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Houses

by Prairie Rehab

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1.
Furious Love 04:00
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Millicent, isn’t it frightening: All the disquieting glimpses we’ve seen Of cities in ruins and worlds set aflame? Milly, deep-down, I’ve a bad feeling And a furious love But it’s tremulous, too I’m curious, dear: Is the nightmare over? Been clutching my talismans, holding you tight Closing my eyes lest the seas ignite I’m weary from worry, suspicion, and shame: Milly, I’ve tried, but I’m faltering In my furious love ‘Cause it’s tremulous, too I’m curious, dear: Is the nightmare over? Is the nightmare over? So, take up the welcome mat; switch off the lights And when they inquire, we can say Nobody’s home-- Not anymore And my furious love It is tremulous, too I’m curious, dear: Is the nightmare over? And my furious love It is tremulous, too I’m curious, dear: Is the nightmare over? Is the nightmare over? Is the nightmare over?
2.
Houses 02:51
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I like your houses: pink-shuttered things With a backdrop of sky so sky-like Periwinkle and dove-grey Undulating rows of wings: Radiant from the touch of your hand Radiant on the sun-smudged page I like your houses I like your houses I like your people: slightly askew, Careening through scene-on-scene of Domestic grandeur To whom everything’s brand-new And whoever they are, they’re happier Than anyone in this world I like your people I like your people And your streetlamps, your sidewalks, the artful way You manage to scrawl your name I’ll keep us in stamps, keep us in chalks, keep us in clay Keep back the dragons, glowering out-of-frame, threatening to consume you I like you when you’re sensitive-souled When you’re a mensch or a pest Or a bruiser, when you’ve steamrolled over me And worn me rather thin No matter your timing, no matter the mood I’m in-- No matter your timing, darling, no matter the mood I’m in I like your houses I like your houses I like your houses
3.
Xs & Os 04:02
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You, in the crook of a quarter-moon: Ah, you should have seen me swoon But how soon you would tumble to ruin When I saw, when I saw, when I saw you were human Little rows of x’s and o’s Melt away like the frost on the windows Rose petals pressed long ago Fall apart as they slip from the pages: Oh, it’s been ages and ages since then But it’s okay: it’s only A terminal case of ennui And you and I face every day not knowing What to say, what to say, what to say to each other O, What to say, what to say, what to say to each other Through the gloam, a lackluster glow Flickers out in the deepening shadows: Isn’t that just the way it goes? But it’s okay: it’s only A terminal case of ennui And you and I face every day not knowing What to say, what to say, what to say to each other O, What to say, what to say, what to say to each other Little rows of x’s and o’s…Little rows of x’s and o’s Little rows of x’s and o’s…Little rows of x’s and o’s
4.
Credible Threat 03:04
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Little empty-headed Michelle, Where have all your thoughts gone? Have they drifted to the bottom Of a depth no one could possibly fathom? Or trickled from a rift in your skull? All the words you’d formed so nimbly Seem to shrivel, turn to senseless drivel. Although they may dismiss it as ridiculousness, Every lapse and every slip, Every slightly stuttered step Make the things you’ve dreaded seem like a credible threat. Isn’t it a pity, my dear: Growing ever-dimmer? Add the lemongrass and ginger To the list of things you can’t quite remember, Like phantoms slipping out of your sight. Still, you stammer in the shadows: It’ll come back, it’ll come back to me…right? Although they may dismiss it as ridiculousness, Every lapse and every slip, Every slightly stuttered step Make the things you’ve dreaded seem like a credible threat-- Seem like a credible threat. Are you tired of feeling dumb? Weary of this troublesome stuff? Scared you’re becoming a burden To everyone you love? Well, just close your eyes, lay back, we’ll make a small incision; And if all goes well You’ll be blissful in oblivion Even giddy, oh, but still empty-headed, Michelle. Little empty-headed Michelle Little empty-headed Michelle
5.
Autumn 04:36
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How ridiculous we must look Standing on our tiptoes: Everyone knows how small we’ve been Everyone sees we’re scarcely more than children I’ve been waving my arms around Trying to flag you down Though you’re not listening, you still insist You may not catch the words, but you get the gist But on every still, grey, dreary day I can see clearly There’s nothing to say And nothing to hear, save the sound of our voices decaying I’ve grown tired of holding tight Tired of the autumn Tired of its languid skies of lead Lying in exile on my side of the bed And on every still, grey, dreary day I can see clearly There’s nothing to say And nothing to hear, save the sound of our voices decaying So, if you’re keeping the door open If you’re counting the hours Darling, stop hoping, stop waiting for me: I’ve never been more sure, more sure-- I’ve never been more sure, more sure of anything How ridiculous we must look Standing on our tiptoes
6.
False Spring 03:56
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False Spring I’ve been tossing and turning Wondering, Darling: Just where did you go? Starlings Chitter on through the evening: Are they grieving The loss of the winter’s snow? Or are they just like me: Still cold, down to the marrow? All I know is there’s a dress-coat in the closet With a love note, still folded in the pocket Falling Into dreamlike Memories: Watching us break in two From the One we were To just Me…and…You All I know is there’s a dress-coat in the closet With a love note, still folded in the pocket Draw me Through the sunlight, dawning, Over the starlings Bursting into morning-song: And I’ll reveal those things-- Sweet things-- kept secret for too long All I know is there’s a dress-coat in the closet With a love note, still folded in the pocket In the pocket False Spring…False Spring…False Spring…
