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Be Under No Illusions

by Stevie Mac

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1.
Crisis 04:06
Broken commanders in ruffled suits and ties Designating targets, showing you the shadow and the light But the people have questions so we'll tell you some lies Fly across the world to look into a madman's eye Hold back the night The dark has come and I don't want to be dragged inside Hold back the night My judgement's come and I don't want to be left to die To reclaim what we stand for, we cross that line When all you believe is balanced on the edge of a knife So this is our crisis, no peace in our time Meetings are held to measure out the worth of a life Hold back the night The dark has come and I don't want to be dragged inside Hold back the night My judgement's come and I don't want to be left to die
2.
Once, everlasting patience flowing through our words Deep in my bones I don't feel safe We turned on each other faster than two lyre birds Made my mistakes, I'll change my ways Be safe Leave a light on for us Take us back and pray that it's enough Out in the cold the weight is on my shoulders See the abuse through lovers' eyes Be safe Butcher my words and act like we've crossed over I'll break all my chains, I'll cut these ties Be safe Leave a light on for us Take us back and then promise that's enough
3.
You read words upon the page and they cause you to seethe with rage 'Cause no words are ever kind enough They send you out into the street where you have only known defeat The vultures are circling above Never made yourself amount to much, you use excuses as a crutch You got out, but always had it tough And when you find your spririt breaks, well you can always find a take That holds you and smothers you with love 'Cause the thoughts that crystalised around your youth Became the lens on which you grinded out your truth And if you see it written down, but there's no proof Well it's just conversational It's just conversational The times you would see justice done, defend the right to keep your gun Protection for the views you choose Now you've tracked the problem to its source and lifted up your tiki torch Elections are just another ruse To those who'd have us reconcile, those folk would run a country mile But someday they'll quit turning the screws The voices just won't go away so here's your independence day They can't stop you from singin' out the blues 'Cause the notions that imprint when you open up Become the friendly voice you know that you can trust And if the other side's ideas don't make the cut Well they're just conversational They're just conversational
4.
Rome 04:26
Tell me how we came to live the rise before the fall You can feel it in the atmosphere Accumulating debts that we had endlessly put off They echo through the after years Rattling our swords at what's beyond the city walls Part of the sum of all our fears Gathering your friends to settle it once and for all Time to loose an arrow from your bow Set the limits where they cannot go Home is ever yearning to leave town Rome is ever burning down Reconcile to see the old is threatened by the new Test the speed of our decline Use the time to paint your Trojan horse red white and blue While the truth gets undermined Spectre legionnaires control the movement of your limbs Find the ghost in your machine The future carried forward by our fortunes and our whims The stores lay empty just before the snow They know more about it than you know Home is ever yearning to leave town Rome is ever burning down
5.
Meet me on the crescent steps and I'll show you a town Where people never seem to stray outside the lines The cataracts that come when you're familiar with a space Began to form sometime ago behind their eyes The fear that swirls around you when you're rooted to the spot It slowly drip-feeds little messages of hate And as the world flies past you it flows glacial this pace Until you know just who you are when it's too late 'Cause time waits for no man No way it can Meet me on the crescent steps, we'll find there's no way back But then that might just be a blessing in disguise Eking out a vagrant's life, we hide ourselves away In case our young ones rediscover bluer skies They don't respect your temperament, don't understand it when you say There's value in the things we leave behind Always accepting packages and always swapping hers for his To brighten up the corners of the mind I count the phoney photographs that hold us all, all to a man Responsible for always wanting more Rejection of the hex that summoned these unwanted feelings to your door We found it before
6.
Looking back I see the good days Perched upon this precipice of life I turn and stare out to the darkness Can I make it out? The jury's got no evidence against us We're just dogs, fighting for what's thrown our way Strong enough to keep the pack together But too proud to beg Oh my good will it deserts me when I'm feeling wronged I'd throw my lot in with the devil if he'd bring me home Bring me home When I feel loose around the edges A dusty volume on a shelf Will I be fondly remembered By those who needed my help? When I fade into the distance Will I have made my children proud? Will I be on the right side of history When the gavel sounds? Oh he's be whispering many a thing But I'm hangin' on I pray that I'll resist the devil When he sings that song Oh it's torture to hear those words And be strung along 'Cause I'd give anything to anyone Who'd bring me home Bring me home
7.
Remember 04:22
Do you remember that one good time? Brings a light into your eyes Hands around the candle Don't let the flame go out Treasured times are holy relics They get beneath your skin You turn to them when times get hard To get out the mess you're in 'Cause we're all hungry for the bygone days gone by We're all hungry but can only breath a sigh If your life's work is a lesson Then your metaphors are strong But I've never lived in New York So I cannot write that song But we hope there's a city out there That can take away the pain Of the same-old same-old That faces us anew each day 'Cause we're all hungry For the echos of the past We're all hungry For the hours that didn't last It'll all fade into nothing Even though we do protest Like Canute against the wavefront Assuming we know best We drew up a social contract A promissory note That tomorrow will be greater than today That I can't believe we wrote 'Cause we're all hungry For all the times that don't exist We're all hungry For reasons not to cut our wrists
8.
One & Done 03:22
Cure I've got to find a cure A cure for my condition, Because I'm never sure Of what needs my attention What I need to do Pause I pause to speculate What might and might not happen But I get tangled up I fall into old patterns Am I losing you? Look around and see how far we've come That's one and done Try I try and find the drive to end this indecision Throw good money after bad To change my situation That's what I do Tick I can't articulate It throws me off my balance So I procrastinate And try to pick my battles But there's so much left undone If I had one wish for my life Then all the things I kept inside Would amount to something more than small potatoes Do the deeds maketh the man? Do I measure up where I stand? Am I special? But then I look around to see how far I've come That's one and done
9.
Your Fool 04:22
Searching for another form to take Waltzing through the room just like you made it Seeking out a silence fit to break Weighing up the reasons to delay it Couldn't change your mind People hangin' out by waterfalls get wet You don't strike me as the usual kind, I'll bet I see it in your eyes I'm your fool Feel uneasy as the balance tips my way It happens once or twice, I start to doubt it They are just whispers on the waves Try to tell myself that I can live without it But you could change my mind Killin' time is just a specialty of mine I can't help it if I leave a few behind Can't escape the lies I'm your fool
10.
If I'm buried by the weight of my mistakes Or deliverance arrives an hour too late If St. Peter calls for me now at the gate Oh darlin' If life's a test and I've failed it now and then Or our fates are sealed by the acts of evil men If the earth decides it's time to start again Oh darlin' Hold me tight, one last time I'll go quietly, satisfied If I'm buried by the weight of my mistakes Or deliverance arrives an hour too late If St. Peter calls for me now at the gate Oh darlin' If life's a test and I've failed it now and then Or our fates are sealed by the acts of evil men If the earth decides it's time to start again Oh darlin' Hold me tight One last time I'll go quietly Satisfied If the darkness falls and the light fades from my eyes Or the day comes the sun chooses not to rise If I've conspired to meet my own demise Oh darlin' If I'm beaten down and crawling on the floor Or the nation states all heed the call to war If the demons come to stand outside my door Oh darlin' Hold me tight One last time I'll go quietly Satisfied Hold me tight One last time I'll go quietly Satisfied Hold me tight One last time Hold me tight One last time
11.
Well wasn't that something? They'll say as they rake the coals Right over what we had Didn't see that coming One moment for the curtain call It didn't seem so bad In the altogether the truth is forged We always thought we could beg for more Good hearts broken parts Modern life it all comes down If we let it fall False starts torn apart The world we have it all comes down If we lose control Sift through the layers Reaching for a tiny shard Of what we used to have So many papers Held us tight for we were welcome In the promised land The burning remnants we recognise We couldn't help if they informed our lies Good hearts broken parts Modern life it all comes down If we let it fall False starts torn apart The world we have it all comes down If we lose control
12.
Close the door comin' in from work each evening The cold makes an impression on your face There's something here you can't quite picture It winds unconsciously inside your brain All the lovers' notes and antidotes And endless coffee shots that sail you home Oh lord Be under no illusions in the precious little time you call your own Phosphorescent glowing figures Charting out the balance of your days But if you closely scrutinise them They fall apart in oh so many ways If you chase the almighty dollar for a living You will reap what you sow Oh lord Be under no illusions in the precious little time you call your own If the common man has got you second-guessing If you're the smartest person in the room Well they're just grabbin' desparate at your coat-tails You'll always have the Nuremberg excuse But if the things destroyed in your employ Leave you with sins for which you must atone Oh lord Be under no illusions in the precious little time you call your own Be under no illusions in the precious little time you call your own

