Daisy (Show Me The Light)

Daisy (Show Me The Light)

Daisy, one night I had the strangest dream
That in a crowded lonesome room you learned to make me weak

Daisy, I've never noticed your eyes and the shade of blue they are
And how the hair over your face makes you smile shine like a star

So show me where the light is because I know that this is all I've got
Keep me going so I....

Won't let hope ever go to waste
Because Daisy doesn't need to fix her compass
Maybe I'm just naive to think that
love can ever come from the bottom of a bottle

This time next year,
Will the dream still elude us all the same?
I can't help but think that
The green has lost its glow in the lights of New York City
Oh Doctor, Doctor, don't you judge me

Don't you judge me for my sins but I'm sure I have a song
For this rain-lined (eye)
I know I will come back home fumbling every word I kept
Fantasising romance in my head
Like I was 17
Because I'm a boy with a dream

Daisy, won't you sing a song for me
Oh but I forget that I'm always the chaser and you're the American dream

Daisy, lets drink a toast to the sobriety that brings me down
And all the faces in the crowd that keep me out of circles
The kids that keep me singing
But Daisy, you mean so much more to me
Than just another girl who's going to hurt me

When its all said and done, I stare at the stars,
Then I Sing this lonely tune I wrote under our hearts
In the key of melancholy to show that I don't belong
Daisy, I love you but you've woken me to what is wrong
But Daisy I think I love you, so I'm writing you this song

Now i'm terrified of what lies inside me
What I've become
All because I know that all the clocks and calendars
and wheels of the world
won't ever cease for us

I'm sorry, this is all I've got
For what its worth
I'll bite my tongue
Daisy, this is for you

(ad-lib)

We'll Always Have (Our) Paris

If I didn't know any better, I'd think I'm better off alone
Hence another song
Just leave a light so I can find my way back home
Yeah, these words are getting old

If you were any different, I wouldn't have sung you all these songs
But you never cut me down

I'm always laughing over nightmares and crying over everything else
Haunted by memories of a dying sun
What have these rockstar dreams ever won?

Paris has got nothing on these four walls

Is it better to be a saint or myself?
Does it matter?
She said, "Nobody has to know"
Yeah, nobody has to know.

I'm missing the point of all these conversations on a daily basis
Because my head's still spinning
My head's still swelling with words my mother said
When I was younger, before I could even dream like this
Before I could write the first line this chorus says

(Chorus)

So send my regards to mom and dad who gave me this chance to meet you
Even though they give me grief for all the lives I've lived
Is this how its gonna be?
Live a life of 9 to 5, will London hail
('A Dream has died')

This ain't love lost in a firefight
Its been thrown up into the clouds
And now it hits the ground

Please tell me its all in my head
A whisper in the wind
Lies about a bitter end

Will these promises built on words of steel turn to rust
On the day we sacrifice our trust
In order to satisfy our lust
(Will we say NO!!!)

(END)

Empty As The Sea

Yeah, finally got another new one written over the weekend. Its pretty sweet, very emotional. I'd like to think of it as City And Colour meets the Get Up Kids.

Enjoy:

You girls are always like the sea
I'm left on the shore
Looking out
As the sunset, it sinks into the sea

The ship is broken down while the captain finds
The bottle is no cure,
No, not this time

I'll keep digging myself deeper
Because dreams aren't what they used to be
You don't know you've become a volunteer
Helping me to bury myself
Just to bury myself
In hopes that soul will come a-looking
To tell me its not the worst that's coming
I know I can't sing the same ol' song
Even if you decide to sing along

I have nothing to give but my tears and my fears
And some gestures, oh the gestures
I'm sorry so I'll believe that you care
but only enough to listen
Don't tell me your intentions
Because I won't believe them

I'll break my own heart and hide the pieces in a box
Then I'll put it back together just to do it again
But I've hidden in you the other half

I'll cover this hole with a blanket of hope
Just to keep myself believing
That its alright, I'm okay
But when life just laughs
And I learn from mistakes
Then, I realize that I'm empty
As empty as the sea

(END)

To really explain this song fully, I'll have to dig really deep which I don't really want to do this publicly. In general, its about that feeling of emptiness in your heart when you seem to be missing something important.

