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Honky​-​Tonk Macbeth

by Ben Balmer

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1.
Evil Eyes 05:07
Since she came into my life last year, she took control, left me nothing but fear, from those eyes, those evil eyes. She was a pixie, a harlot of sorts, witched me speechless without a retort, from those eyes, those evil eyes I’m sure to lose my soul to those evil eyes I can’t seem to get control of those evil eyes There’s a heart as black as coal behind those evil eyes But you have to pay that toll to those evil eyes Padlock mouth and those razor lips, cut me deep with a passionate kiss from those eyes, those evil eyes. Her hips were swaying to the beat of my heart, cast her spell and I fell right apart from those eyes, those evil eyes I’m sure to lose my soul to those evil eyes I can’t seem to get control of those evil eyes There’s a heart as black as coal behind those evil eyes But you have to pay that toll to those evil eyes. It was a trap, an evil device, the only way to get out was the roll of a dice from those eyes, those evil eyes. She hit snake-eyes with a hiss and a scream, woke me up from this terrible dream of those eyes, those evil eyes. I’m sure to lose my soul to those evil eyes I can’t seem to get control of those evil eyes There’s a heart as black as coal behind those evil eyes But you have to pay that toll to those evil eyes.
2.
Favorite skirt, purple with pockets for days, Such a flirt she walked backwards when she walks away, Cut my teeth on the wake of her path, I remember in frames cause the day went by fast. Lace up boots for the battles that you want to wage, Absolutes was the language she spoke from her stage, Knew every townes song and she hummed them in bed, Her favorite’s “Marie” said it wasn’t that sad. But maybe the rum hit me just right Found myself walking close behind If i don’t regard a dream in life, Maybe it stays this way all night. Welcome, shoes off, sit by me, My room’s this way, wanna stay There i stood this bewildered excuse of a man, Shoulda-could showed me there’s no such thing as a plan, Love’s out the window but she don’t seem to care, There’s order in chaos if you know life’s unfair. But maybe the rum hit me just right, Found myself walking close behind, If i don’t regard a dream in life, Maybe it stays this way all night. Welcome, shoes off, sit by me, My room’s, this way, wanna stay. Memories slip, they just settle like gold in a pan, Drip by drip, if you don’t sort it on the dry land, Six hours just latched on my mind, That woman was a lighthouse of a clever design. But maybe the rum hit me just right, Found myself walking close behind, If i don’t regard a dream in life, Maybe it stays this way all night. Welcome, shoes off, sit by me, My room’s, this way, wanna stay, Push there, the door sticks, that’s the way, Your eyes, seem kind, wanna stay?
3.
Flower 03:55
I saw her put the pen to page, a picture I framed in my mind, felt the time it took for the ink to spread, as it moved to each new line, oh but the words, chosen words, grown from heartfelt loam, oh my pretty little flower, I'll be there in an hour, but I gotta take the long way home. Each letter bore a woman's frame, all curves and secret smiles, danced an image of a waiting love, birthed strong with flesh and fire, oh but the words, pregnant words, formed from fresh new foam, oh my pretty little flower, I'll be there in an hour, but I gotta take the long way home. The speckled paint beneath her nails catch a glimpse, of steady water boring holes in both my lips. To see right through the aching words that tell me lies, meander on for all she cares to pass her eyes Folded twice, the edges matched, it was clear she took great care, paid homage to my Grandfathers time when patience and love were paired, oh but the words, keystone words, laid down by the teeth of a comb, oh my pretty little flower, I'll be there in an hour, but I gotta take the long way home.
4.
Life on the highway takes a toll on me, that I cannot explain, I drive a thousand miles, then I lay down, get up, and do it again. There's a picture of a young girl in my rearview mirror, but I ain't looking back. Thinking to myself "goddamn" there ain't many women, ain't too many women like that. But when the lights, in my rearview disappear, and my headlights are the only thing I know, how I would wish, that I had that one girl near, but I am married to, I am married to, I am married to the road The roadsigns know my sorrows and they know where I am going better than I, and they'll be here when I'm gone, to guide the weary travelers that pass by. The yellow line is fading like a station on the AM radio, but I'm thinking about Austin, and why it is that I had to go. But when the lights, in my rearview disappear, and my headlights are the only thing I know, how I would wish, that I had that one girl near, But I am married to, I am married to, I am married to the road.
5.
Sometimes, my hands are paws, my fingers claws my face this muzzle, I don’t, know how to blend, or how to tell you that i’m trouble But it ain’t no time to cry when that whip it’s biting, And it ain’t no time to run when the audience is laughing, And it hurts me to be so far away, to be way back from my kind. Could, you ever love, a face like this, please say i’m handsome, I don’t, know how to blend, or how to tell you that i’m lonesome But it ain’t no time to cry when that whip it’s biting, And it ain’t no time to run when the audience is laughing, And it hurts me to be so far away, to be way back from my kind. These days, i’m on the run, I just can’t seem to get my voice back, I don’t know how to find, the things you left before you gave them But it ain’t no time to cry when that whip it’s biting, And it ain’t no time to run when the audience is laughing, And it hurts me to be so far away, to be way back from my kind. Sometimes, my hands are paws, my fingers claws my face this muzzle, I don't know how to blend or how to tell you that I'm trouble.
6.
I stumble by your house, a couple hours before dawn, The best part of my day was to see that he’s gone, But it brings it up quick, a sharp pain from a lash, An easy cut like a knife through a camera flash, I scorned a good woman, didn’t want it to last, My feet lost their purchase all because of the past, I can’t tell if i’m dreaming, or i’m not paying attention, My lips they keep moving while I'm losing my diction. I kissed those soft lips, that spoke those dark words, Forgot all of the lessons from being hurt i had learned, But a bridge that leads to freedom, is a road that goes backwards, A secret that’s kept on the nose of a black bear. In my proud world we like to build things up high, Keep the dust off the curtains, since we use them to hide, I keep thumbing through the pages of the words that I wrote, I was looking for a cloud in a room filled with smoke. I stumble by your house, a couple hours before dawn, The best part of my day was to see that he’s gone.
