[Verse 1]
Waiting for the tide to break
Stakes are high as empire state
Behind iron gates wide awake plotting my escape
I got a modest client base from the wars fought
So I don't have to shovel coal while the overlords watch
An honest day's work for the sharp sure shot who's weaponized words could turn swine to pork chops
We shape pliant minds in trying times, half gods by design asking why the blind sore spot
Consulted analysts, subway evangelists, holy men, shamans, prophets and old manuscripts
Read by the soft light of citronella candle sticks, to keep the bloodsuckers at bay
Put 'em all on display
Free myself from the beast's rib cage
Mouth like an automatic, tongue like a switch blade
I paid my dues, I lopped off the serpent's head
The check's in the mail like old Jack Burton said

[Chorus]
Through it all you maintain, play the game
State your aim, embrace change, create a lane
Stake your claim, disconnect from the mainframe
Bite the hand that feeds falsehood and break chains
Wrestle with your soul separate from the whole
The more you try to mask it the less you're in control
I've lived half my life by the pleasure principle
And shot the poison to relieve the pressure in my skull
[Verse 2]
I saw a man walk the streets whipped and bleeding
Every drop spilled fed the earth and gave it meaning
Eden blossomed in a barren landscape
The priest class sealed it off with mandates and secret hand shakes
Now, we brave a new world, a wilderness of mirrors
Of lies and half truths that instill a sense of fear
A telescreen waste land, over wrought with lost soda pop social activists that pose for the photo op
Look at all the zombie youth falling prey
Starving for attention I can see their ribs from a mile away
High praise from the taste makers
Ape each others' styles ride every wave and pander to your base nature
I fought a war inside
Boxed with the lord of flies
Lived what you glorify
Saw through distorted eyes
Reported live, from a fortified prison
Where you're taught to trust cold dead logic over vision

[Chorus]
Through it all you maintain, play the game
State your aim, embrace change, create a lane
Stake your claim, disconnect from the mainframe
Bite the hand that feeds falsehood and break chains
Wrestle with your soul separate from the whole
The more you try to mask it the less you're in control
I've lived half my life by the pleasure principle
And shot the poison to relieve the pressure in my skull
[Outro - Voice Sample]
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