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North of the River

by Mistaken Point

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1.
Methodical, pragmatic, predictable, repeatable. My friends, thought is valuable if it can be bought and sold. Thought only has value if it meets the needs of industry. Linear, systematic, void of creativity. Mechanical. Indoctrination is the key to making curiosity profitable. Unlocking the potential of the mind for the bottom line. Time is money, my dear friends, and therefore it must be efficient. Life must not be curious but rather hypotheses. Truth revealed by repeating patterns and predictability. Knowledge is commodity and logic is fundamental. Mechanical. Indoctrination is the key to making curiosity profitable. Unlocking the potential of the mind for the bottom line. Only a child dreams, seeking stimulus through their hands and their heart. Without discipline, without analysis, without respect or a purpose. There is no value in dreaming.
2.
It was destroyed and into the void we gazed upon the tangled masses in the dark below. Into the face of emptiness, the fullness of competition in full display. The face of wealth and luxury. Looked up with eyes of sympathy. Hands calling out to draw us down. We stand around on the outside. We will find a better way. Marginalized, but not cast aside. This rejection is calculated, these lives fulfilled. Without contempt, without subjugation, but through fulfillment of community. And still they mindlessly embark into the comfort of the dark. We stand resolved, uncompromised. Step further backward from the void. We will find a better way. Some choose to climb up on the backs of others, and when they fall, they fall hard and alone. We will not fall because we walk together. We walk as one, we climb as one. We rise as one. And still they mindlessly embark into the comfort of the dark. (Into the cold brutality.) We stand resolved, uncompromised. Step further backward from the void. We will find a better way.
3.
Black Death 03:38
I spend the days inside, staring out the window and taking in the brutality, the cold and darkness, from a cautious distance and reality sings me a tragic song. It says, "This is where you set your roots and this is where you know that you belong." And I've waited here for so long. Time takes me further from a chance to walk another road, a chance to gaze out of another window. This is a vicious cycle I find myself surrounded in, where my own discontent has made me further disconnected. Constantly in search of one more bleeding heart. An energy to pull me in and a union that cannot be torn apart. And I've waited here for so long. Time takes me further from a chance to walk another road, a chance to stare out of another window. Somewhere out there, beyond the chaos, lies the heart of this city. I can hear it beating if I close my eyes. It brings me happiness. It gives me inspiration, and it gets louder as I walk outside.
4.
The hardest truths to accept are those that challenge our existence; the wealth, the power, the privilege we never knew that we possessed. We have reaped the benefits from the system that we claim to hate. Actively contributing, continuing to propagate. Treasure and blood. The past predicts what shall become. Treasure and blood. The past predicts what shall become. We’ve said all that there is to say about the need to make a change. Distanced from our history by drawing out our good intentions. I’m a part of it, I’m complicit, these words alone have no meaning. The violence, injustice and prejudice survives through me. Treasure and blood. The past predicts what shall become Treasure and blood. The past predicts what shall become Though pulled apart, our history remains. As surely as blood penetrates and courses through our veins, we’ve got colonial residue stained onto our skin. The damage done continues on until we can acknowledge our own sins. Treasure and Blood
5.
Slowly, surely, the fear became overwhelming. And so formed the legion of the insecure. Fear turned to anger, anger quickly turned to hatred. The flames grew hotter. We turned our backs and so the fire roared. We've seen this all before. Will we choose to ignore the hate darkening the door, the shadows along the floor? Maybe someday we'll look back and realize this was all a brief inflection point, an anomaly. Just a rough patch on an otherwise steady road. Incidental and without an impact on the whole. We've seen this all before. Will we choose to ignore the hate darkening the door, the shadows along the floor? Maybe this will all blow over and we'll recover from the storm. And maybe we'll be satisfied it all took care of itself, without the need to demonstrate or huddle in the cold. Or maybe we'll look back and wonder what went wrong and how it all will end. The future belongs to those who are devoted to the end.
6.
Rise Above 03:03
As far as parting words go, these seem so insufficient. I've had a lifetime to prepare for this and yet in this moment, in these final hours, as my hands betray my thoughts, time is my only remaining enemy. To my daughter, you are beauty, you are grace, in the end the world will remember you for your strength. For my son, I hope you'll always be among the fearless few who choose to rise above. The injustice in this world will continue when I'm gone. This is a battle we don't find to win, we fight to advance. Some will walk, some will crawl. Some will run and some will fall, but the point is we are always gaining ground. To my daughter, you are beauty, you are grace, in the end the world will remember you for your strength. For my son, I hope you'll always be among the fearless few who choose to rise above.