7.
The Runner 07:31
She ran that path most every single day, The salt air blowing through her hair so much a breeze would linger there, Despite her finding refuge in a room. Her mother laid her shoes out by the door, And with each new morn she left them there, Preferring that her feet were bare, Won't compromise the grass between her toes. Keep running girl, know what you want Keep going girl, take what you want. Her name was kept on every caller’s lips, They whispered it with candles lit, Folded hands and coffer gifts, but god would never tell her what to do, But her loving gaze belonged to nane but one, At the apiary merchant stand, She watched her lover’s careful hands, Scoop honey into waiting earthen jars Keep running girl, know what you want, Keep going girl, take what you want. She made sure they needed honey every week, Bowls were hid and jars were spilled, A ruse so she could get them filled, to see those careful hands work once again. Lashed together, hearts dismasted in the sea, Each moment that they spent alone, Inside their minds they built a home, Where lips could meet away from damning eyes. Keep running girl, know what you want Keep going girl, take what you want. Promised to a man of wealth and stock, She felt her soul was chattel bound, So courage grew behind her brow to love that woman with those careful hands. But the steps they took to hide was not enough, For the father of the man she’s bound, Burst in a room where he had found, Impassioned limbs entangled on the floor. Keep running girl, know what you want. Keep going girl, take what you want. He screamed enraged as she sprang to her feet, His calloused hands had found her neck and squeezed with murderous intent, As her lover crawled behind him on the floor. She clawed his face and fought to find a breath, As those careful hands that made her sigh, Unsheathed a knife strapped to his thigh, Drove it ‘tween the ribs guarding his heart. Keep running girl, know what you want. Keep going girl, take what you want. She ran that path most every single day, The salt air blowing through her hair so much a breeze would linger there, Despite her finding refuge in a room. Her mother laid her shoes out by the door, And with each new morn she left them there, Preferring that her feet were bare, Won't compromise the grass between her toes.
8.
Keep Me Away 03:49
I should’ve left in the morning, when I felt I had the need, Felt my boots start to stutter, felt them slowly lose their speed. In this world of choices, why did it leave me with one? But I cannot be the man who runs, I’ve always been the favorite son, Decisions from a gatling gun, Can’t keep me away from here. I felt an hour click past me, an iron chain on an anchor of rust, Watching that parcel she sent me, unopened just like we discussed. In this world of process, why do I always feel done? But I cannot be the man who runs, I’ve always been the favorite son, Decisions from a gatling gun, Can’t keep me away from here. I’m the king of the palace of do-right, a miasmic companion to lust, A tearful display in the moonlight, she’s so honest she turned into dust. If this world just gives you love, why do I blink through anathema? But i cannot be the man who runs, I’ve always been the favorite son, Decisions from a gatling gun, Can’t keep me away from here.
9.
Just two little circles, and a promise to keep, she held her future, like a knife between her teeth, no push on the front door, like it was worth the wait, just and open window and a fire escape. But being his lover was just a honky-tonk Macbeth just words that sound pretty, and then there's mostly death So she closed up that window, and took a moment to cry we probably all go back to Scotland when we die. So she went through the motions, of emotion every day, picked apart conversations, watched them burn in an ashtray got picked up on a railcar of a routine escape found some peace on the wheels of a rolling cassette tape. But being her lover is just a honky-tonk Macbeth where she writes all the rules, and doesn't hold her breath. She walked away from that window and decided not to cry, we probably all go back to Scotland when we die. I spend most of my days, on the lee side of my mind, but I strike my colors, when she touches me at night. It's commitment to survival, the way she treats it like a thrill, a split-lipped decision passing a crumpled dollar bill. But being my lover is just a honky-tonk Macbeth where I start seeing spots then laugh at songs about death but if you want a man, who will love you when you cry we probably all go back to Scotland when we die.
10.
Moon Song 04:22
Just the sound, of my boots in the snow, As they crunch through the layers of ice on the road, Just one step, then the next, I keep following footprints that haven’t been left. But I know, that this snow is the moon, And each step on its surface is completely new, So just give me a hint, Tell me what’s on your mind, Or i’m stuck in this lunar eclipse i designed, I wanted to talk, but you told me to leave, And now that time’s mine I can find time to breathe, Just breathe, Just breathe, I can hear, the flakes pass by my ears, Recalling the words that get fainter each year, Just “hello”, or a “how was your day” the phrases we spoke just keep drifting away. But I know, that this snow is the moon, And each step on its surface is completely new, So just give me a hint, Tell me what’s on your mind, Or i’m stuck in this lunar eclipse i designed, I wanted to talk, but you told me to leave, And now that time’s mine I can find time to breathe, Just breathe, Just breathe, There’s a note, a page passed through the door, That explains your delay, and your care for before, It’s a fake, An apparition of hope, Designed by my mind, just a careful man’s rope But I know, that this snow is the moon, And each step on its surface is completely new, So just give me a hint, Tell me what’s on your mind, Or i’m stuck in this lunar eclipse i designed, I wanted to talk, but you told me to leave, And now that time’s mine I can find time to breathe, Just breathe, Just breathe.
11.

