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Watermark

by The Northern Folk

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1.
Guess you were lonely at the time 'Cause you phoned me every night, Just to make sure I'm alive Only your lips and casket wine Kept me off olanzapine, Stilled these trembling hands of mine If things were different don't mean much There were lines we couldn't cross, Minds I couldn't trust Oh, so-and-so said such and such, That gets thrown around too much Where the hell does that leave us? As I fall back and watch you fall in love With just someone or other who ain't sharp enough To know how to love you, covet you quite like you need Still, better him than me Better him than me You disappear sometimes for weeks Then I call you up to speak, You pretend to fall asleep Neglect can rust respect and trust Collecting dust like broke antiques, Our love grew weary then grew weak As I drift off, I see you drifting away With some moustache who ain't worth the time that it takes To tell you I'm sorry, I wonder how sorry I'll be Still, better him than me Better him than me And as I look back with hindsight, you're looking the same, A face flushed with fury and a stare of disdain Oh, if you really knew me, you knew what I'd turn out to be Still, you're better off with him than me, Better him than me
2.
Atticus 02:57
Heave ho, Atticus This ship's almost ashore And the waves, they seem so mad at us And I don't know what for Good man, Tobias Go up and trim the sail There's few riches for the pious No option here to fail Oh, I see it rising I see it rising I see it rising I... Well hold on, Mary In the winter I'll be home Oh, god forbid this ship of mine Don't splinter on the stone Hold on, lover It'll only be awhile 'Til you and I discover Softer swells and one another Oh, I see it rising I see it rising I see it rising I... Hold fast, Elijah The bow is bound to break Take that devil down inside ya And try to pray, for heaven's sake Well, I see it rising I see it rising I see it rising I...
3.
Cynics 03:53
Well I hung my sheets and stomped the streets In a Richmond summer rain, And I saw this girl who smiled just like you Well I burned with regret, like my first cigarette As you crossed my mind again And I watched her pass in the polish on my shoe See, there was a time when you were mine, And the world was mine as well But I've a mind as stubborn as a mule And love, it waits at no man's gate, It rings at no man's bell And I boarded all my doors up like a fool Well I guess this city turned us both to cynics I guess it got the best of us somehow If I could turn this wishing into whiskey Well darling, I'd be drunk by now There's someone new, he's not like you He keeps it all inside I'd sooner summon blood out of a stone Ain't it strange how some things change But others don't subside I'm just terrified we'll both end up alone Well I guess this city turned us both to cynics I guess it got the best of us somehow If I could turn this wishing into whiskey Well darling, I'd be drunk by now Oh darling, I'd be drunk by now
4.
St Philomena 03:55
Kneel to pray before we eat, Before we go to bed My mother said, she said I had a saviour But it seems my dreams have lost their way, Bound for flame on judgement day I pray that I get out on good behaviour So baptise me, oh cleanse my soul, Forgive me for the hearts I stole It starts to take a toll as you grow older Deliver me out of the hands Of wolves in wool and sinner's plans, Eternity's a burden I can shoulder Oh, time has never stayed this slow Oh, try to take me as your own Oh, I was better off alone, I was better on my own Lord I'm coming home Come on now, take me in, Hear it howling in the blowing wind, I said Come on now, bless my soul, I fear I feel we're growing old, I said Come on now, take me in, If I die, oh let me live, I said Come on now, bless my soul, It's cold out here, oh don't you know, I said… Oh, time has never stayed this slow Oh, try to take me as your own Oh, I was better off alone, I was better on my own, I was better on my own Lord I'm coming home Oh St Philomena, How I prayed for a return, Just learn that we have been forsaken But with that big book on the shelf, Maybe I'll convince myself To share the loss, and bear the cross you've taken
5.
Get On 03:36
You'll do me no harm, I got the psalms in my pocket If you wanna get to heaven, son, you're gonna need a rocket You wanna make the pearly gate before they start to lock it Once they lock it, oh you won't get in See, hell’s just heaven with the lights turned down A few more fires we can dance around And all my friends will be there anyhow ‘Cause I've always been a sucker for sin You gotta get on, get to moving Get on, before the night’s too cold You gotta get on, get to moving Get on, before we’re all too old Get on Well I was calm, then I was critical, but now I'm just inspired Slow to go political but I'm getting f**king tired Of the demon screaming freedom with her hair on fire Saying kindness seals our fate See, first we steal the land, and then we set the laws Boundless plains with the fastened doors Oh can't you see the irony, can't you see the flaws Oh no we won't just wait You gotta get on, get to moving Get on, before the night’s too cold You gotta get on, get to moving Get on, before we’re all too old Get on I'm feeling like this life for some's a little out of reach When your coffee and your scones cost you twelve bucks each, but I'm not here to scold you brother, I'm not here to preach I say to each their own But if we gave a little more, spent a little less You take out what you need but you leave some for the rest And pay some more attention to the pounding in your chest And maybe just skip those scones You gotta get on, get to moving Get on, before the night’s too cold You gotta get on, get to moving Get on, before we’re all too old Get on
6.
High Horse 03:26
Deep pockets, shallow souls Silence bought, violence sold And nought forgiven, Lord I'm tired of these ways That ain't living, that's just life these days They taught you little but tortured smiles Life's this riddle where the answer is lie Oh, so lie down boy, A high horse leaves a long way to fall Your feet don't reach the stirrups, It's clear your spirit's feeble as it's small If we hold on, Are things gonna change, son? They've always been this way, son Is it how they're gonna stay? They say nothing ventured means nothing lost Not to mention they stabbed holes in the box, Oh, you should be grateful you can even see outside And that dangling carrot That's just salad for the wealthy and the white If we hold on, For change that's coming If we hold strong, Are things gonna change, son? Or are we bound to bow, boy Raise the flag, throw in the towel, boy Or finally stand our ground? If we take a look, and take a lesson (And hold on, and hold on) And tame mistakes from all the guessing (And hold on, and hold on) If we count our luck, and count our blessings (And hold on, and hold on) You can hold on, you can hold on
7.
Watermark 03:29
When I met her She was headed some place south-west And I should've let her I couldn't breach my house arrest She said we're too clever To ever coexist or coalesce I thought I knew better But she knew best Oh, she's like flooding rain And I never saw the weather change Two years together, four more apart But I've still got a watermark Well, I hear she married Some circuit judge out near Adelaide And her sister Sally Said all of the groomsmen dressed in suede Oh, but she still carries Some sort of semblance of a flame She took all of me except my name Oh, she's like flooding rain And I saw it in her eyes as she drained away Two years together, four more apart But I've still got a watermark Well she's got a son now And this Sunday he'll be three And her husband's hair's brown But that boy's as fair as fair can be His cheeks red as sundown And his eyes are as clear as sea You can't tie his tongue down Guess he sounds a lot like me Oh, he's half flooding rain And the other half's too scared to change Downtrod, down here in the dark Just scrubbing at this watermark
8.
Cold 03:39
He keeps all his sleepless nights In the bags under his eyes And he asks if it's alright If I leave after we're done And so I gather up my pride, Throw my shirt over my shoulder And his last scorn in my side He says he's waiting on someone, He's waiting on someone But I take solace in the fact That his past is checkered as the blanket That he drapes across his back As he turns away to sleep And that boy's a stiff old drink You always wonder why you drank it And it burns more than you think Still that burns all I keep Oh, that burns all I keep Don't grow cold Don't grow cold on me I'm cold enough for both of us, so, Don't lose your hold Don't lose your hold on me I'm twice the fool I knew I'd be Well I wonder if I need him Maybe I'm just smitten By the grass that's so forbidden On his side of the fence I'm a feather in his cap I'm the fresh notch on his bedpost And the thing that hurts my head most I feel a chance Oh, I swear I feel a chance Don't grow cold Don't grow cold on me I'm cold enough for both of us, so, Don't lose your hold Don't lose your hold on me I'm twice the fool I knew I'd be
9.
Been waking up mornings, Bolts in my throat Think I've done all the talking, Now I just sit and croak Seems only appropriate To try feed you a smile, But I keep on choking Let's get away for awhile Lover, I'm pleading with you, I just don't know what to do Gonna get in your car, You know it isn't too far Gonna drive towards the calm, See if the world still holds calm And I know you've gotta work, You ain't getting no help But I can pay your way, at least for a few days, So don't worry yourself Lover, I'm pleading with you, I just don't know what to do I don't talk to those people anymore, That's not why I'm going I don't talk to those people anymore Just need a chance to get home, But life keeps on going, 'Til we're all set in stone You tell me you're busy Think I already knew Punching in, clocking off, Dressing down, scrubbing up, Doing what you've got to do And I know I can take it, Though I'm thinner than ply Cities just shake me, But I can just shut my eyes Lover, I'm pleading with you, I just don't know what to do
10.
Darling, I was married when I met you And I guess I should've told you at the time But I knew that girl since school, And I was such a fool to make her mine Darling, I was young and I was fickle Oh, love was just a trickle, until you drown I took her fear for love But she'd love you just enough to keep you around Oh, fourteen days of pouring rain With a shiver I can't shake Come hell or high water, I pray that I taught her Love ain't a given, it's all give and take Well darling, I was sober 'til I met her So how'd I get here drinking like a fish Oh, our love was longer, And stronger than the wall that broke my fist And darling, I was wise and she was wily Oh, something in her eyes gave her away And I just pray that she learns before her Body returns to the clay Oh, fourteen days of pouring rain With a shiver I can't shake Come hell or high water, I pray that I taught her Love ain't a given, it's all give and take

