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Banish Gods From Skies and Capitalists From Earth

by Trepan Nation

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    Includes a PDF of the CD Insert, minus the lyrics, which really weren't laid out in a useful fashion for a PDF... But we wouldn't leave you hangin': there's a TXT file in there with the lyrics.
    Purchasable with gift card

     

1.
I'm stepping back into my alma mater Yeah, it's coming back to me The hatred, the suspicions of futility What was learned here? How to get in line and blindly trust The standards of those that I knew were idiots And laziness as a device to prove that I'm not really powerless If I could be fifteen again I'd be telling all of my friends "Let's not go to school anymore" I wish I'd thought all this years before Hours of subjugation serve to sap our creativity Expression sublimated as we're fed distorted history Blindly conform ourselves to the worst aspects of all our peers We plant the seeds that strangle us in coming years They're strangling me Seven years of fighting, and I'm still not free If I could be fifteen again I'd be telling all of my friends "Let's not go to school anymore" I wish I'd thought all this years before
2.
Well, I've been up all night poring over scriptures From a dozen traditions, trying to delve into The wisdom of the prophets, 5000 years But I can find nothing to assuage my fears One by one, they're each cast aside Every one disqualified I search, but I can't find any comfort I can't tell you that I never Think of where I'll spend forever But I can't comprehend salvation It's the process of elimination It'd be easy for me to dismiss it off-hand Insist reality ends with what I understand I can sense something at the edge of my perceptions But all I'm offered are guesses and deceptions One by one, they're each cast aside Every one disqualified I search, but I can't find any comfort I can't tell you that I never Think of where I'll spend forever But I can't comprehend salvation It's the process of elimination Dear God: Hope you got the letter. I've been having a hard time trying to wade through all of the information your "people" have compiled on you. I'm (kinda) pretty sure that there's a bit of truth, somewhere, but it's surrounded by thousands of years of interpretations, insights...theology custom fit to support the interests of the status quo--I think something got lost. And I wish I had an answer, an epiphany, something to give me a clue to who I really am. But it's not there.
3.
Mankind is undeserving of the trust and loyalty That's been imparted to us by man's best friend unconditionally We reward their affections with unspeakable acts of cruelty An open hand to those who cannot understand Our language gives us away: "I wouldn't treat a dog that way" Inferring the acceptance of a tolerable level of abuse and neglect But they return again and again Eager to please, can't comprehend How the humans they love can be so inhumane We take them in our homes and they offer love and trust Then we blame them when we fall short in helping them to adjust Don't forget that we asked them to come and live with us! Interspecies obligation! Our language gives us away: "I wouldn't treat a dog that way" Inferring the acceptance of a tolerable level of abuse and neglect But they return again and again Eager to please, can't comprehend How the humans they love can be so inhumane
4.
Can't Say 01:52
I've had something on my mind for quite some time now Something that I'd like to say, but I just don't know how Never the right time, right place or situation My words can't get past my list of limitations I've got something I'd like to say to you (can't say) I've got something I'd like to share with you (can't say) Got a lot that I want you to know (can't say) I've got something, and I can't believe I've come this far but I can't say And fuck, I swear, I know it's real--as real as I've ever And I know these things I feel I'll feel forever Still, I can't find a way for me to articulate And so a part of me just wastes away I've got something I'd like to say to you (can't say) I've got something I'd like to share with you (can't say) Got a lot that I want you to know (can't say) I've got something, and I can't believe I've come this far and I can't say
5.
Dick 01:43
I've always loved watching you throw the die Watching my dreams get greener over on your side You had it all in hand, but something slipped And now you've got a hold of nothing but dick I guess that's just the way it goes You can build and build, but no one knows Why we play these roles that no one chose All that's yours and all that's mine Isn't worth shit when you find they can take it away! Now, I've tried accepting it, but it won't do The misery this false tradition puts us through It's a race I wish that I had never begun I've barely started, someone else has won And it's best not to answer that call You just can't hold on to it all The more there is, then the harder it falls And all that's yours and all that's mine Isn't worth shit when you find-- BLAZIN' SOLO! I guess that's just the way it goes You can build and build, but no one knows Why we play these roles that no one chose Count up yours, I'll count up mine It's just a waste of time...
