WARM IN THE DARKNESS - LYRICS

1. In Anybody's Language

He sprung a leak, spoke when he shouldn’t speak
Now the bypass is carving up the country
The future’s iron lung, from a university tongue
Been licking at this town for a century
The abattoir gone quiet, they moved it out twenty miles
Now those bloodied hands rest tapping on a sports bet

Well you’ll have a better life
You’ll have a better life, you mark our words
Have a better life, you’ll all get what you all deserve

Oh man, this is too fucked up
In anybody’s language it ain’t good enough
‘Cos I’ve been here almost fifteen years
In anybody’s language this is fight or fear

Pipes on the beach, a sickening rotting peach
As the blood from the Redgum fills the valley
Tracks in the sand, heavy hammers in their hand
And their deals done with their pants down in the alley

Well you’ll have a better life
You’ll have a better life, you mark our words
Have a better life, you’ll all get what you all deserve

Oh man, this is too fucked up
In anybody’s language it ain’t good enough
‘Cos I’ve been here almost fifteen years
In anybody’s language this is fight or fear

2. Angela

Angela, where have you gone
Your eyes don’t smile no more since he did you wrong
They just stare out your window, mirror passing cars
And fill with whiskey tears in inner-city bars

Angela, nothing ventured, nothing gained
Angela, a heart ain’t nothing without pain
Angela, I know you loved him girl
But sometimes the grit don’t become the pearl
Don’t wait for him to change, Angela

Angela, some smiling eyes are mean
And they’ll grin to others like the cat that got the cream
But like a sapling drips with rain, these lips drip wet with lies
And they’ll spit with venom if you tell ‘em you ain’t surprised

Angela, I know it feels broken and burned
But Angela, tell me how else will you learn
That Angela, although you love him girl
Sometimes the grit don’t become the pearl
Don’t waste your smiling eyes, Angela

I’ve been around the block, I’ve heard that silver tongue
I’ve wasted years spilling tears over change that could never come
And I’ve teetered on the tightrope over the canyon of deceitful love
And I found my balance eventually

Angela, the time is now
There’s no way to fly if you’re still tied down somehow
There are so many loves, the sky is wide and deep
And may your spreading wings wake you from your sleep

Angela, nothing ventured, nothing gained
Angela, boldness can release you from your pain
Angela, I know you loved him girl
But that grit, it never became a pearl
And you’re still a diamond bright, Angela

3. Glutton

I’ve been collecting buttons ‘cos I know that you need one
I have so many colours now, all the shades of a setting sun
I’ve wandered through your garden, peered over your wall
I’ve watched you through those thin panes, I’ve watched you come and go

With your love, that’s when I’d fall apart
Don’t you go breaking anyone else’s heart
‘Cos I’m a glutton and feeding upon this pain is better than nothing

The cuff links in your pressed suits, the creases in your pants
I’ve memorised and studied every time I’ve had a chance
I’ve leant idle on a counter and watched endless passers by
In the hope that I might see you, commit you further to my mind

With your love, that’s when I’d fall apart
Don’t you go breaking anyone else’s heart
Cos I’m a glutton and feeding upon this pain is better than nothing

I met you many years ago but my face you wouldn’t know, at least I wouldn’t think so, babe
Ever since I’ve kept in touch, but I’ve kept it all pretty much on the down low

Of the millions of things lying between your heart and mine
Worst is the fear of falling, falling way behind
In an instant I could have you but your rein is loose and long
And I’ll wait here under your tall tree ‘til tomorrow’s dewy dawn

With your love, that’s when I’d fall apart
Don’t you go breaking anyone else’s heart
Cos I’m a glutton and feasting upon this pain is better than nothing

Sometimes I think how it would be, but a delicious fantasy, you gotta stay so
We’re closer than you think, this could all change in the blink of your eye
And even over your highest wall, I’ve seen things, I could tell all, if you only knew that
Spend all my time creeping up, but all the time I’m never close enough

4. It's a Long Way Down

I ain’t too good when I’m sober
My weary head it won’t let me rest
It never seems to be over
The demons crouching beneath my breast

I got a job in the city
Making coffee for cops and crims
Hung-over, shaking and shitty
Until I got that bottle between my lips

So if you go, would you take me with you
‘Cos I want to know how it feels to leave
I saw the future like a chasm below me
And honey it’s a long way down

We go out drinking on Monday
Graffiti shining on the rain slicked streets
With cigarettes and a week’s pay
And friends who drink just as hard as me

We talk shit ‘til we’re thrown out
Go back to Jimmy’s and smoke some weed
This ain’t no kind of a blowout
We’ll do the same thing every night this week