7.
Our second show was north of the river in a tiny basement, an invitation eagerly accepted. We were about to play but we still didn't see you. A frantic phone call, but she held it to her chest. The music fell silent. The news was so hard to digest, so we made an early exit. Another year passes by, but still I find myself asking what I could have done and why... How do we navigate the paths laid before us? Is there a meaning or are we atoms passing through the cosmic background radiation? There's no comfort there, but now I think about it less. From the corner of my eye, I swear that I can see your face passing by from time to time. Another year goes by. The pain dulls mercilessly for a moment, but it doesn't last. It doesn't last. From the corner of my eye, I swear that I can see your face passing by on 108. Another year goes by. I swear that I can see your face, I hear your voice, I feel you there from time to time.
8.
There's a screaming in my veins, it says, "I know how to ease your pain. Take this bitter liquid, let me change the chemistry of your brain. Why are you persisting? Nothing to be gained. There's no good in resisting. There's no need to be ashamed." I just don't want to be a ghost again. Can you hear the void screaming your name? Can you hear the void scream? One more deadly cycle. One generation to the next. Running from our misery, silence the voices the way we know best. Drown in the solution, destined from the womb. Follow the familiar path to the familial tomb. I just don't want to be a ghost again. Can you hear the void screaming your name? I don't want to become a ghost. Hear the void screaming your name. I don't want to become a ghost. Hear the void screaming your name. I don't want to become a ghost. Hear the void scream your name.
9.
You said those things without the slightest hint of irony. "Two gay guys walk into a bar..." somehow ends with bestiality. Round of laughter from your friends, acceptance from the gallery. Oh, we're just too sensitive, I'm sure you'd have us believe. The truth is you remind me of me and I'm afraid of how easy it can be. When I was younger, I said some things that I will always regret. I was a teenage homophobe. I can not let myself forget when I noticed all the bigotry around me and how I was part. Those little things that we take for granted, another life torn apart. The truth is you remind me of me and I'm afraid of how easy it can be. Just how easy it can be. How easy it can be. When I noticed the bigotry and how I was a part. Those little things that we take for granted, another life torn apart.
10.
Today I lost to the world. Every dark and angry element bore down upon me from every corner like a sickness. And I fell, as I've fallen so many times before. But today there was no end, so I welcome the free fall. Quiet and still, no resistance. Felt the peace of yielding to uncertainty as the darkness covered me, pulled me further from this place. I heard this song, the simplicity, struck a chord I can't explain for the life of me. The day that you saved me. Today was the day that you saved me.
11.
We are above the clouds, above the darkest corners of the street. Where all humanity lives in fear and without meaning. We are enrobed in light. Our names are glorified. Our faces cast a light across the sky. Come to us, we will provide a feast of richest foods and choicest wines. Our right is divine, but your loyalty shall be your salvation. Promises we made in good faith require the belief in something close enough that can be seen, but slightly out of reach. So gather to this place, a point of perfect praise. the point at which the mountains reach the sky. Come to us, we will provide a feast of richest foods and choicest wines. Our right is divine, but your loyalty shall be your salvation. Paying is the game. The newly gentrified urban sports frontier is open for business. Tearing apart, policing the divide between existing residents and occupiers. Worshippers flock on one side of the street, displacing those here first again to the outside. (Stay silent, move along. Keep moving and stay on the outside.)

about

Recorded and mixed by Russ Lavoie at Crashing Wave Studios. Mastered by Stuart McKillop at Rain City Recorders. Words and music by Mistaken Point, except "Treasure and Blood," with music by Jeremy Townsend and Mistaken Point and "The Divine Right of Kings," with lyrics by Mistaken Point and Rylan Kafara. Cover design by Jayme.

We would also like to acknowledge that we are forever indebted to Russ for his kindness and generosity.

credits

released July 20, 2022

Blake - Vocals
Andy - Drums
Jayme - Bass, backing vocals, charango, and acoustic guitar
Kyle - Guitars, acoustic guitar, and backing vocals

Additional vocals provided by Megan Doyle (track 1 and 8), Claire Wilkes (track 10), and Rylan Kafara (track 11). Horns, keys, and accordion played by Jeff Meszaros. Gang vocals by Blake, Jayme, Megan, Rylan, and Kyle.

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Mistaken Point Edmonton, Alberta

We are a punk band from Edmonton, AB.

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