Get all 15 Mike Bankhead releases available on Bandcamp and save 25%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of I Am Experienced, Good Times, Latent, For Misty, Hold the Wick, Wapakoneta, Baile Conmigo, Anxious Inventions & Fictions, and 7 more.
1. |
Soul of an Ode
03:54
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it’s a staff that supports me when i’m broken down
a salve that will cool me when i’m all burned out
a key that opens up a silence secreted away
sing to me sing for me sing into the black
where the echos in the crevices are coiled for attack
a chaotic choral overload
play for me play and ply the talents that i lack
patterns that i imitate i feel like such a hack
fingers that won’t walk this road
write to me write away and maybe i’ll write back
words on pages queue until they grow into a stack
come on help me break the code
a major minor natural holiday
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2. |
Heliocentric
04:20
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bouquet of regrets the stench of stress gets to you
no point of egress the walls they close in on you
they murder your sleep but it’s ok
they murder your sleep but at least they keep nightmares at bay
time to start again no matter what has been
don’t dwell on what’s lost or won from past trips around the sun
time to start again no matter what has been
repairing your broken heart is safer than falling apart
like schrödinger's cat you’re fine and you’re not
the panic attacks they tie your stomach in knots
extinguish the candle try not to get burned
it’s such a struggle but that’s how you learn
flying in circles forget who you were
it’s all right
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3. |
Affirmation
06:07
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hey are you pious like me?
god really loves my tithing and my fasting twice a week
hey do the sabbath with me
god told me i am holy just like a pharisee
hey are you biased like me?
god loves all his children except for minorities
hey run for office with me
god tallies all the votes in the land of the free
do not trust your nobles
do not trust your princes
do not trust your wealth
the heart is treacherous (who can know it?)
the heart is desperate (who can know it?)
do not trust yourself
hey hate to ruin your dreams
god won’t bless your country your sweet home or your machines
hey don’t want to sound mean
god will not protect your troops or save your queen
amen
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4. |
Le Soldat
03:34
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une fois défendue deux fois oubliée
je n’aime pas la guerre je n’aime pas la haine
je combats je me bats toujours pour toi
je combats je me bats toujours, pourquoi?
moi, je suis soldat
marchant dans la boue courant dans les rues
je n’aime pas la guerre je n’aime pas la haine
moi, je suis guerrier
j’ai tiré et tué pour une raison jamais connue
je veux oublier
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5. |
Igneous Is the Rock
03:09
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on the screen and in the pocket of the rich
spin is in the air
truth is mantled by the pandering inside
pick one left or right
they sell you an exclusive all for the rating
dishonest and intrusive all for the rating
prime time inducing panic all for the rating
hot takes come off volcanic all for the rating
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6. |
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you’re in the space between these walls
protected by your marble halls
mysteriously jocular and emminently popular
waiting for me
you’re the one i wish i’d caught
you’re darker than i ever thought
haunting minds with subtle shines
you seem to be who you are not
waiting for me
i see you hiding in plain view
and everybody loves you
i see
introduce you to my friends
sometime before this moment ends
i know there’s guile behind the smile
another heart that’s on the mend
waiting for me
you looked at me like you always do
i can’t keep waiting like this for you
i’ll walk to the back of the line
because i know you’ll be fine
someday you’ll make me come around again
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7. |
North of Sixteen
04:34
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you came to me on a cool march night like any other
you said your piece then i watched you drive away
said your goodbye
sorry that i couldn’t save you
you came to me
didn’t hear what you meant to say
bathed in exhaust
closed your eyes and went to sleep
innocence lost
never could you find your way north of sixteen
your laugh for me was just a mask to hide the maelstrom
you said your piece
i didn’t see your secret pain
said your goodbye
always thought i should have saved you
your laugh for me wasn’t quite what you meant to say
you were sixteen the last time that i ever saw you
you were serene cold upon your plush repose
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8. |
Io
04:59
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you keep a part of yourself so hidden
what do you think i’m afraid of?
you can show me
you tell me there is a pressure building
i’m uncomfortable with how i’m feeling
and how much too soon it’s over
would you help me count the stars?
would you help me write a song?
would you like who i’ve become?
this is what i’ll ask you when we meet again
you’re afraid all of the world will judge you
who do you think i would run to?
you can trust me
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9. |
Carry On
05:07
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lazy rainy morning is where i think you want to be
static from the speakers and the droning on tv
feel the fires burn and the tables turn
and this will never go our way
back to back to back to back i say
i’ve got my athos, porthos, you could be my aramis
spread your wings and find a way to carry us
i’m no d’artagnan but i carry on
intrigue in the palace and a dagger in your heart
cardinal reservations because you don’t know where to start
fill the felon’s role and take your toll with sabre and épée
back to back to back to save the day
all for one and rattle me delirious
sands of time will find a way to bury us
when we’re dead and gone call the carrion
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10. |
Heliocentric (Reprise)
01:27
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extinguish the candle the darkness appears
walking in shadow while vanquishing fear
sweeten the handiwork of bitter tears
it’s all right
rally round the choir
tell the stars to hide their fires
the darkness awakens you confusion is lifted
time to start again no matter what has been
repairing your broken heart is safer than falling apart
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11. |
Ohio Sky
04:11
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rain windy and gray strangest of days
she looks the same and she waits in a green dress
with baby’s breath gifted away
there’s something so familiar in the gray/black/blue ohio sky
the seasons blur and so do the years
i can’t tell if it’s march or july
high street in the dark dodging the bars
looking at cars arm in arm
she thought ahead
and then she said let’s go away
clear fairest in fall when after all
wait by the phone for her call
it never came she went away
the seasons pass and so did the tears
underneath the ohio sky
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12. |
Lamento
06:16
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¿te sientes amada con tu libertad?
¿piensas que tu rumbo vale la pena?
¿te sientes más fuerte con tu libertad?
¿piensas que tu rumbo vale la pena?
tu serás quién serás
no te olvido jamás
¿te sientes quebrada con tu libertad?
solo me imagino como has crecido
¿te sientes amarga con tu libertad?
¿nunca te das cuenta de lo perdido?
estas son las preguntas que no pediré
solo me repito estas palabras
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13. |
Ever
08:28
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looking through photographs
exercise imagination
open door to the past
like a penny turning up again
see the faces long departed
hear the voices that i used to know
looking through photographs
say the names from all those years ago
here the letters that i kept
there a memory safe for keeping
here a friend for whom i wept
there a brother in december gone
see the faces long departed
say the names from all those years ago
here the letters that i kept
there the voices that i used to know
call the roll for missing souls
they are written in a ledger
time will not erase them all
i will see them in the ever
peter shalie bill and marcus
dee and carolyn departed too
looking through photographs
say the names from all those years ago
see the faces that i used to know
say the names from all those years ago
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Mike Bankhead Dayton, Ohio
Mike Bankhead is a bassist and songwriter from the Dayton, Ohio area. His songs feature crunchy guitar, occasional dissonance, and a love of hooks.
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