7.
Sigh 03:30
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Swallows met me at the threshold I let the sunrise in: Last night I slept unsoundly Had that awful dream again The one where all my skeletons And every line I’ve bought Come running after me: I try to flee, but I cannot O, Darling, they were hot-on-my-heels In a wave of indignation I offered my most ardent appeals But they craved remuneration What can you do but sigh? What can you do but sigh? The shadows overtake me The swallows flit away Replaced by apparitions In a ghastly shade of grey: Impetuous investments The swindler on the street The endless repercussions Of the terms I couldn’t meet No, really, it was not in the plan But I’m prone to deviation Glad-handing every confidence man Who gives me a demonstration What can you do but sigh? What can you do but sigh? I’m easily distracted And given to digress I’m wont to say I’m sorry But I don’t want to confess No matter how you treat me Or how freely you repeat The promise of reprieve Well, I’d sooner take the heat I’d sooner take the heat What can you do but sigh? What can you do but sigh?
8.
Hers 03:07
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I hope you’re playing the piano Staying up late Because you want to And not because the things That haunted you still do That through the screen door Will come a cool breeze Moving your fingers o’er the keys And she’ll be right there, beaming beside you Maybe she’s waiting at the corner Radiant-eyed And tempered brightly With all the splendor of Some treasured old upright And she’ll be artless Pretty Winding up the tensegrity Of your heart: it’s waiting to spring It’s waiting to spring And she’ll be singing Something softly And, honestly, much better than I could have sung for you ‘Cause I was not yours But I hope that she’s yours And I hope that you’re hers, too
9.
Mumble 03:01
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I lie awake and strain to shake The aching in my chest: A nympholeptic on the verge Of cardiac arrest Suppressing the obsessions That incessantly resound Through the synapses you’ve severed In the nerves you’ve wound around Nothing smarts like the tender heart Of a sentimental fool So, would it kill you-- would it kill you To give a little? I vacillate, equivocate I wait outside your door: Your starry-eyed solicitor And pettish bête noire I don’t know what to do but to fracture for you But to crack like a leaky cup-- But to murmur and sigh every time that I try To speak up, to speak up Nothing smarts like the tender heart Of a sentimental fool So, would it kill you-- would it kill you To give a little? I stand with my coat in my hand-- I stand with my coat in my hand And the words in my throat, But nothing comes out clearly I mumble incoherently But nothing comes out clearly I mumble incoherently Nothing smarts like the tender heart Of a sentimental fool-- Nothing smarts like the tender heart Of a sentimental fool-- Nothing smarts like the tender heart Of a sentimental fool So, would it kill you-- would it kill you To give a little? Would it kill you-- would it kill you To give a little?
10.
Please Please 04:56
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Infantilize every woman you see Cuss the kids on the corner Kick the dog, and poison the chickadees The flickering eyes of the people you meet Aren’t provocations, Baby: Could you get over yourself, maybe? Please…Please…Please…Please The spectacle of a pink umbrella Languishing on the front lawn Still awaiting its reclamation Scares you to death, as you peer out on the street: Little bodies to riot Little cries to disturb the quiet Please…Please…Please…Please In your dreams, all is plasticine-serene: All is whitewashed and lacquered black Tall fences and bottomless culs-de-sac But the world comes creeping through the cracks And you fall to your knees Sighing in perpetual reprise: Please…Please…Please…Please
11.
Flares 04:12
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Flares into oblivion Prayers on the lips of children Who sees or hears? No one But, then again, I must admit: When I’m utterly desperate, I talk to No One. Gossamer morning pours, Swift, through the corridors And over your features: you’re still Blissfully at rest Mysteriously blest by No One. But I’ve seen your eyes grow tear-flecked, Trying to decathect from me When I’ve made you so terribly, terribly lonely Fragmented, dissolute Brutes, red in claw and tooth: They’re ruthless, they’re barely human, they’re Staring hungrily At you: you’ll turn for me and find no one But I’ve seen your eyes grow tear-flecked, Trying to decathect from me When I’ve made you so terribly, terribly lonely Terribly, terribly lonely And I’ve heard the words on your tongue Each stammered incantation Ascend into oblivion But, Darling, know this: If no one else is listening I am Darling, know this: If no one else is listening I am
12.
Catastrophizing 02:50
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If I don’t tell you I love you Before you go How will you ever know When you come Plummeting out of the sky Over Dayton, Ohio When the engines fail While the wailing mothers Pray for time: O, but time Belongs to others…now? When the engines fail While the wailing mothers Pray for time: O, but time Belongs to others…now…now…now…now If I don’t tell you I love you Before you go How will you ever know? If I don’t tell you I love you Before you go How will you ever know? How will you ever know? How will you ever know? How will you ever know?

