Marbles

Lyrics

Two pillars in Shelley's desert
Empires by dust are tethered
Pillars of stone in still
Dust that freezes to kill
Aim the marble of bliss
Maybe with luck you will miss

Ozymandias in the fall
Fires in the royal hall
Broadcasting hate for all to hear
Two pillars of death and five of fear

With each bomb you will dig your moat
With each knife you will slit your throat
Those who kill man's youthful prime
All kill each other in due time

Ozymandias turned away
No time for war and death today
A neutral stance politically
While wordlords clash hypocritically

Don't aim but turn your head
You'll knock the marbles dead

The vacuum of eyes and empty holes
The death of flesh and deader souls
Sorrow is for the weak, let pain harden
Righteous lies your soul's sole pardon

Defenseless bleed and ruptured creeds
Pre-emptiveness is whitewashed greed
An eye for an eye or turn the cheek
The vengeful meek and warriors bleek

Let marbles loose to dawn's new plot
Let marbles fly your parting shot


Available on
Sound Check

Notes
This song endured a long, tortured, but ultimately rewarding history. It was first played during the sound check for their January 2002 concert, minus the middle section and the coda. Later, the band produced two demos of "Marbles" to perfect the arrangement, and then they began the five-month project of recording the master. At 9:21, this is the band's longest track after "Heart of Darkness: The Rock Opera" and "The Lorax."