:D

Skylines (God Bless Suburbia)

I started writing this song last Sunday and I've kinda finished it (OK, I still need to touch some things up). But this is what I've got.

Basically, this song is my anger and disappointment with the progress of my home country of Malaysia. It mainly revolves around race relations. About how despite Malaysia portrays itself as a nation where all races live in harmony, there are still tensions and its not as pretty as the ads show it to be. Not that it isn't there.

I make references to a couple of events in modern Malaysian history, one more recent than the other.

Here it is:

Hey, this city's skyline got so much going for (it)
It's just flashing lights.
Hey, what happened to the pictures on the airplane TV screens

We're wasting time
We're being laughed at by small towns
Have we always been monsters since the summer of '69

God bless suburbia


Chorus:
Because this city's so full of sin
We're burning churches while
We let Vampires rule the day
They rob us blind
They try to keep us deaf and dumb
Our fathers say
'Welcome home, my son
Welcome home'

You know we're in trouble when we agree with enemies
But this time spent away has gotten the best of you and me
What's with all this hate?
Don't you know we're just digging our own graves

It's making me sick to know what we've become

Chorus

I'll stand up tall for my nation
But clench fists at this situation
Have all these years counted for anything at all?
We restrict our own progress
Because we speak a different language
When will we overcome the walls that divide our hearts?


Solo

I will love you
I will always love you

(END)

I know I've been getting slack with my explanations :P.

Malaysia is the country I grew up in and despite its many flaws, I love it and what it stands for. I truly pray that we will overcome our problems and progress as a nation.

MALAYSIA BOLEH!!

Smile (tentative title)

I've been on writer's block for a while now so this was quite exciting for me to write SOMETHING. Its a simple song with the standard verse-chorus-verse-chorus structure.

Here it is:

Every scene leaves a heart ever longing for any sign to tell me where to go from here
On this road that leads nowhere
Every photograph is a memory
One that I might lose if I don't take this chance
So big and wide
don't forget to smile

Does who we are define us or is it what we do?
Who's the one who's gonna pick me off the streets
Is it true I'm a let down?
Is that why I know that I'm never gonna sweep you off your feet

Troubled times are far more forgiving than the lines that flow from my pen
and the times I realize that we're all just towers
Will we all stand to fall when its all over?

Foundations made from paper or are they set in stone?
Give me secrets that I'd like to keep
I swear I won't say a word if you tell me not to
So kid, won't you run away with me?

Solo/bridge

Chorus 1

(END)

Basically, that's it (at least for now). I'm way too lazy to explain this song in great detail but generally, its about friends and relationships (whichever kind you want) and how our actions can determine how good are the bonds we form. Or some shiz like that.

The Zim is back :D

Daydreamer (Tentative title)

I came up with/recorded an idea for a pop-punk song the other day without the intention to come up with a vocal part just yet. But I was so into the whole thing that I ended up with this.

From the riffs in the song, I kinda knew what kind of song I wanted this to be and what kind of lyrics I wanted.

I wanted this song to be youthful and somewhat optimistic despite my usual tendencies for a more mature style in my acoustic songs. So I hope that I captured that in the song.

Basically, this song is about hopes and dreams. Its about finding and having a dream to fulfill that and vying for it, not falling into the trap of living a life where all we work for goals that other people set for us. So if we are going to fail, let be failing ourselves rather than someone else.

Here we go:
Find every meaning that sets your heart on fire
I'll do my best, I swear I'll try
Not to fall into this trap we set for us
To fail ourselves, not someone else

I love these values
May I never forget

How to find the voice to sing (We'll look to tomorrow)
To pray I won't give up the fight
Clench my hope close to my chest
Hear my words and keep them for yourself

chorus:
If nothing goes according to plan
Could we ever just blame ourselves?
If all our dreams came true
Its sad to never dream again

I hope I won't regret
Following those footsteps singing (HEY!HEY!HEY!)
On a path much more travelled
By ones we love who look down on the other

This is my road
Don't you think you know me

Your words mean more to me (They're all worth so much more)
Than all your actions ever could
Understand that I will daydream
That I could waste this year with you

Chorus

Bridge/Breakdown/Solo-thingy

Chorusx2

(END)

The 'values' part represents how, despite the cynicism that has grown in me, I love these values of passion, hope and optimism.

