Get all 4 Aaron Semer releases available on Bandcamp and save 15%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Sea of Blood [SINGLE], Letter From the U.S.A. - Songs From The Plains, 2001-2007, Cape Disappointment, and Love Amidst Collapse.
1. |
A God That's All Ours
05:12
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Another God awakens
A God of our own making
Of information and wires
A brand new network of stars
A God that’s all ours
Here we stand before you naked
Our flesh exposed and aching
And you see us for what we are
Just apes looking up at the stars
With a God that’s all ours
We know you’re out there listening in the night
The buzzing of our screens, a flickering of light
I can feel you all the time
In my pocket and in my mind
Just when I think I might explode
Your plastic heart expands so I don’t overload
Hand-in-hand, here we go
You’re whispering your secrets in the code
Another God awakens
Replaces blood with electrons
Infinite in your capacity
For mercy and depravity
A God that we can see
We huddle in the embrace
Of your cold hands and your cold face
At your feet we all bow
What awesome truths will you show us now?
What will our God allow?
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2. |
Bones for the Catacombs
04:37
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Lucas lived down on the Left Bank next to the river
He slept in a shack with his poor old Mama and his sister
The only life he ever knew was right there on La Seine in Paris
He got a job diggin’ bones by decree from Louis XVI
It said, “The cemetery walls are all overgrown,
We gotta move these bones to the catacombs.”
Emma lived across the water with the Right Bank riche
Her window looked out on Saints-Innocents Cemetery
Every night she watched the wagons carry millions of dead across the city
While her Mama cried out, “What a shame, what a sight, what a pity!”
But the workers kept diggin’ and liftin’ the stones
They gotta move them bones to the catacombs
Emma met Lucas one evening with her friends at Pont Neuf
They were smokin’, they were drinkin’, he was dirty and she was looking fit
She asked him what he did, he said, “I push bone wagons for a living,
And I shouldn’t be talking to a rich girl, please forgive me.”
She said, “Sooner or later we all end up alone.
You see, we’re all just bones for the catacombs.”
They walked along the Seine holding hands for the rest of the night
She knew that is was wrong, but there was something in that poor boy’s eyes
She took him to her Mama who cried out, “What a rat! What a sinner!”
And Lucas didn’t fare much better with his family ‘cross the river
He said, “Hey, sooner or later we’re all going home,
Because we’re all just bones for the catacombs.”
Fleur-de-Lis… Fleur-de-lis…
By the time it was finished there were six million dead in the tombs
And Lucas and Emma had a baby and a house near the Louvre
The city soon forgot about the bones stacked up underneath ‘em
And kept livin’ and dyin’ and buildin’ and lovin’ and fightin’
And even ol’ Louis up there on his throne
Was just more bones for the catacombs
From Paris to China, wherever we roam
You see, we’re all just bones for the catacombs
Fleur-de-Lis… Fleur-de-lis…
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3. |
Settle In
06:10
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Can’t believe I’m still going out on that ocean
I’m always casting a wide net
I’ve been trawling for most of my life now
And sometimes you pull in one you just can’t forget
Sometimes it feels like I didn’t choose this life
Feels like this life chose me instead
I’m just doing what my grandfather and my dad did
Hell, I guess it ain’t that bad
Well it’s cold and lonely as sin
Out there swaying in the cold and in the wind
But I know when my ship is coming in
That you’ll be waiting there for me (and I’ll say…)
Baby you can settle in
Just kick off your shoes and relax
You don’t have to try to be anybody
‘Cuz that kinda love, it just never lasts
Baby you can settle in
‘Cuz you and me, we ain’t settlin’
It took us many years to find one another
And I’ve been searching since way back when
Baby just settle in
I never thought I’d have a partner
Never thought I’d have someone to share all this beauty with
I couldn’t even imagine what that might look like
But baby this is it
But when those fish are runnin’
I gotta pack up my bags and get on after it
The sea don’t wait for no one
It’s always callin’ me back
Every time we say goodbye
And I look into your eyes
Well, I know when my ship is coming in
That you’ll be waiting there for me
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4. |
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Oh, I’m wearing the clothes of a dead man
But that’s easy to forget
