In Bushwick (2020)
One day, back when I lived in an artist loft in Brooklyn, a horse began regularly appearing in the large yard behind my building. To see a horse grazing in the epitome of a hipster-urban warehouse and loft area brought a moment of surprise and whimsy. With all the old buildings and faded painted advertisements, I felt I had time traveled to some bygone era. This song uses field recordings made of the concrete factory that was next door to my home, “Chez Bushwick.” Dedicated to my wife, Margaret, who found me in New York City.
lyrics
at sunrise in Brooklyn,
dark and cold
will anyone see us here
around these buildings so old?
our broken strings and shoes
make echoes from a century forlorn
like faded advertisements
painted on the brick buildings so worn
how did we get here on these city streets?
when did this get built up?
how did we get here on these broken foundations?
when did this fall down?
in a broken down abandoned lot
walking in the plants
used to be a concrete factory
whoever bought it took a chance
to try make another thing happen
with milk and honey
but like the venture before,
they ran out of money
how did we get to be here on these broken foundations?
when will this fall down?
how did we get to be here on these city streets?
when was this built up?
most of the cool hipsters
ignore us when they come home
off to their own great loft party
or out to their watering hole
they ignore this cello in the trash
they ignore this horse grazing next door
but that one person
looks at us wondering
how this could be?
how did we get to be here on these city streets?
when was this built up?
how did we get to be here on these broken foundations?
when did this fall down?
surprised and elated
she reaches in her saddle bag
she pulls out her camera
points, clicks, flashes and whirs
she takes me out of the trash
strings me up with a new bridge
she climbs the fence offers sugar cubes
and then she strokes my head
and we ride off to a new day
and we ride off to a new day
where will you take me today?
where will we be tomorrow?
how will we leave
these broken foundations?
to find a wild place?
at sunset in Brooklyn,
dark and cold
No one knows we left there
around those buildings so old
credits
from Circle,
released August 8, 2020
Song and Lyrics by Loren Kiyoshi Dempster
Cello, Voice, Percussion, Electronics, Keyboards, Field Recordings by Loren Kiyoshi Dempster
Recorded and mixed at my home studio here in Appleton, WI
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