The line before the first chorus links to the direction that I'm trying to push in my songwriting now where despite the personal nature of my lyrics, I'd like to reach out to every one else out there in my situation.

In the chorus, the punk-ish energy is toned down a fair bit and the lyrics start to ask more philosophical questions (much like my usual stuff). I question whether despite having a dream for yourself, in the event of failure, would we accept it as our own failure or blame in on the world around (however, both are very plausible explanations, depending on circumstance.....hmmmm). The second part poses the question, 'If we achieve all our dreams, then what will we have left to fight for? Would we find a new one? Would we end up just the way we are without anything left fighting for? Would we go into the city vigilante-ing at night? AGH, SO MANY POSSIBILITIES!!!!

The second verse shows the wavering of those youthful ideas, the crossroads where an adolescent becomes an adult and is confused at what life is all about. This is the stage of life that I'm at right now where I'm conflicted whether I should hold on to all my youthful ideals and hopes, or give in to my growing cynicism and the pragmatic outlook for my future (I hope what I mean can be understood).

The 'road' part represents how strongly I feel that I'm still at these crossroads and that no one can judge me for it as no one can truly understand the kind of person I am except for me.

Not much else to the song really other than a couple of minor personal things.

That is all :) Suggestions for song titles would be cool

Hearts On The Pacific: Godsend

The next chapter of this somewhat epic (maybe) story.

Enjoy:
I look around, what do I see?
A million faces black from the ashes
Of bombed out homes and burning bodies
Haunting my dreams
'I need some coffee'

But what to do when the songs that got us through
Those darkest days betray us too

Brothers in arms, with you I faced trial by fire
I'm glad I survived it
In your prime you were cut down
No blaze of glory
Just screams of agony

But what to do when the lights that guided us through
Those darkest days fade out too

Now I'm left running blind through Berlin, Moscow and Tokyo
I'm just praying to God to show me a sign
To spare me some light

Pretty girl falling down
Almost like an angel with the dirtiest face
I can't forget her first gaze

She screamed and kept on running
From demons,
"Not without a fight"

Then she became the brightest star in my life
Starting from 5 minutes ago
Am I desperate or am I just blind?

Maybe I'm trying
Trying too hard
Or am I just waiting for something good
To keep me going until I die

In the corner I saw her crying
And so I went and tried to smile
I asked her name
Don't you know,
She replied
"Yumiko"

(END)

Here, it starts off with Jack still stationed in Okinawa after the end of the war. He looks around at the death and destruction around him that the Marines had caused. Horror and a sense of guilt take him as he laments what had transpired. This goes to the point where he no longer wishes to sleep because these images appear in his dreams.

The reference to 'songs' is significant in the sense that during the war, there were many American war songs to raise the moral of the troops and Jack feels cheated by these songs as the glory of victory didn't match up to the scarring the war caused.

He then recalls all the friends he made in the army had been killed in action and realizes that all of them were violent and non-heroic deaths. As he wanders the streets alone, he begins hallucinating. He then snaps back to reality as he sees a young Japanese woman tripping over her own feet as she attempts to run away from something.

Looking around, he sees her being chased by two American marines who then corner her. (Note: After the end of the war, there were many cases of American troops raping local women so this is another possible one). Seeing her struck a chord in Jack's heart and he goes in to save her, beating up the other two marines in the process.

He then ponders what made him do that. He reflects whether he is just so deep in depression that he needs something good in his life.

He asks her name and she seems to understand and replies 'Yumiko'.

And there's yet another installment to the story :)

Hope you guys liked it

Directions

I was bored and I felt inspired so I ended up delaying my bedtime in order to bring this which might not be in its final form yet. Put simply for now, this song is about not knowing your purpose in life, not having a goal, basically not having much of your own reason to fight fo something.

I've realized that no matter how much I'd like to think of myself as an individual, I'm sure that there are plenty of kids out there who are just like me in this sense so this is my attempt at reaching out to others with my lyrics while still maintaining that personal level that I usually keep.