So if you go, would you take me with you
‘Cos I want to know how it feels to leave
I saw the future like a chasm below me
And honey it’s a long way down

5. Colourblind

Well you told me I was colourblind
‘Cos I couldn’t remember the colour of your eyes
But that may be the pot calling the kettle black
Be careful you don’t say something you can’t take back

See we all have our demons
Mine are standing right here
But if you wake up crying in the middle of the night
Nothing will save you from the fear
That your time will come again

If it’s true that misery loves company
And that hypocrisy has become the new currency
Perhaps you’re paying me the highest compliment
I used to have some pride, I’m not sure where it went

See we all have our demons
And mine are standing right here
But if you wake up crying in the middle of the night
Nothing will save you from the fear
That your time will come again

So we’re dancing the dance just like flying birds
The leader change direction everyone else turns
When I was younger I thought one day we’d all shed this skin
It seems the folly of youth was just about to begin

See we all have our demons
And mine are standing right here
But if you wake up crying in the middle of the night
Nothing will save you from the fear
That your time will come again

6. Love Love Love

So here’s what he’s going to do
He’s gonna climb up that tower toward you
And you’ll let your pretty hair fall
As he sings of love, love, love

These towers are where we hide
Safe from the world that’s outside
And we let our tears fall
Tears shed for love, love, love

But baby don’t look at me that way
Baby, I don’t want to hear you say
That you get frightened most of these days
I know, just let it go

So I watched that handsome ship sail
They were popping champagne corks and listening to the sound of the whales
Oh they seemed like they were happy
They were toasting love, love, love

But baby don’t look at me that way
Baby, I don’t want to hear you say
That you get frightened most of these days
I know, just let it go

But the seasons change
And my heart feels lighter for the pain
‘Cos when it all goes wrong, lovers keep us strong

So I’ve been here before
I’ve stumbled into daylight falling through that door
But it never made me happy
So damn you and damn this love, love, love, love

But baby don’t look at me that way
Baby, I don’t want to hear you say
That you get frightened most of these days
I know, just let it go, let it go

Oh ‘cos baby, I know what you’re doing to me
This ain’t got nothing to do with setting each other free
And I’ve been lied to and I still feel the sound

So here’s what I’m gonna do
I’m gonna wait in that tower for you
But my hair’s cut short and so is my hope
For love, love, love

7. Heavy Change

If you keep your mouth shut I won’t say anything
It’s not even worth drawing breath about
Cos everyone loses their mind, honey, now and then
Seems the spaces between getting thinner now

So keep your eyes looking forward
I’ll tell you if any cracks appear
Trust me, I’ll be your shepherd
I’ll make sure the coast’s clear

I can see in your shoulders that you’re feeling bad
But there’s nothing as poisonous as regret
Maybe that wasn’t the best idea you’ve ever had
But you gotta remember that you ain’t dead yet

So if it plagues you, even for a while
Stay away from where those thoughts rest
‘Cos evidently you’re still on trial
Don’t you have some pride left

‘Cos it aches, babe, can break a young lover in two
Heavy change, babe, that’s all that’s bearing down on you
All that’s happened you can never reverse
Her or you, boy, but surely the both of you’s worse

I know you have it, I know you always have
You can change your mind ‘cos you’re strong enough
And I know that you’re much smarter than you may understand
And I’m convinced that you’re ten times as tough

So wake up proud in the morning
Shake that monkey off your back
And start running even faster
The best form of defense is attack

Cos it aches, babe, can break a young lover in two
Heavy change babe, that’s all that she wanted for you
All that’s happened, you can never reverse
Her or you, boy, but surely the both of you’s worse

8. Heart's Been Trembling

I heard a rumour tell me if it’s true
Cos if it ain’t I don’t know what I’ll do
Yeah my heart’s been trembling a long, long time
You’re moving back to the city again
If that’s right then tell me, baby, when
‘Cos my heart’s been trembling a long, long time
Yeah my heart’s been trembling a long, long time

I know back then we treated each other bad
Too young to know exactly what we had
But my heart’s been trembling a long, long time
You’re still the only man that ever could
Make me feel so bad and yet so damn good
Yeah my heart’s been trembling a long, long time
Yeah my heart’s been trembling a long, long time

So come on baby we gotta take a chance
Some say its no good to rekindle a romance
But you and me we always flew by the seat of our pants
Let’s fuel this fire and in the hot heat dance

This ain’t talk of love necessarily
That never was the deal with you and me
And my heart’s been trembling a long, long time
When I was down you always got me high
Man we had some fun together, you and I
And my heart’s been trembling a long, long time
Yeah my heart’s been trembling a long, long time