When they’re clinging to your back
Oh, I’m wearing the clothes of a dead man
And the lessons that I’ve learned
From years of his concern
But now he’s a dead man
And it feels like his eyes
Are watching everything now
From the skies
Now that he’s a dead man
Oh, I’m wearing the clothes of a dead man
The fit’s a little wrong
But it feels so safe and warm
Oh, I’m wearing the clothes of a dead man
You take what’s right and what’s wrong
And you forge it into your own
Now that he’s a dead man
And it feels like his arms
Are reaching down to help
But you’re all alone
Now that’s he’s a dead man
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5. |
Risingsun, OH
05:14
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I knew a girl, she stood 5’4”
With eyes like ice and hair like coal
She worked the farm like her daddy before
With no runnin’ water and a board for a door
She was all alone, and she lived down there in Risingsun
Times were tough and the farm dried up
Everybody she knew was going belly-up
I tried to put a little money in her cup
But she was too proud to take me up
She was all alone, and she lived down there in Risingsun
Talk about a town with one stoplight
You could drive right through it in the middle of the night
And not even know that you had been in Risingsun
There was a little diner on the edge of town
And at night there was never anyone around
She knew there was a key and she knew there was a hound
But she’d known that dog since he was low to the ground
All alone, out there by the diner in Risingsun
She got in and she went to the till
And she took out the money all nice and still
By the time they found out, she was home in bed
She could pay her rent and rest her head
On her own and by herself in Risingsun
The diner wasn’t the only business in town
There was a little bank just down the road
And at the end of the month it was flush with cash
When all the factory farms brought in their stash
On her own and by herself in Risingsun
So, she got a gun, and she got a mask
And she took a big pull from her whiskey flask
When she busted in they were on her fast
They dropped her to the floor and they pulled off her mask
And everybody gasped when they saw it was her, in Risingsun
Now she sits in the jailhouse, there
It’s got two cells and a duct for air
And a little tiny window to let light in
And if she stands real tall, she can catch a glimpse
Of the little tiny town outside her window called Risingsun
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6. |
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At the end of the week
With our heads hung low
We all need somewhere to go
So let’s walk down the street
To our favorite bar
Where our friends are pluggin’ in their guitars
Well they’re not the best
But they know how to play
All our favorite songs from yesterday
Now a few drinks in
Come take my hand
And we’ll all dance together with the band, yeah!
We will all dance together with the band!
From Coeur d'Alene
To San Anton’
Everybody’s got a little place to go
Where the lights are dim
And everybody sways
And we can dance our troubles away
Where our money spends
Love begins and ends
And sometimes lasts forever, my friend
Let’s forget our pains
And all our plans
And we’ll all dance together with the band, yeah!
We will all dance together with the band!
Life’s too short
And that sure can sting
But we’ve only got this one song to sing
So just sing it loud
You’re not alone
Everybody’s here to help make it your own
From when you’re young and spry
Until the day you die
And we head up to that tavern in the sky
Time’s slipping by
Like grains of sand
So we all dance together with the band, yeah!
We will all dance together with the band!
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7. |
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SEE OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO HERE: https://youtu.be/lU34Zhi4B4A
The weather’s goin’ crazy and the world’s gettin’ hotter
They’re frackin’ underneath us and they’re poisonin’ our water
The politicians say that the scientists are liars
If we don’t take it to the streets then we’re just preachin’ to the choir
But I’ve never been one to throw a brick
So I put a little black square on my profile pic
The cops are suitin’ up like they’re going into battle
They got helmets, they got shields, they got tanks, they got ammo
They’re protecting all the bankers while their pockets get fatter
And there’s people in the street shouting “Black Lives Matter!”
Well I don’t wanna end up on the wrong side of their stick
I’ll put a little black square on my profile pic
There’s a pipe gettin’ built to move oil ‘cross the Nation
It’s crossin’ under rivers, goin’ through a Reservation
We gotta stop it now, I said “Not one iota!”