Here you go:

Sing for a new age
But wait for today
Let us scream for nothing and everything
Don't say you'll settle for anything

Do you know what I know?
Praying to a god who won't say a word
But gives little signs to all of us
That we can't see for the life of us

I'm wrapped up in ink and post-it notes
So now this city won't trouble me tonight

Don't make promises you don't want to keep (Whoa-oh)
I'm singing for my sanity (Whoa-oh)

So this is a landslide
Is this silent scream going
'Whoa-oh'x2
'I struggle to see tomorrow'
Whoa-oh
Oh back then I used to smile so much more

But maybe I will again in the end
Since when did my faith find the many thoughts
I see in you

The kids I sing to are the dreamers lost in space
Every single work-in-progress, everyone who's lost like me
Yes, I'm talking about you

(At very least) I'm getting used to the winter x3

Every single deadline passed brings me closer to my death
Are they really lying when the say we've got a chance?
Are we defeated by design?
Are the winners set in stone?
Do I have the strength to turn my back on them?

Although I've been breaking these chords
Tearing them up for you now
Pray but innocence never lasts for you

ad-lib outro

(END)

Insomniac's Lullaby

Note: This is still a work-in-progress

At least I think it is.

I couldn't sleep last night (I wouldn't have had that coffee if I knew it'd only take 10 minutes to finish that IA plan).

Its a quickie, so enjoy:

This song goes to everyone who is still awake at three in the morning
Because I'm restless and tired
Tossing and turning in bed
I've said my prayers but do they really matter at all
Why does falling asleep seem harder than waking from good dreams

But dreams are what sleep is made from
Relief and disappointment
Momentary enjoyment
Nothing good happens after 2 anyway
So let me drop before then
Let me drop before then

Don't say sleep is overrated
The bad breath in the morning is always worth it
I'm too scared of this silence and...
This darkness is like facing bad habits
My awful habits

(END)

Its what I've got so far. I'm not sure if this will be it so I won't explain now.

Until next time :)

The Autumn Song (Pandora's Box)

This is a bit of an oldie.

Ok, not really. But I wrote this early 2009 so its somewhat old.

Here it is:

I watch the lights as they fade to black
Just keep walking, never look back
Now my friends are so far away
All the reasons I had to stay

And now the magic of that beautiful summer will die
So, I just want you to know
That these fairy tales will never fade to grey
Won't you remember me?

The sun sets on our innocence
Ditching school, climbing over the fence
Our music fades with our yesterdays
This is the very price I pay

Where is the place I call my home?
Where the hell am I supposed to go?
To all the friends I left behind
Here I am,
So long, goodbye
The times we had won't ever die

Open the box and what will you find?
Maybe sorrow?
Is that so?
Maybe hope?
Or maybe both? I don't know

But that's just life
It comes in all its forms
I'll be back one day
So won't you wait for me?

(Chorus 1)

I swear, I'll come home one day you see.

(END)

This was like one of the first songs I wrote with metaphors.

Put simply, this was a song I wrote leaving home when I was first coming to Australia.

The 'seasonal' metaphor represents life in general, with summer being depicted as a time of good times and innocence, although I am probably still in that phase of my life now. Autumn, is the point in life where one has to come to terms with responsibilities and grow up.

In a sense, in order to be worlds away from my friends and family, I had to grow up and not be such a wuss anymore, hence why this is the Autumn Song.

I also talk about ditching school in this song. This refers how me and some of my friends would ditch school after exams (although we weren't allowed to) by jumping over the fence, in the security camera's blind-spot and how that was part of the major high school memories I had back home.

Finally, the metaphor of Pandora's Box comes alive in the bridge of the song. In Greek myth (from what I know), Pandora was tasked by Zeus to keep a box/jar-thing safe and closed but in the end, she opens it and unleashes all the evils within upon the world (illness, toil, suffering, etc) but at the bottom of the box, she found hope.

This links to how, despite all the heartache I suffered from leaving home, I faced this time in Australia with a hopeful and optimistic attitude.

And that's pretty much the gist of the song.

Hope my (3) readers enjoyed that. :)

Until next time :)

Hearts On The Pacific: Hellraiser On Okinawa

This is the first full 'episode' of the Hearts On The Pacific story.

