me one good reason to live
I´ll give you three to die
Let´s leave this world behind



10. Respect


From day one I could notcomprehend
Was it us, was it me or was it them?
Friends will come and go as it seems
And now I have no shoulder on which to lean
Still I do not understand
You break your back for something
Well where´s the fans?

Show me-respect
And I´llShow me-show you right back

I see the boys that I once called my friends
They´ll fake a smile and then they´ll shake your hand
When will this ever end?
I look around at my brothers
My only true friends

You got a lot to learn my friend
You´ve got a lot to learn about respect



11. Method of Groove


We´ve got the method ofgroove that grabbed your attention
Now that you´re aware we´re gonna give you the message
My father taught me many things
Living deaf, dumb and blind will get you nothing
So listen up and hear what I have to say
It´s never too late to learn in this day and age
We´ll point you in a new direction
Passed down to this generation
If you´ve learned anything from me
It would be to hold on to your dreams
Learn from my mistakes
And it will take off some of the weight
He said, "You got your whole life to live,And so much more to give
Never compromise and you will never live a lie."
He said, "Son, remember where you came from."
We never doubted ourselves for a minute
Oh they may criticize and compromise, but we were always in it
So come on down and see what this is all about
It´s in our soul, on the road, wherever we may go
So wake up, nothing can stop us
We got the chaos so just let us
Provide the lines that make your mind spend the time
Think before you sink to the bottomHe said, "Son, remember where you came from."



12. The Stain Remains


Was it me? Honestly
Turn away from my purity
Never look back and don´t look ahead
At those lies that night or empty promises
It´s the blood in your tears
The pain in your veins
The lies, the cries, only the
Only the stain remains
Everyday-I live it
Everyday-I face it
Everyday-I hate it
All I need is me and that´s it
I wish I could turn back the hands of time
And maybe I would believe in a dream I cannot even see
Close your ears if you don´t want to hear
Let me make myself perfectly clear
I don´t believe your dream even exists
Save your prayers and solve your problems with your fist
Sometimes I don´t see any point in life
Can´t seem to break away
From the pain that´s here to stay
All I need, set me free
All I need, set me free
All I need, set me free
All I need...is me!



13. Friday


MOTHER: That´s right! That´sall you do, just sit in front of the TV!
FATHER: Hey, don´t break my balls, shut up already!
MOTHER: You´re not gonna help! I gotta deal with your kids and that loser son of yours...
FATHER: I work hard all day and I gotta deal with your SHIT! (Sound of glass breaking)
MOTHER: What do you fuckin´ think you´re doing? What are you doing?!
FATHER: How do you like that?!
MOTHER: What do you think you´re doing?
FATHER: How do you like that?!
MOTHER: You fucking animal!
FATHER: I told you to shut the hell up!
MOTHER: Don´t you ruin my kitchen! I´m sick of this! I want out! I want out!
FATHER: Get the fuck outta here!
MOTHER: I can´t stand this! You and your lousy fucking kids!
FATHER: Hey, how do you like that you bitch? (More glass breaking)
MOTHER: Don´t you destroy my kitchen!
FATHER: Hey, I´ll destroy your world!
MOTHER: FUCK YOU! You PIECE OF SHIT! Now get out of here you pig!
FATHER: Yeah, get outta here...you!
MOTHER: You and your fucking loser son! (Door slams) I´m outta here! I´m not dealing withnothing anymore! You piece of shit! I WANT OUT! I WANT OUT!
(Kid breathes heavily; turns on stereo)
MOTHER: Get outta here! Get outta here! I CAN´T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!!
(Sound of bathroom door opening and closing; bathtub water turned on)
MOTHER: I want you outta here! Right this minute! I gotta use the bathroom! Whatta youdoin´ in there?! You goin´ through my makeup? It´s my bathroom, I gotta use it! Don´ttouch my tampons! It´s my bathroom, I work hard to keep it clean, I can use it whenever Iwant!
(Sound of Kid slitting wrists; brief cry of pain)
MOTHER: It´s my bathroom!
(Sound of blood dripping into the bathtub; door opens)
MOTHER: Oh, oh, OH MY GOD! OH JESUS CHRIST! NO! NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!! OOOOH MYYYY GOOOOD!!!!
(Dripping continues)



14. Plexi Intro (live)


-instrumental-



15. Respect (live)


From day one I could notcomprehend
Was it us, was it me or was it them?
Friends will come and go as it seems
And now I have no shoulder on which to lean
Still I do not understand
You break your back for something
Well where´s the fans?

Show me-respect
And I´llShow me-show you right back

I see the boys that I once called my friends
They´ll fake a smile and then they´ll shake your hand
When will this ever end?
I look around at my brothers
My only true friends

You got a lot to learn my friend
You´ve got a lot to learn about respect



16. This Time (live)


When all is said and done
I´ll always be your son
But all is not forgiven
Well I´m on my knees pleading
Just ´cause I´m grown you think I don´t need
Much more than what you´ve ever given me

So when we gonna get together
Seems there´s no time for me
You act like you got forever
You´ve got time, but you ain´t got time for me
You said you´ve got time
But you ain´t got time for me

Now that you´ve gone and tossed
The bottle away now will ya
Start a new life with the new wife
Well she´ll never be my mother
I suppose that you know you oughta
Remember the ones you left behind

You´re just letting it slip away now
You act like things are fine
I know you think you´ve been born again
But this time
You´re leaving your son behind
This time
This time
This time



17. Through and Through (live)


You´ve got that look in youreye again
It´s working overtime
Worried about where I´m gonna spend my life
But it´s much too late, it´s much too late
Oh it´s much too late to start picking fights
You said: Where ya been, where ya been
Where ya going to, where ya going to, where ya going to?
´Cause I´m right here, yeah
Can´t it wait, can´t it wait, can´t it wait
Just a minute now, just a minute now, come on

I need some air to breathe
I need some space, just leave´Cause I´m colder than ever (colder than ever)
I said I´m colder than ever
I´m empty, empty through and through

Someday they´ll see, someday I´ll be
Unwanting of somewhere to hide
But for now I´ll take shelter
Deep in the back of my mind
Can it wait? Can´t you wait?´Cause I ain´t ready to lay it on the line
I still shake, I still shake
From this chill in my spine
I´ve got this chill yeah
In the back of my spine
Baby all the time now
Chilling my bones, chilling all alone now
Find a way, find a way, I´ve found a way
To cope with the everyday now
Raise your hands if you understand

Smiling´s just a phase yeah
And nothing can phase me


edit