All Her Books
FEiN Little Homes: scrib-a-lin on her pages, concrete lake, no one saw nothing wrong: all her books printed, little family covers eyes; leave our little home and we can't save you, band-aids gone, build it back on your own.
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ISRC QZ2QB1600014 (soundexchange)
Track fifteen on Little Homes (May 31, 2016), after Blanket. Walton/Woodward co-write. The album’s homelessness theme at its most direct: a woman dies in public while suburban families look away, and the song asks the title’s quiet question of what a person leaves behind.
She drinks, stumbles toward the water, and goes under in a concrete lake while a cute little family passes, greenest grasses on their lawn. The chorus is bystander guilt held flat: there’s no one left to call, does no one care at all, cuz no one here saw nothing wrong. The family doesn’t just fail to help; they cover their eyes, and their ears and noses, denial as a sensory choice, and the body becomes a work order, somebody called for maintenance, come and clean this mess. What survives her is the title, all of her books were printed, lovely sentences are all that’s left here. Then the song turns the album’s whole premise into a threat the parents tell their children: if you leave our little home, then we can’t save you, you chose to be alone. The closing cascade hammers it, no one will save you, your warm bed is gone, you have to build it back up on your own, with the dead woman recast as the cautionary tale: you might end up like that lady on the street.
Pairs with Lonely People and Don’t You. Closer Crawl answers this warning with shared dreaming.
Written by Luke Francis Walton and Brandon Michael Woodward (FEiN). Produced and recorded by FEiN at Tiny Giant; engineered at LMU; mixed and mastered by Frank Rosato at Woodcliff (Discogs). Brian Robert Jones, bass (album).
Lyrics
Scrib - a - lin on her pages, As she ages, Whisky back; she drinkin! Cute little family passes, Greenest grasses, On their lawn; still drinking! Stum - ba - lin toward the water, No one caught her, Concrete lake; she sinking. Reaching out blindly hopin ' , Slowly choking, On her back; so human. There's no one left to call. Does no one care at all? She makes me feel so small, Cuz no one t here saw nothing wrong. Broken and lifeless eyes look, So surprised, her Loneliness; unanswered. Cute little family walks by, Cover their eyes, And their ears and noses. All of her books were printed, Lovely sentences, Are all; that's left here. Somebody called for maintenance, Come and clean this, Mess up now; in - human. There's no one left to call. Does no one care at all? She makes me feel so small, Cuz no one here saw nothing wrong. Little family in their home, They tell their children, Of what the world holds. Now, if you leave our little home, Can't take it with you, You sure you wanna go? 'Cause i f you leave our little home, Then we can't save you, You cho se to be alone. There's no one left to call. Does no one care , at all? She makes me feel so small , Cuz no one ! here saw nothing wrong. Is it worth being alone It's a path you've never known. On a path we've never known. A rock amist the stones Then you might end up, Like that lady on the street. No one will save you Then can't save you, Then we can't save you, The world you knew is gone. There is no rescue No one will save you Then mom can't save you There won't be rescue There won't be band - aids Your warm bed is gone. Abandoned on your own If you leave your little home, You have to build it, Back up on your own.