6.
Meantime 01:39
And so you say you're waiting for the optimum occasion When the shit gets so fucked up the proletariat will rise Above the wreckage of their broken lives and the bodies of their brethren So you can agitate, educate, and organize But what about the meantime? What about today? These are fuckin' human beings living in a world of shit, today! It's easy to sit back and spout revolutionary rhetoric When it's not your back against the wall Don't call me down for trying to work within the system Instead of waiting for The Man to fall 'Cos what about the meantime? What about today? These are fuckin' human beings living in a world of shit, today! It's not condoning the system to advocate for the oppressed It's acknowledging the situation and working for a change in our time
7.
Locked all the doors, now I'm crying 'cos I can't kick 'em down I always end up feelin' this way with someone like you around Not that it's your fault; no, I take all the blame But sometimes I don't feel suited up for the game It's a long time comin' Now I know my fate's here I know it's much more than reacting just to what I feel All the signs point one way And now I'm out of breaks It's just a question of how much more I can take
8.
I know that when you feel so strong, it gets so hard to see The line between "truth" and "belief" gets awful fuckin' blurry We pride ourselves on honesty, clear minds, and thinking straight But when it's time to lay it out, then we exaggerate I don't have to stretch the facts to prove my point of view Straight talk is all I'll ever give to you Straightedge is a part of me, too In my skin, my blood, my mind And I get nervous seein' it, but I don't get fuckin' blind The sky won't fall down if you have a fuckin' drink And acting like it will won't bring you closer to how I think I don't have to stretch the facts to prove my point of view Straight talk is all I'll ever give to you Drugs and alcohol are so fucking lame On so many levels, it's a losing game Corrupt corporations, domestic violence Alcohol's the leading cause of accidental death It steals your time and money It fucks with your health I don't have to trump it up The situation tells itself Straight Talk! I know that when you feel so strong, it gets so hard to see The line between "truth" and "belief" gets awful fuckin' blurry Straightedge is a part of me, too In my skin, my blood, my mind And I get nervous seein' it, but I don't get fuckin' blind I don't have to stretch the facts to prove my point of view Straight talk is all I'll ever give to you!
9.
She says I'm not the man I useta be I've changed and now she wants to leave She says we don't work together anymore There's so many other things she needs to explore She says I'm not the kind of boyfriend that she needs I'm not the man she thought I'd be She needs her space, needs to be free And that means getting rid of me And she says...she says I suck She says I've changed, but I think it's her I just don't want to take her shit anymore Everything's always my fault these days I guess that I'm not too sad to see her go away She says I suck She says I suck She says I suck
10.
So Close 01:49
The workers have got some problems And the revolution won't solve them Years of conditioning Bred to insure complacency There's walls that can't be smashed Barriers that outlast the builders They took solidarity and they killed her The labor movement was a casualty of the cold war Where only commies talk about rich and poor Class and power go undiscussed 'Cos a man who cries "UNITE!" is a man you can't trust And some walls can't be smashed Barriers that outlast the builders They took solidarity and they killed her
11.
We were young, we were invincible For seven years, we were immortal With the will and all the answers I lost the dream, now I don't sleep at night Out of time and out of place I can't even stand to see my face Like a star that's lost its glow It can be years before you know Now I feed on the blood of youth I keep the truism and kill the truth I found the virus, gave myself completely Some ideas are poison? These are killin' me! Out of time and out of place I can't even stand to see my face I remember what you said "Why hold a torch when the flame is dead?"
12.
And so you cling to the concept of free market labor Paint yourself as an example of a self-made man Born into privilege, never missed a meal in your life But you bought your own car, so you say you identify It's not a life, it's not a living When you're free to starve or to take what they're giving The threat of poverty keeps wages down, workers down Keeps us down! You give a sneer and a sigh to the impoverished Say you don't understand why they don't just get a job Born into privilege, you never missed a meal in your life But you had a paper route at twelve, so you say you identify It's not a life, it's not a living When you're free to starve or to take what they're giving The threat of poverty keeps wages down, workers down Keeps us down!
