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Lost Ground

by Defeater

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1.
That whiskey burns going down Old man pour me another round because it's my last night in town And I ain't thinkin' of slowing down. No, I am fixin' to drown 'til I see the sun or I can't see because I got the blues and the blues got me I'm gonna make my momma proud Her boy on the front lines And just like my daddy done I ain't afraid to die. I ain't no fortunate one But I'm proud of what I've done. and hardships, I've seen some I ain't no coward I don't turn and run So I stumble home Pack up my old memories Pictures of ma My daddy's flask she gave me "Keep it near your heart" She would always say It's all he left And that's where it'll stay. And her leatherbound Book of psalms and prayers She would always read With patience and care. A short walk to the cemetery To pay respects before I leave 1901 to 1943 I run my fingers through her name And the effigy. The sun is up It's all I see I got the blues And they still got me. I'm gonna make my momma proud Her hopeful new recruit And just like my daddy done I'm gonna bleed red, white and blue
2.
I've spent days in this trench in the snow Just my gun by my side. It's cold and wet and you're all alone Up keepin' watch at night. The bite and the sting The bitter cold brings Reminds you that you're still alive The hope and the pride That we all hold inside Seems to break when another boy dies We ain't seen no germans for days We're just tired and sore And it feels like I'm wastin' away So I drink from my flask to stay warm. Every bomb miles away Every faded engine cry Still makes your heart start to race Keeps you prayin' at night. Been too quiet and too calm For somethin' not to be wrong So we sit as brothers in arms. So we wait and we shake Hear the roar of the tanks And the gunfire of the on-comin' storm. The ring in our ears And the cold rush of fear Overtakes us with the enemy in sight. I stagger, but don't falter I aim and pull the trigger And we fight But it all happens too fast The blur of the sweat in my eyes But with every man I kill It seems two of my friends fall to die I'm down on my knees Feel the pain in my gut And the snow is covered in blood. I crawl to my captains side With his head on my knee Says "see to it that my grave is kept clean" I wake in a hospital bed There are rows and rows and rows of dyin' kids. And I know that my whole Infantry is dead.
3.
I stand next to an empty grave Where my friends will lay I'll put their bodies down Into their restin' place. I got a purple heart For a wound and scar They just send letters home That broke the families apart. The paulbearers burden As heavy as my heart's hurtin'. All the pain and guilt My head is ponderin'. Why them and not me? Did you ever hear that coffin sound? It means another poor boy is in the ground. Have you ever heard them church bells toll? Means another poor boy is dead and gone. The preachers preach, holdin' folded flags mothers mourn, holdin' folded flags. Just caskets and folded flags. No hope, just folded flags. No hope
4.
I'm wanderin' these streets alone They don't feel like home This once hallowed ground Feels like a ghost town now I'm on the street corners everyday At night I drink it away. This flask that saved my life Might be the death of me. Ain't no man in this city Will take a chance on me The color of my skin Is all they see. I was a hero when I came home Now no one seems to know And that medal that I received It means nothin' to me I keep readin' my momma's prayers But I find nothin' there That makes any sense to me. Her god Is no more Than a thief. I'm gonna pack up I'm gonna leave town On a train car Headin' north bound With my lost hope I'm gonna get out Carry burdens, Carry my guilt I'm gonna leave I carry burdens my burdens Of watchin' the good men fall and brave boys die Hearin' soldiers sob in the dead of night Every poor young soul that dies in vain Every soldier lost in this country's name My guilt and my shame No pride and no name Just burdens
5.
My savior, this city, My comfort, her pity Or so I hoped. My heartache, my hard luck, My war time, my struggle That no one knows. In the alleys where I sleep I beg and beg for the food I eat All the pain and the hurt In your gut where it burns Every man here is just like me. The wind blowin' round the snow Makes a man freeze straight to the bone So I drink and drink and I try not to think Of the people I lost at home These six strings I'm playin' And these songs I'm singin' Keep me alive. These strangers That curse me The hero They don't see Just waitin' to die I ain't the man that I used to be I feel the city as it's crushin' me I am losin' ground on these city streets New York town has got the best of me The southern ground where my mamma sleeps She found death and she found peace There's an empty grave next to where she lay That's where I'm supposed to be. I beg and I plead For her god to hear me He's just a coward And a thief I pray and I pray If he is there to answer me I hear nothin'
6.
I ain't been sleepin' well these days I lie awake listenin' to the trains Wishing for one To come take me away I've lost my way every place I've been I'm tired of thinkin' of all the hurt I've seen Wishin' for death To finally take me. My days are all the same On the corners I beg and play I blow my lungs out For some stranger's change The nights are long and cold Under bridges where you're all alone Embers of the fire build Like drifts of snow I've been thrown out I've been let down Never felt a promise Of this town There was supposed to be When I left home I am washed up On my last breath Just an old man With nothin' left. It ain't the way it was supposed to be When I came home. My ups and my downs Have burnt me out These people watchin' me And the swan song that I sing And in the crowd I see the eyes That have been broken down Just like mine. I hope these words dig deep I hope he's listenin' And sees what I've become Just a broken man beggin' in slums I found my hope I finally found my hope In the poor lost soul's eyes That were burnin' just like mine.

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Buy the 2x7"/CD versions and more Defeater merch at B9Store.com/defeater.

Defeater returns with their new EP, "Lost Ground" clocks in at just a hair under 20 minutes, so it's practically an album by hardcore standards.

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released November 17, 2009

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Bridge Nine Records Boston, Massachusetts

Started in 1995, Bridge Nine is a label that specializes in hardcore punk, with close to 300 recordings in our catalog. Check us out and keep an eye out for updates!

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