Enjoy:

I was haunting backstreet alleys
You'd better pray to God if you believe
Prepare your eulogy
Watch your back if you want to leave here alive

Over and out sergeant,
Fire at will, at the ready
Have you heard about Riley?
That he died in his sleep
Throat slit, he lies incomplete

Chorus:
Well now I'll write a letter to dear Mom and Dad
'I hope I'll be coming back,
The sun's been a little early'
Oh God, don't fail me now
I've been a good boy since back then

Time flows backwards in these memories
Without the paler faces
And broken bodies
Screaming aloud 'God, please save me'.

I remember the grocery store
The looks on their faces
Oh, what a disaster

Chorus

Bodies burning
Hearts stopped beating
Mitchell's not breathing anymore

Chorusx2

They're screaming on the radio
Screaming on the radio
'The war is won'

We're screaming on the radio
Screaming on the radio
'Have we really won?'

(END)

There's a fair bit to talk about in this song.

The staccato-ish (I think I'm using that right) guitar in the verse represents the gunshots, explosions and general carnage going around the character (Private Jack Miller) as he fights in the final days/weeks of WW2 on the island of Okinawa, Japan.

Backgound info:
In line 1, 'I was haunting backstreet alleys', this refers to Jack's time as a young, small-time criminal in America. He attempts to rob a grocery store (verse 2) and gets arrested. Instead of going to jail, Jack gets the option to enlist in the army instead which he does.

A large portion of the first verse is basically Jack remembering all the words and advice he received from the people he met in the army.

During the pre-chorus, the lessened intensity represents a break in the action as Jack sits with his platoon mates. The first 2/3 lines is him recalling more words from various soldiers he knows. Another soldier talks about Riley, a young soldier who was killed during an earlier night ambush by the Japanese, having his throat slit in his sleep. The reason he 'lies incomplete' is because he never fulfilled his promise to return home to his family (sorry if this wasn't clear).

Thinking about Riley's promise to his family, Jack writes a letter to his parents saying that he's planning to come back to them a better person. The reason he mentions 'God' a number of times here is reflective slightly of his gradual loss of faith after the horrors of the war.

In verse 2, as Jack witnesses the death around him, he recalls why he ended up in the war and ponders if it was worth it.

The bridge is straight-forward enough, more death and horrible stuff.

The outro represents Jack and the others hearing of the end of the war. Outraged by how many lives were lost, Jack asks 'Have we really won?'

Phew, that was major.

Sorry it took a while to get this up.

Until next time.:)

Hearts On The Pacific:Prologue:The Congregation

Yeah, this is it. My big, story-driven song project 'Hearts On The Pacific' and this is the prologue.

This part is set in the 80s, when a Japanese-American mixed man is about to get married. He's nervous and having second thoughts about it but his father comes to calm him down by telling him this story

Here it is:
The congregation sings aloud
Today, you're as high as the clouds
Your hands are shaking
Knees are weak
My son, be at ease

When words are forgotten on lines written on napkins
Your wit means nothing now

Rest your heart on this story
As your head rests on the pillow
Calm the seas of your heart and your soul
Cast away all of your worries and listen to this story

(END)

Its a short song since its only the prologue but The next part is coming very soon :)

A Song For Someone (Distraction)

No time for the explanation now so I'll make this a quickie

Here it is:
Thoughts of you at the back of my mind come running at the sound of your name
Floating gently in a sea of stars
I wish I could make time stand still

Full speed ahead (the clocks won't rewind anymore)
Traavelling only endlessly (December-bound train has left)
Platform noises ringing
'All aboard', the conductor's calling

Standing here with my heart in my mouth
The right words never seemed so wrong
Looking back with content or regret
There are some things that time just can't tell

Now I sit and wait (For one more year to burn)
Should I wish it slowly? (Drifting off now)
I say goodbye to the ground
Yeah, my head's up in the clouds

Chorus:
Have I told you how lovely you are?
Recently, repeatedly
More lapses in my concentration
Don't trust me to lie
Won't you be my distraction

'I love you's have always been so cliche
And cheapened by redundancy
Maybe I should just write you a song
And sing it repeatedly

Chorus

Bridge

Final Chorus:
Have I told you how lovely you are? (The butterflies won't lie to me, my heart stops when you look at me, I get lost in your eyes)
Recently, repeatedly
More lapses in my concentration (I play the silence in my hand, wondering with every second glance)
Don't trust me to lie (Reasons to try)
Won't you be my distraction

(END)

I'll talk about it later :)

The Welcoming

Gah!!!! I'm going back to Adelaide pretty soon but I'm missing my friends there SO much!!! And to think that this is going to be my last year in Pembroke and most likely, in Adelaide itself. Its quite sad, really. I really want to get back and see everyone but I know that I'm going to face year 12 IB as well DDDDDDD:. And with my work ethic and intelligence, this won't end well.