13.
She's a real collectible (but weren't they all?) Their memories sitting in a box waiting for a rainy day She's the girl in green in Avengers Annual #10 She's the sister in black in Sandman #8 They all were, they all are And I can't help myself from feeling sorry They all were and they all are She's a first issue for sure, but without the platinum cover A joy front-to-back, the first time around Then back to the shelf, no longer in mint condition Her cover's been torn and I've broken her spine They all were, they all are And I can't help myself from feeling sorry They all were and they all are And if I've learned one thing It's that "fully developed" should pertain to character only And if I've learned one thing: If this behavior doesn't stop, my comic books are all I'm gonna have
14.
Keep it Down 02:32
I'm asked "Why?" as if I got a choice When I've got eyes, I've got a voice "But keep it down!" I've got something stuck inside of me Gotta give it life, let it sing "But keep it down!" Keep it down... Keep it down... Keep it down... Keep it down... I don't owe you anything I don't ask for the gifts you bring The silence that you're asking for is treason I am not beholden to you To curtail the things I do I will not keep it down! I don't owe you anything I don't owe you anything I don't owe you anything I don't owe you anything
15.
Being friends with you is a thankless task I'm curious about your motives But I'm afraid to ask It's sorta like the songs you useta sing Before the vagueness in your lyrics distorted everything And to see it from this side You wouldn't know how it feels And to play it from this side You just would not know Now it's not as if there's a knife in my back And it's not like without you, I'm gonna crack I just can't help thinking about days gone by But it's not as if I've gotta ask you why And to see it from this side You wouldn't know how it feels And to play it from this side You just would not know A GROOVY KIND OF BLAZIN' SOLO! Gotta pare it down and cut out all the fat Go bare bones and show 'em where it's at Keep on goin' and never quit And who cares who you make feel like shit?
16.
Instride 01:42
Taking it all in stride But some things cannot be denied We're lying and pretending Hate the friends that we're defending I don't wanna go downtown I got my own world inside of me Something you may never see I don't wanna call you on the phone I wanna be alone inside of me Some things are better left to die I bite my lips, I hide my eyes We're grabbing and we're breaking All the ones we're bent on taking I don't wanna go downtown I've got my own world inside of me Something you may never see I don't wanna call you on the phone I wanna be alone inside of me I wouldn't have believed it But there's even less for me in here today than yesterday All the things I used to do with my time Have less and less to do with me… I don't wanna go downtown I've got my own world inside of me Something you may never see I don't wanna call you on the phone I wanna be alone inside of me
17.
Never been one to follow the herd-- Aw, who'm I kiddin'? I'm a fuckin' nerd Always the last one selected Never one of the respected Always at least one step behind the times Coloring outside of the lines I can't even figure out how to fit in with the rejected Countercultural by default Absorbed into the catch-all Where all the refuse goes All of us what doesn't know And even in the ranks of nerddom I feel like a six-foot sore thumb When you're locked out of the geek brigade Then you're fuckin' low But I'm gonna be alright tonight! I'm gonna make it after all! I keep telling myself, trying to convince myself But I'm too smart to fool myself I play it cool, I talk much shit If I can't have, I don't want it But meanwhile? Secretly, inside? Jealous of the cool guys The ones who always know what to say What clothes to wear, what games to play I can't even figure out what comic books to buy But I'm gonna be alright tonight! I'm gonna make it after all! I keep telling myself, trying to convince myself But I'm too smart to fool myself I had that dream again The one where I fit in And despite my role as an iconoclast I gotta say it was kinda cool Everyone laughed at all my jokes I was the envy of the little folks The ones who're just like me It was beautiful...

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Originally released on LP/CD as HR020 by Harmless Records in 1997.

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released July 1, 1997

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Trepan Nation Chicago, Illinois

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