Her nametag says Elena
But she moves just like you used to
When I order a drink
Our eyes meet
And the walls recede into—
Fog so thick I can hardly see
Stumbling through the woods to the sound of your feet
Kicking up leaves
I find you on your knees staring at a nest
Of dead copperheads
Under a tree-split boulder, I say,
“When you’re running like a maniac, you’ll get there fast
But the wind whips colder.”
You grab the cross hanging at your chest
Your other hand soft of the back of my head
As I’m catching my breath
You lick my ear then nearly bite it off
“Save preaching for the flock” you say
Then smile at the rocks, and proclaim,
“Here’s the spot where God said to me
Once love has a face, child, you can never be free.”
Sweetheart, nothing can save you from the face of my love
Sweetheart, nothing can save you from the face of my love
Elena’s hand mimes that she’s waiting for me
Stick and poke lines etch the tide on her sleeve
And birthmarks off the coast of her sea
Change shape and fade near the nape of her neck
The faint pink of a dead reef
But her eyes shine with a violet hue
I’ve only seen in you
The same pious smile too
My whiskey sweats on Elena’s tray
As I try to count the years or the decades I’ve aged
Since I drove away
Like a snake that bites after death
Some faces are ageless, in stasis, till one night they inject
Shame into an older you. What’s left to do, but project
On the ice as it melts in your drink
Sweetheart, nothing can save you from the face of my love
Watch her shimmy though acrylic beads
Sweetheart, nothing can save you from the face of my love
Her hips are swaying, but I see yours swing
Sweetheart, nothing can save you from the face of my love
My broken body starts to feel like it’s seventeen
I hear you singing,
The highway threads a line through your past
Do you see me every time you look back?
Bright red in the sunrise crying
Wondering where you might be driving
In the fading crowds of fools you lie to
Do traces of my face still find you?
In fading crowds of fools you lie to
Wait for me,
Do traces of my face still find you?
I’ll jump up the truck and speed, till I’m
In fading crowds of fools you lie to
Between your knees in the Technicolor gleam
Do traces of my face still find you?
Of the Starlight Drive-in screens
In fading crowds of fools you lie to
Then I’ll get that jealous priest who ran me out baby
Do traces of my face still find you?
He’s just a fraud like me
In fading crowds of fools you lie to
And when my knuckles start to bleed, you’ll kiss ‘em clean
Yeah, but that’s fantasy
Do traces of my face still find you?
‘Cause I’m just ashes waiting to be scattered
Any place is fine. Don’t really matter
Her nametag says Elena
But she moves just like you used to
When I order a drink
Our eyes meet
And the walls recede into—
Fog so thick I can hardly see
Stumbling through the woods to the sound of your feet
Kicking up leaves
I find you on your knees staring at a nest
Of dead copperheads
Under a tree-split boulder, I say,
“When you’re running like a maniac, you’ll get there fast
But the wind whips colder.”
You grab the cross hanging at your chest
Your other hand soft of the back of my head
As I’m catching my breath
You lick my ear then nearly bite it off
“Save preaching for the flock” you say
Then smile at the rocks, and proclaim,
“Here’s the spot where God said to me
Once love has a face, child, you can never be free.”
Sweetheart, nothing can save you from the face of my love
Sweetheart, nothing can save you from the face of my love
Elena’s hand mimes that she’s waiting for me
Stick and poke lines etch the tide on her sleeve
And birthmarks off the coast of her sea
Change shape and fade near the nape of her neck
The faint pink of a dead reef
But her eyes shine with a violet hue
I’ve only seen in you
The same pious smile too
My whiskey sweats on Elena’s tray
As I try to count the years or the decades I’ve aged
Since I drove away
Like a snake that bites after death
Some faces are ageless, in stasis, till one night they inject
Shame into an older you. What’s left to do, but project
On the ice as it melts in your drink
Sweetheart, nothing can save you from the face of my love
Watch her shimmy though acrylic beads
Sweetheart, nothing can save you from the face of my love
Her hips are swaying, but I see yours swing
Sweetheart, nothing can save you from the face of my love
My broken body starts to feel like it’s seventeen
I hear you singing,
The highway threads a line through your past
Do you see me every time you look back?
Bright red in the sunrise crying
Wondering where you might be driving
In the fading crowds of fools you lie to
Do traces of my face still find you?
In fading crowds of fools you lie to
Wait for me,
Do traces of my face still find you?
I’ll jump up the truck and speed, till I’m
In fading crowds of fools you lie to
Between your knees in the Technicolor gleam
Do traces of my face still find you?
Of the Starlight Drive-in screens
In fading crowds of fools you lie to
Then I’ll get that jealous priest who ran me out baby
Do traces of my face still find you?
He’s just a fraud like me
In fading crowds of fools you lie to
And when my knuckles start to bleed, you’ll kiss ‘em clean
Yeah, but that’s fantasy
Do traces of my face still find you?
‘Cause I’m just ashes waiting to be scattered
Any place is fine. Don’t really matter