Anyway, I thought this song would be cool to post now since its kind of related to that.

TaDAAAAA!!!!:

When will I come home to you?
I see that things are changing now

Fragile words, death, rebirth
Marked with a touch of her lips
And empty silence filled my heart to the brim

Now that I've come home to you
I see that you're quite busy too

I'd paint you a picture with my words if it'd do them justice at all
Justice enough for me to prove my love

(Chorus)
So tell me that you want to see me
I ask you,
Don't you miss me too much
'Cause I'll be back in the end
Back to your welcoming hands
Call me and I'll come a-running
I know now that this was all worth it
The cracks in these walls are closing
The tide of this war is turning

(Solo)

(Bridge)
Romance was something I wanted
And like spring, now it surrounds me
Forsake me not
Forsake me not

(Chorus)

(Outro)
Its turning,
Whoa........Whoa-oh
So don't you let me fall too fast for the world is still a-spinning
Now don't you let me fall too fast for the world is still a-spinning

(END)

Its quite a simple song with a simple melody but its the heart of it that made it nice to me.

I started writing the song with the main riff, which was inspired in my heart after I found out about Justin and Phoebe getting together.

Finding out about Phoebe and JC made me happy. It gave me that feeling of glee and happiness, I had to put those feelings into a love song. I came up with the riff based on that feelings, but as I wrote the words and melody, it ended up being a song about me rather than those two.

Basically, the lyrics started out directed to my friends in Malaysia but as I kept writing, the song became more relevant to my friends in Adelaide as well. In the end, that aspect added another dimension to the beauty of the song. I could direct the song both ways and they would still mean something.

When I'm in Adelaide and missing my Malaysian friends, it would still be very similar as when I'm in KL and missing my Aussie friends.

The tone of the song is still very romantic which is what I wanted from the beginning.

I cbf talking in great detail about the lyrics so meh.

Thanks for reading again.

And watch out for the next one!!!!! :)

Words To My Friend

Double-post!!!!!! RAWRRRRRRR!!!!! :D

This is my latest song and my 3rd (or 4th?) in open C. I'm not sure if it is quite finished. This song is sort of going back to my original Verse-Chorus style except I wanted to add in some extra things that I learned recently like those John Butler-esque percussive acoustic guitar 'slaps' and some tapping for additional melody. I wanted to try something different to add some spice to this song and to try and push the musicality of the song past simply the vocals.

I think I'll talk about the lyrics after I post them.

Shazam!!!!:

Verse 1:
You were never the type to wonder
To be afraid of the future
Before we ever knew it
We'd always find it was too late
"Your hands keep telling lies" we say
"Your head is filled with all these hostile differences"

Pre-Chorus:
You will never know the worst of us
The troubled times that made me stronger
Only self-esteems that twist and turn your arm
To shake the stars out of place
Let's pray that silence won't be heard again

Chorus:
Happy New Year is always 3 weeks late
From a postcard signed 'Dearly Departed'
'Merry Christmas'
I shouldn't have bothered to say how these past 2 months were the biggest waste

Verse 2:
Is someboody listening?
The signal is breaking up again
It's like talking to static
Let's keep writing letters instead

Dear Santa,
All I wanted for Christmas was to be comfortable in my own skin

I know I've been naughty
"Oh, how do you tell?"
Nothing seems to change
Everything stays the same

Chorus

Bridge:
Give me everything
But give me hell
Give me no one
Take something deep from myself

Solo/Instrumental bridge

Chorus

Outro

(END)

The 'friend' I'm talking to/about in this song is actually myself (actually, my past self to be more accurate). This relates to my childhood where I was the 'rich boy' in a poor school. Because of that, I was generally shunned by my peers for a fair bit of my primary school life. Thus, I had this habit of talking to myself which persists to this day (although to a much lesser extent). I was my own best friend for a while and now I use that to reflect on my life.