about

Prairie Rehab’s fourth release Houses is an alternatingly anthemic and contemplative exploration of domestic life, in all its varied comforts and constraints. Inspired by her own life and experiences, lyricist and singer Lacie Williams touches on themes of marriage, parenthood, maturation, mistrust, and (even, occasionally) romance. Musically, the album bounces between ebullient Pop/Rock (“Houses”), ethereal Americana (“Autumn”), and layered Countrypolitan ("Please Please"}.

credits

released April 20, 2018

Lacie Williams - Vocals
Scott Swartz – Guitars, Pedal Steel, Keyboards
Ezequiel Valguarnera - Bass, Harmony Vocals
John Baldus - Drums, Percussion
Christian Schaeffer - Keyboards
Devon Cahill - Harmony Vocals
Ben Reece – Saxophone, Clarinets
Camille Cundiff - Cello

Recorded and Mixed by Scott Swartz at Filament Glow Recording, St. Louis, MO, additional recording by Jason McEntire at Sawhorse Studio, St. Louis, MO.

All Songs © 2017 L. Williams / S. Swartz (Filament Glow Music ASCAP), except Furious Love, Autumn, X's & O's, Catastrophizing, and Sigh © 2017 L. Williams (Filament Glow Music ASCAP}, Husbands And Wives © 1966 Roger Miller (Sony/ATV Tree Publishing BMI).

Cover Art by Julie McDonald
Photography by Rebecca K. Clark

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Prairie Rehab St Louis, Missouri

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