So grab your coat and hat, because we’re goin’ to Dakota
But I can’t go that far, it’ll make me homesick
I’ll put a little black square on my profile pic
There’s dogs that are lonely and there’s cats that are missin’
There’s a Kickstarter campaign for my fifth cousin’s mission
There are little budding artists who are lacking in vision
We’ve gotta give all we can, we gotta fix this condition
I don’t want anybody to think that I’m a prick
I’ll put a little black square on my profile pic
They took a lyin’ psychopath and put him into office
He’s givin’ all the jobs to the preachers and the bosses
He’s givin’ everything away, he’s nothin’ but a robber
We’ve gotta burn it all down before he cleans out the coffers
But I don’t wanna be listed as a Bolshevik
So I’ll put a little black square on my profile pic
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8. |
Ball and Chain
04:25
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My parents say that I gotta get myself into college
They say that if I don’t, I ain’t gonna amount to a good god damn
But they ain’t got the money to pay for my tuition
So I’ll be going into debt for life to my Uncle Sam
Get out the ball and chain
Get out the ball and chain
I wanna hook up that ball and chain
And never be free again
I’ve been thinkin’ that I got a little bit too much freedom
I stay out all night with whatever lady I choose
But this ol’ heart, it’s developing that sinkin’ feeling
So I’ve been shopping for a wedding ring in the shape of a noose
Well it seems to me that paying rent is a fool’s game
Feels like every month I’m just throwin’ my money away
So I found a nice little house and I put down a payment
And now the market’s gone to hell and I’m stuck like a ball to a chain
I’ve been thinkin’ that I’ve been doin’ a little too much drinkin’
Well, it used to fun be fun but now it’s just somethin’ that I gotta do
And it ain’t havin’ the same effect on me that it used to
So I’m gonna be lookin’ for a harder drug real soon
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9. |
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I hope my Johnny comes rolling home
He lost his legs in that useless war
He didn’t even know what he was fighting for
And I don’t think I can stand to lose anymore
They shipped him off when the towers fell
Sent him to a valley in a mountainous hell
There were rumors of insurgents hanging out down the way
They rolled into the village and blew ‘em all away
The world was convinced we had to take out Sadam
So they moved his whole unit to the desert land
They wasted all the cities, they wasted every man
They took out all the leaders but they didn’t have a plan
So we got a new leader, I thought things were gettin’ better
But the blood on our hands just kept gettin’ redder
We headed into Libya, we’re fightin’ forever
Took out Gaddafi and we did it with pleasure
Now we got problems in Syria
The people don’t care they’re oblivious
Things are out of hand, they’re gettin’ serious
And little Johnny’s mind has gone delirious
I hope my Johnny comes rolling home
He lost his mind in those useless wars
He didn’t even know what he was fighting for
He lost his legs, and we lost so much more
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10. |
The Time We Used To Kill
05:34
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In our Junior year, we dropped out of college
Moved into a van with a bed in the back
Packed it up full of drugs, whiskey, and Kerouac
Hit the road and said we’re never comin’ back
And off we go
We’re leavin’ Ohio and headin’ out West
By the time we hit Wyoming
Our friendship was all but dead
If you forgive me for being dismissive of your worldview
Then I’ll forgive you for tryin’ to kill me in the Black Hills
We’ve let a lot of time and distance come between us
But I sure do miss the time we used to kill
I met you at a party in somebody’s basement
You were wearing a lace dress and a funeral hat
I’d never met anybody like you before
We stayed up all night talkin’ movies and politics
And we fell in love
But you said love and sex did not equate
And nine months later
Our love turned into hate
If you’ll forgive me for being a little too Midwestern
Then I’ll forgive you for tryin’ to sleep with all of our friends
We’ve let a lot of time and distance come between us
But I sure do miss the time we used to kill
To everyone I’ve ever met along this journey
You’ve all been so important in your own way
We’ve let a lot of time and distance come between us
You see, I used to think life would go on day after day…
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Aaron Semer Seattle, Washington
Aaron Semer is a modern folk/rock singer-songwriter.
"...He deserves a seat at the table alongside Jeff Tweedy, Steve Earle, Warren Zevon, and John Prine. He's that good." - PopMatters
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