The song is basically who I am now talking to who I was before (it doesn't matter if it was 5 or 10 years ago, just in the past) and telling my past self that this is who I've become and despite how much I've changed recently and in the long run, there are aspects of myself that I can't change (at least not easily)

If you want more detail, then just msn with me or junk. :)

I'll be back. :)

Thank you once again.

Hey Lucy!

Its simple really. I wrote this song as a birthday present to one of the dearest people I've met in Adelaide (and I've met quite a few), Lucinda Wojt. I was almost broke and wanted to get her something before I left so I decided to write this.

The tone of the song starts on a slightly sentimental tone but after the first chorus goes into a slightly reggae-ish guitar and a happier sounding tune. This change in tone was supposed to represent how, despite how important she is to me, our friendship is one based on fun and our entertaining conversations.

So here it is:

You are one of the reasons why I wake up,
But I've been losing sleep
To my insecurities and then some

I've been tired of dreaming for rest
My optimism's wearing thin
But you turn it all around and upside down

Pre-Chorus:
So I'll write you a song
And I'll try to keep the hook simple enough for you to sing along

Chorus:
Hey Lucy,
We've got one year left but 2 months lost y'know?
So let's make them count
Make them count tonight
Before the clock strikes 12 and we bury ourselves alive

Happy Verse:
Well she's no KO in the first round
But I'm pretty damn sure she'll be the last one standing
Might as well give up the fight

She's got a chokehold on all of us
So charming, so devilish
She makes me do shit just like this

She ain't the prettiest girl in the world
But I know
Yeah, God caught me smiling

She loves all them boys and all them girls
And they all love her too
So I hope they sing along to this tune

Whoa-oh, Whoa (Now ain't she lovely?)
Whoa-oh, Whoa (That's my Lucy!!)

Chorus

Bridge:
I'm just another one of Lucy's boys
But not as pretty or as handsome as the others
I'm not so charming
My manners are alarming
I hope she don't mind at all

Solo

ad-lib Outro

END

Yeah, its pretty simple compared to the song in my last post. There are a couple of metaphors.

The whole 'fight' metpahor-theme in the beginning of the happy verse....hmm.....well, a knockout is what people call an incredibly attractive gal. I said she wasn't one in the first round because at first, I didn't think much of her in any way. But after a while, I was able to appreciate her personality and looks much better.

In the chorus, the lines 'Before the clock strikes 12 and we buried ourselves alive' is actually referring to IB. 12 on the clock represents all the deadlines (D:) and bury ourselves alive is obviously the work.

That's about it I guess. :)

See you next time, dear reader(s). You know who you are.

Monsters And Heroes

This was probably one of my most reflective songs to date.

It took a hell of a long time to finish it but after almost 2 months of writer's block, I finished it.

I started writing it sometime in term 4 last year. The feelings that gripped me that Tuesday (I remember because I had a Free after lunch which was when I started) were ones of general negativity. I was sitting in the refectory with Simon, Liam, Sarah S, Ismail, etc, and I just simply couldn't join in the conversation they were having. Although I can't exactly remember what they were talking about, I just had nothing to say for that 30 minutes more or less and thus I felt alone there.

A thing I've realized about my personality is that when one thing gets me down, loneliness in this case, everything else that brings me down, all the negative thoughts I have about myself and the world around me (maybe not ALL) come to mind and these make me a walking The Smiths song (OK, I admit, I don't really listen to them but from what I've heard, they're a tad depressing).

Thus, I used my free, and its a good thing Cattleya was in Angove at the time, to go and write all the cluttered thoughts in my head.

And this is it:

Was I a boy who one had hope?
Before the sky turned grey and the sun went black,
There are tremors on horizons reminding me of warnings I left on the beaten path,

There are cracks are on the wall,
Let's countdown to 2012,
So I can kiss the girls goodbye before I go
Excuses are excuses and I'm a hypocrite
I'm sorry, you're falling for the act

So call me a monster, call me an animal,
I know I've seen the well, that black hole
I'm looking in the mirror,
Demons are pouring (Note: Or would clawing be better?) out my eyes
And I start to taste the poison in my wine

My daddy once took me to a parade and I haven't been back home ever since,
There they taught me tricks and how to play the guitar,
Do they really want to know what I've become?