So come on baby, come and take a chance
Some say its no good to rekindle a romance
But you and me we always flew by the seat of our pants
Let’s fuel this fire and in the hot heat dance

It ain’t so hard if you think it through
You’re better with me and I’m better with you
Yeah my heart’s been trembling a long, long time
It’s all that really matters in the end
That you’re my lover and you’re my best friend
And my heart’s been trembling a long, long long time
My heart’s been trembling a long, long time
Yeah, our hearts been trembling a long, long time
Yeah, our hearts been trembling a long, long time
My heart’s been trembling a long, long time

9. Stay With Me Here

Why you run, run so fast
Is it clear that we’re fading like sand
You come home every night
With another girl’s heart in your hand

But oh lover, stay with me here
Oh lover, there’s nothing I fear
When you’re near, babe
So stay with me tonight

One door opens, another one closed
Hey boy, ain’t that the way that it goes
‘Cos I’m not here to teach you or to reach you
Or to show you how it feels to be in love

But oh lover, stay with me here
Oh lover, there’s nothing I fear
When you’re near, babe
So stay with me tonight

So there it was, there it was
I didn’t love you like I said I did when we were sweating
Nothing changes and nothing will
You and me like poison, like trying to push a river back uphill

But baby, stay with me here
Oh lover, there’s nothing I fear
When you’re near, babe
So stay with me tonight

10. High Open Hills

I met him high on a hill when I was sixteen
And my breath it was taken by the cold August wind
I left school that next summer and to Melbourne we fled
As the sky over Mansfield turned orange and red

I asked him where he came from, he said he wasn’t quite sure
He said he’d moved ‘round so often, he didn’t keep track no more
But he said I was the reason that he could stand still
And he kissed me that first time on the high open hill

See everything changes ‘cept for the sound of the rain
That comes down every time I see him again
And I wish for a moment that we could once more stand
On those high open hills of our youth
Me and my traveling man

He went off to Western Australia where the pearl fishing’s good
He said he’d been once to Broome and there he felt understood
He said I’m gonna return with a fortune untold
So just sit tight my darling for our future to unfold

He came back to me to Melbourne for a week or so
We were lover to lover, I didn’t want him to go
But with a fire in his belly and a baby in mine
I prayed when he’d come home it would be the last time
See everything changes ‘cept for the sound of the rain
That comes down every time I see him again
And I wish for a moment that we could once more stand
On those high open hills of our youth
Me and my traveling man

I got a letter from Darwin later that month
He said, “I’ve found myself a lover, in fact I’ve found quite a bunch
The last thing I want to do is to hurt you or our boy
But you know all I touch I go on to destroy”

He sent us some money, but soon that dried up too
Just like the hope in my baby’s eyes blue
He’d sit at the window and wait every night
And I prayed that that bastard would do what is right

See everything changes ‘cept for the sound of the rain
That comes down every time I see him again
And I wish for a moment that we could once more stand
On those high open hills of our youth
Me and my traveling man

11. Warm in the Darkness

This vendetta ain’t as fun as it was
Now I’m stalking my cage like an old toothless dog
The rocking and the rolling, the duck and the dive
I’m getting too old for this, honey, it’s a wonder I’m still alive

But I’m giving it all away, except for my love for you
I’ll put a bet down and I hope it pays, I’ll wager all of my love for you
And if the sound of an angry heart whispers down low to me
I can always tell you that it’s all too hard because
I’ll find another one, I’ll find another one

So many questions, darlin, so little time
All I know is that I want you back, I want you to be mine
And even though I’m out on the road you know I’m coming back to your arms
‘Cos there ain’t no-one that I’ve had like you, there ain’t no-one with your charms


But I’m giving it all away, except for my love for you
I’ll put a bet down and I hope it pays, I’ll wager all of my love for you
And if the sound of an angry heart whispers down low to me
I can always tell you that it’s all too hard because
I’ll find another one, I’ll find another one

So, honey, don’t you forsake me, I’m a troubled man
I’ve done some bad things, yes I know, but I’m being as good as I can
And I swear now that I’m with you, I won’t ever do these things again
But you know if I wasn’t playing hard we never would have met back then

But I’m giving it all away, except for my love for you
I’ll put a bet down and I hope it pays, I’ll wager all of my love for you
And if the sound of a broken heart whispers down low to me
I can always tell you that it’s all too hard because
I’ll find another one, I’ll find another one
I’ll find another one, I’ll find another one
I’ll find another one, I’ll find another one
To keep me warm in the darkness