credits

released March 29, 2019

Written, produced and performed by The Northern Folk:

Paul Dyason - vocals
Georgie Currie - vocals
James Eggleston - guitars, percussion, drums, keyboard
Jayden Dunne - keyboards, guitars, backing vocals
Edward Caunt - bass
Will Carey - drums, guitar
Alex Cameron - clarinet, backing vocals
Khayl Picard - alto sax, clarinet, keyboard, backing vocals
Renn Picard - tenor sax, backing vocals
Grace Hornsby - trombone, backing vocals


All tracks recorded at Newmarket Studios, North Melbourne

'Get On' engineered and mixed by Callum Barter at Newmarket Studios
With Michael Parker - trumpet

All other tracks engineered by Julian McKenzie at Newmarket Studios
Mixed by Callum Barter at Remo Music, Highland Park, Los Angeles

Mastered by Joe Carra at Crystal Mastering, Melbourne

Artwork by Amber Gittins (original work titled ‘Outback Storm’)
Logo by Kristian Rasmussen

Thanks to Julian & Cal; to Sarah Guppy & Kara Blakeley at This Much Talent; to Jesse Hooper & Collarts; to Don Cameron; to Michael Parker; to our families and friends; to our Pozible supporters; and to anyone who has ever come to a show, listened to our music, or given us a chance.

Dedicated to John Dyason

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The Northern Folk Melbourne, Australia

The Northern Folk are a unique collective of eleven songsmiths and instrumentalists, wielding a brand of tightly woven alt- folk magnified by massive arrangements and colourful indie-pop sensibilities. With two charismatic vocalists, they defy the odds to avoid overcrowding- in sound, if not on stage- creating songs that deftly move from poetic lyricism to horn-saturated eruptions. ... more

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