So who are you to judge me?
To tell me I'm a criminal, 'Yeah, for sure'
So damn you all but I'm still damned myself
And we're just good as gold
We're good as gold

So doll me up and paint me a portrait in white
When I'm just another shade of grey,
Please confuse the fact with the fiction
And spare me some sympathy,
When I'm just drowning in my own apathy

Well, life's a fucking peach and I'm just sour grapes
I'm a jester and a king
I'm whoever you want me to be

So catch me in the mirror but don't catch me in the back,
If you're saying something and I know you're saying something
Going once, going twice
Going three times

Listen up sons and daughters
Brothers and sisters,
Leave me be but don't leave me alone

Which mask to wear today?
The same as yesterday?
Or one that's bound to break?

I look in the mirror and see a monster,
Bending backwards to play the hero's part
Or vice versa

(And all I'm doing is just failing my heart)x4

THE END

This song gets rid of the usual Verse-Chorus-Verse-Chorus-Bridge-Chorus structure that most of my songs have.

Though style-wise, I consider it my own, there are elements of other bands/artistes here sprinkled here and there. Some of the vocals have a slight Gerard Way (of My Chemical Romance fame) style. For the 'I'm a criminal, yeah for sure' line, I tried to put in some of Justin Sane's (Anti-Flag) style in there.

Well, life's a fucking peach and I'm just sour grapes
I'm a jester and a king
I'm whoever you want me to be

So catch me in the mirror but don't catch me in the back,
If you're saying something and I know you're saying something
Going once, going twice
Going three times

And for that entire section, it was a very strong Green Day influence driving it.

Theme-wise, this song is largely about the negativity within me, everything (maybe not EVERYTHING) that I hate about myself.
Many of the lines are very metaphorical but I'm able to understand them crystal clear.

I don't want to go into too much detail about what the lyrics stand for since most of it is stuff that is WAY too personal for such a public domain. All I can say is, by truly understanding every line in this song, only then can you say that you know me truly. Or at least see that side of me that I usually keep to myself and hidden from the world with my occasional sad smiles and poker faces

And that is the first one I'm posting on this blog. :)

Thank you for taking the time to read this if you did. I'll post the video/audio of me playing this song one day, I hope. :)

More coming very soon. :)

Why 'Late-Night Newscast'?

Before anyone asks, I guess I'll try to explain just WHY the blog is called 'Late-Night Newscast'.

At the end of 2008, as I wanted to explore the possibilities of acoustic songwriting that didn't really suit my previous band 'Childhood Dreamers', I wanted to start an acoustic side-project of sorts.

I was supposed to get Peter (the original lead vocalist of Childhood Dreamers/one of my many bros) to sing but due to his personal issues, he never was able to come over to my place to play. Thus, I was on my own. A semi-alright guitar player with almost NO vocal ability and a number of half-assed songs.

I decided to give it a go but I wanted a cool name to go with it.

So one night when I was at my friend's place staying over. We decided to look for a program to record stuff on. After 2 hours of searching, downloading and testing, we finally found Audacity which we still use even now.

For a name, my friend had an idea. We picked 5 random words from Oxford's English dictionary and using those we came up with these names:
-Selling Esquire
-Late-Night Newscast
-Dirge of Maria

Based on a poll on his now-defunct blog, Late-Night Newscast was chosen.

And thus my solo acoustic side-project and the name for this blog came to be. :)

The Zim is back (to blogging)

Due to the fact that I couldn't get into blogging consistently, I kinda gave up on it a while ago.

However, after seeing JC's blog and how he keeps his songs and junk there, I thought it would be cool to do the same here. Especially after the last year, because I became a lot more introspective in regards to myself and who I am as a person.

I love talking about the meanings of my songs. The songs I write generally mean a lot to me personally and even the ones that aren't from my point of view mean a great deal to me (eg. Private Jack Miller from my 'Hearts On The Pacific' saga thingy. More on that later).

I used to (try to) write heartfelt songs that people could relate to but I learned that to be able to touch the hearts of people, I had to understand my own first which is what I'm trying to do with my music and my quiet reflective moments in my fortresses of solitude.

So, stay tuned, folks.:)