about

In his 3rd full length album, Ben Balmer explores the trials and themes of love from all ages in history. His signature sound and lyrics are married with master level musicians from around the world to produce his most mature and complex album yet. Enjoy!

credits

released October 15, 2021

Ben Balmer: Vocals, Acoustic guitar, Harmonica
Josh Flowers: Upright Bass
Aaron Parks: Drums
Guitar: Cat Clemons: Electric Guitar, Resonator Guitar
Eddie Dickerson: Fiddle, Background Vocals
Heidi Burson: Background Vocals
Micah Motenko: Piano

Music mixed and engineered by Justin Douglas at King Electric Studios and Same Sky Productions in Austin, TX.
Produced by Ben Balmer and Justin Douglas
Assistant engineers Schivona Johnson and Jackie Goff
Artwork and layout done by Bambler.
All songs and music written by Ben Balmer (BMI) except "Married to the Road" which was written by Noah Collins (ASCAP) and Ben Balmer, and "Ware Bear Stare" which was written by Ben Balmer and Vivienne Wilder (SOCAN).

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Ben Balmer Asheville, North Carolina

Born and raised near Ann Arbor, Ben Balmer is an Austin-based singer songwriter. Binding roots-y Americana with contemporary twists, Ben has been influenced by a wide range of musicians, including Tom Waits, Fiona Apple, Taj Mahal, and Paul Butterfield. He has released two full-length albums, multiple EP’s, and will release his newest album, Honky-Tonk Macbeth, in the Fall of 2021. ... more

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