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Tyre Fire

from Tyre Fire by The Wind-up Birds

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lyrics

No one can help when she feels insignificant
She lost some fingers in an industrial accident
She met a man, he was transparent

After a time his eyes did wander
He sidled away, another absconder
He said he was bored, she admired his candour

So won’t you give me summat so I can sleep
‘Cause I don’t know how much longer I can keep this up
All night vigils at the window
I can’t see you through all the smoke though

They kept in touch, the occasional email
He dropped hints about his luck with females
It made him look like an imbecile

After six months he had a change of heart
Wanted to try and go back to the start
Ashamed to say that she just might

So won’t you give me something so I can sleep
‘Cause I don’t know how much longer I can keep this up
All night vigils at the window
I can’t see you through all the smoke though
Yeah, it was a body blow
I can’t see you through all this smoke though

In the end she told him to shove it
(Not in person, she couldn’t face that…)
It felt good but it was fleeting

He would mooch around outside her work
Among her friends it was a standing joke
But to her it wasn’t that funny

So won’t you give me something so I can sleep
‘Cause I don’t know how much longer I can keep this up
All night vigils at the window
I can’t see you through all the smoke though
Yeah, it was a body blow
I can’t see you through all this smoke though

Through the window she can see black smoke
And in the shadows this idiot bloke
In a leather coat outside her work

She used to like the twinkle in his eye
No she can’t think why
He’s like the photo on the cover
Of one of those macho gangster books

And the fact that people find it funny
And are probably speaking behind her back
Makes it almost unbearable
Her privacy is the only thing she has ever valued

And it tires her out
And she can’t sleep
And she varies her route home
And she lingers in the light
And sometimes she’ll stay in when she wants to go out
And sometimes she’ll stay in when she wants to go out

It’s the third day of the tyre fire
“Keep your windows closed”
Is it safe out on the street?
No one really knows

Fire engines dance through a crowded street of clones
Capturing the flames on their camera phones
Calendar and Look North compete for the view
The kids clown in the background like they’re supposed to

Once you’ve seen the smoke you can’t avert your eyes
Cars pull over, gawping in lay-bys
Something ancient stirs in your insides
Primitive man in the cave where he hides

Tears evaporating, pure heat stings your face
Overwhelming helplessness puts you in your place

Your history means nothing
Consumed by the flames
Lightened of your language
Deprived of all your names

credits

from Tyre Fire, track released April 26, 2010

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