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Adaptation

by That Dream Was Our Life

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1.
Dancing With You At The End Of The World 03:10
lyrics
The punchline at the end of the joke is like a slap in the face Transmissions that I'm sending to you over the vacuum of space Headlights snaking over the bridge can barely break through the fog I'm screaming your name over high beam lanes cause I don't know where you are Who's dancing with you at the end of the world In your room as the calendar burns The arrow at the end of the road leads to a break in the bend The wall behind the break in the bend is made of guilt & cement My dad told me we are ruled by greed & fear I was twelve & it was true but when I think about you My worry disappears Who's dancing with you at the end of the world In your room as the calendar burns
2.
Throw Away The Key 03:11
lyrics
Your voice rings like piano keys Haunt my footsteps like a ghost Try to catch the melody But you melt away like frost I don't know what day it is or where I'm writing this letter from I don't know if you're still there or if I'll ever make it home You're so beautiful to me Broken wedding bells still sing Throw away the key for we are never free As sleepless as a fantasy that has no right To tell you how to feel As distant as a century or a future That's far too dark to see I burn for you most every night Floating embers sing & dance I don't know how to make it right What if I never get the chance You're so beautiful to me Broken wedding bells still sing Throw away the key for we are never free Sometimes it stares you in the face but you can't see it If you only want something don't tell yourself you need it If it doesn't bring you joy then maybe you should leave it If you make a promise to yourself make sure you keep it You're so beautiful to me Broken wedding bells still sing Throw away the key for we are never free Your arm in mine The reason why We made a lonely star Neon states blowing past Like headlights from a car All we have is danger, tell your secrets to the moon These days we act like strangers but no one compares to you
3.
Adaptation 03:39
lyrics
Red skies in the morning, I'm taking off Every secret has its price but no one wants to pay the cost A crown of thorns in a Jesus year The adaptation of a disaster film that we live for real There's magic in your eyes More than anyone could own It should come as no surprise You know something that I don't Princess bed for a princess, to be served like a queen Desire paths in abandoned meadows that lead you to your dreams Don't ask for something I can't give, don't tell me how to tell the truth We'll never know the blur of the moon as well as lovers do There's magic in your eyes More than anyone could own It should come as no surprise You know something that I don't I don't want to find someone when I know that I'm better off alone I don't want to fall in love but I'll drown if I fill my heart with stone The love cry of the dinner party is "everyone leaves" And it's the only thing that ever brought me to my knees I said that I felt like a ghost & you said you understood That being loved by someone doesn't make them good
4.
It's Been A Bad Year 03:54
lyrics
I thought our days would be full of friends That there was no time to see I guess we were blessed or just lucky All of that seems so distant now Beyond our senses & grief I didn't cry until July Did you see heaven above or was there paradise below Does it feel a dream or is it just oblivion All I know It's been a bad bad year Kicking back at the Waffle House Your laugh was louder than air It was zero degrees & the bay was frozen New Years spent in Connecticut Chasing everyone's kids Just stay awake until the ball drops Did you see heaven above or was there paradise below Does it feel a dream or is it just oblivion All I know It's been a bad bad year Crying faces on laptop screens I'm tired of stabs in the dark The half-measures of normalcy Could never fill our hearts Did you see heaven above or was there paradise below Does it feel a dream or is it just oblivion All I know It's been a bad bad year

about

If you only write what you know, what do you write about when everything has been held in stasis for nearly a year? There's a lot of art being made in response to the grind of isolation & ennui right now but I always think it's more interesting to write what you don't know & to be inside of a mystery. Where the pandemic may have dulled our sense of what's both naturally & artificially obvious, we can continue to observe & document everyday wonder & worry—it's all a matter of keeping our eyes open xx

Specifically these songs are about running through the fog (both literal & mental) over the Ben Franklin Bridge, hearing strange noises outside my tent in the middle of the night while camping in West Virginia after Election Day, walking through the frost-covered desire paths of the abandoned golf course at FDR park, & coping with grief when all you get to remember someone nowadays is a Zoom memorial.

Written between reading pages of Sharon Salzberg & Annie Dillard, episodes of the Story Grid and Strong Songs podcasts, & lot of Summit Mode in The Division 2 for PS4 with Phil & Lindsay.

Proceeds from Bandcamp sales for the remainder of 2020 are going to Mutual Aid Philly. Mutual Aid Philly is an entirely volunteer run, community powered group that provides direct aid, neighbor to neighbor, in South Philly and Center City. The group was created to provide support in response to COVID-19 and prioritizes outreach to groups most affected by the health and economic impacts of the pandemic. MAP primarily focuses on disabled and chronically ill, undocumented, people of color, LGBTQ, and low-income individuals and families. You can also donate directly to mutualaidphilly.com

This is the fifth & final entry in my 2020 EP series. Check the Subscribe link above for access to everything I've put out this year!!!

NMM 5/23/20

credits

released December 4, 2020

Written in Notebook #4 & Google Keep
Recorded to iPhone & edited in Audacity
Photo: First Oriental Market, Philadelphia PA 9/25/20

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That Dream Was Our Life Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Introspective & prolific, James Cuartero AKA That Dream Was Our Life has been making music as a solo artist since 2014. Described as "a thinking man’s songwriter who stays away from the trap of being defined by a single genre", Cuartero has released fifty EPs, six compilations, & numerous singles over the past ten years. No t-shirts though. ... more

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