about

"A remarkable piece of work, full of world-weary lyrics, warm melodies and wonderful alt-folk and Americana-steeped arrangements"
- Edwin McFee, Sunday Life

"An album that touches on very present themes and concerns, politically and personally... Be Under No Illusions should be a welcome arrival in your mailbox"
- Mike Davies, folking.com

"Clever and thoughtful songwriting... somehow recalls Blackpool North Pier and Mercury Rev"
- Brendan McKeown, Daily Mirror

"Absolutely brilliant"
- Jason Maddocks, Phonic FM

credits

released February 17, 2022

Drums: Graeme Arthur
Cello: Zara Fleming
Lead guitar on 'Remember': Walter d'Goon
Vocals on 'Your Fool': Ciara O'Neill ciaraoneillmusic.com
All other instruments and vocals by Stevie Mac.

Tracks 1,2,6,7,9,11,12 - mixed & produced by Walter d'Goon.
Tracks 3,4,5,8,10 - mixed & produced by Stephen Arthur.
Mastered by Jon at Mooseetronix www.moosetronix.com
Artwork and design by Paul at Loki Creative www.lokicreative.co.uk

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Stevie Mac Belfast, UK

Stevie is a guy with a guitar and a voice and a collection of old keyboards and things from Belfast. He's been in a few bands over the years when it suits him but when he's not he's usually penning his own material.

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