narcissist

Lyrics

[Verse 1 - twangy acoustic guitar, steady kick drum, weary lead vocal]
You walked in like a headline, all shine and all smoke
Talked so sweet in the doorway, then you tightened the rope
You made a home out of walking on every good thing I had
Now the picture on the wall looks like a lie I never knew I’d have

[Pre-Chorus - drums building, steel guitar crying, harmonies rising]
I keep packin’ up my heart in a broken little box
But every road out of your shadow ends right where I got lost
You say I’m yours forever like it’s some kind of prize
But your love’s a locked-up prison and I’m dying here inside

[Chorus - full band, driving drums, electric guitars, aching singalong]
I hate the way I need you, hate the way you made me stay
Hate the chains look gold in the light when I’m beggin’ them away
I wanna run, I wanna leave, I wanna burn this whole thing down
But I’m still turnin’ in your orbit when you’re not even around
Yeah, I’m caught in your thunder, I’m the fool you always found
This love is a cage with the door wide open somehow

[Verse 2 - louder guitars, honky-tonk piano, sharper vocal bite]
You’re a mirror with a memory, only showin’ what you lack
Every time I call you out, you twist it and you smile right back
You take the best parts of me and call ’em proof you’re right
Then leave me talkin’ to the ceiling in the middle of the night

[Pre-Chorus - snare lift, layered harmonies, tension rising]
I keep tellin’ myself tomorrow’s gonna be the day
But your voice is like a habit I can’t throw clean away
And even when I see the exit, even when I know
My boots keep on the dashboard and my heart won’t let me go

[Chorus - full band, big singalong, pedal steel soaring]
I hate the way I need you, hate the way you made me stay
Hate the chains look gold in the light when I’m beggin’ them away
I wanna run, I wanna leave, I wanna burn this whole thing down
But I’m still turnin’ in your orbit when you’re not even around
Yeah, I’m caught in your thunder, I’m the fool you always found
This love is a cage with the door wide open somehow

[Bridge - stripped-back drums, mournful piano, raw vocal]
If I had the nerve, I’d be a long gone storm
Leave your pretty little kingdom and never come back for more
But you got my name in your mouth, you got my fear in your hand
And I hate that I still feel you every time I make a stand

[Final Chorus - explosive full band, soaring harmonies, electric lead guitar]
I hate the way I need you, hate the way you made me stay
Hate the chains look gold in the light when I’m beggin’ them away
I wanna run, I wanna leave, I wanna burn this whole thing down
But I’m still turnin’ in your orbit when you’re not even around
Yeah, I’m caught in your thunder, but I’m learning how
To hate you loud enough to finally get out now

[Outro - fading guitars, reverb-drenched vocals, lonely steel guitar]
I hate you, I hate you, I hate you…
And that’s how I’m goin’ free somehow