Rise Against Album

Are there no fighters left here anymore?
Are we the generation we've been waiting for?
Or are we patiently burning, waiting to be saved?

Our heroes, our idols have mellowed with age.
Following rules that they once disobeyed.
They're now being lead when they used to lead the way.

Do you still believe in all the things that you stood by before?
(That you stood by before.)
Are you out there on the front lines, or at home keeping score?
Do you care to be the layer of the bricks that seal your fate?
(Bricks that seal your fate.)
Would you rather be the architect of what we might create?

(Go!)

They laid out the blueprints,
They poured down a base
Concrete solutions to slow our decay.
But when they are gone
Who the f*ck's gonna take their place?

Yeah, will it be the cynic, the critics galore?
The cliche apathetic passed out on the floor,
The trusting complicit who collectively ignore.

Do you still believe in all the things that you stood by before?
(That you stood by before.)
Are you out there on the front lines, or at home keeping score?
Do you care to be the layer of the bricks that seal your fate?
(Bricks that seal your fate.)
Would you rather be the architect of what we might create?

Don't you remember when you were young,
And you wanted to set the world on fire?
Somewhere deep down, I know you do.
Hey, hey, hey, hey
And don't you remember when we were young,
And we wanted to set the world on fire?
'Cause I still am, and I still do.

Make no mistake, we're not afraid
To bear the burden of repeating
What they're thinking anyway.
Let's raise the stakes
On the bet we made.
Let's decide to be the architects,
The masters of our fate.

Yeah, we still believe in all the things that we stood by before.
(That we stood by before.)
And after everything we've seen here maybe even more.
I know we're not the only ones and we were not the first.
(We were not the first.)
And unapologetically we stand behind each word.

I have my mother's dreams,
I have my father's eyes,
You can't take that from me,
Just go ahead and try.
The cursed city sleeps,
Watch ions in the sky,
Preparing to unleash,
Let loose a mighty cry.

Can nobody save us?
Will anyone try?
The pyre is burning,
The severance is dying.
And all along they say it.

Help is on the way
(They said, they said)
Help is on the way
(They said, they said)
Hold my hand to help see.
Right there in front of me.
Help is on the way.

Five thousand feet below,
As black smoke engulfs the sky,
The ocean floor explodes,
Eleven mothers cry.
My bones all resonate,
A burning lullaby,
You can't take that from me,
Just go ahead and try.

She says that's the shoreline,
With hands in the air,
Her words miss the dark light,
Does anyone care?
And all along they say it.

Help is on the way
(They said, they said)
Help is on the way
(They said, they said)
Hold my hand, to help see.
Right there in front of me.
Help is on the way.

Right here! Right here! [x3]

Choking on the black gold,
Upon which we rely,
We keep actions in the attics,
To see cameras in the sky.

Help is on the way
(They said, they said)
Help is on the way
(They said, they said)

We were told just to sit tight,
Cause somebody will soon arrive.
Help is on the way.
But it never came!
It never came!

Help is on the way
(They said, they said)
Help is on the way
(They said, they said)
Hold my hand, to help see.
Right there in front of me.
Help is on the way.
On the way.

Woah, woah.

Bang bang go the coffin nails
Like a breath exhaled
Then gone forever
It seems like just yesterday
How did I miss the red flags raise?

Think back to the days we laughed
We braved these bitter storms together
Brought to his knees he cried
But on his feet he died

What god would damn a heart?
What god drove us apart?
What god could

Make it stop
Let this end
Eighteen years pushed to the ledge
It's come to this
A weightless step
On the way down singing,
Woah, woah.

Bang Bang from the closet walls
The schoolhouse halls
The shotguns loaded
Push me and I'll push back
I'm done asking I demand
From a nation under god
I feel its love like a cattle prod

Born free but still they hate
Born me, no I can't change
It's always darkest just before the dawn
So stay awake with me let's prove them wrong

Make it stop
Let this end
Eighteen years pushed to the ledge
It's come to this
A weightless step
On the way down singing,
Woah, woah.

The cold river washed him away
But how could we forget
The gatherings hold candles
But not their tongues
Too much blood has flown from the wrists
Of the children shamed for those they chose to kiss
Who will rise to stop the blood?

We're calling for
Insisting on
A different beat
A brand new song

Make this stop
Make this end
This life chose me, I'm not lost in sin
But proud I stand of who I am
I plan to go on living

Woah, woah.
Woah, woah.
Woah, woah.

All the way at the bottom
Of these barrels we cried out
So ashamed of our tears that
We blame only ourselves
And that's when they win
They keep us convinced
To lift up our chins
These playing fields are level
We all have a chance
With that they dismiss
The fast lanes they rode
In which access depends
On who you know
Or where you came from
Whose daughter are you?
Whose fortunate son?
We're told to stick out our thumbs
They feast from the linens
While we settle for crumbs

Is this an over-reaching arm?
Or is this compassion?
Is this a handout undeserved?
Or a just reparation?

All the way from the towers
High above glass ceilinged tombs
Tell themselves that they've earned this
By working hard and playing by the rules
But this is only part true
A dangerous trick played on me and you
And so, like a practical joke
We pulled on these bootstraps
So hard that they broke

Is this an over-reaching arm?
Or is this compassion?
Is this a handout undeserved?
Or a just reparation?

Like a single domino
That falls while the rest stay vertical
We're fed these empty fairy tales
Will you believe them?

If there's a god, you better pray
That this sleeping giant never wakes
If we just took a step back
A bigger picture we might view
Perhaps the man in the gutter
Is not so different from you
Come in out of the cold
Forget all that you know
Because there's always been room
By the fire for you
Come in out of the cold
Will you believe them?

Is this an over-reaching arm?
Or is this compassion?
Is this a handout undeserved?
Or a just reparation?
Like a single domino
That falls while the rest stay vertical
We're fed these empty fairy tales
And I'm through believing

You can't feel the heat until you hold your hand over the flame
You have to cross the line just to remember where it lays
You won't know your worth now, son, until you take a hit
And you won't find the beat until you lose yourself in it

That's why we won't back down
We won't run and hide
Because these are the things we can't deny
I'm passing over you like a satellite
So catch me if I fall
That's why we stick to you game plans and party lines
But at night we're conspiring by candlelight
We are the orphans of the American dream
So shine your light on me

You can't fill your cup until you empty all it has
You can't understand what lays ahead
If you don't understand the past
You'll never learn to fly now
Until you're standing at the cliff
And you can't truly love until you've given up on it

That's why we won't back down
We won't run and hide
Because these are the things we can't deny
I'm passing over you like a satellite
So catch me if I fall
That's why we stick to you game plans and party lines
But at night we're conspiring by candlelight
We are the orphans of the American dream
So shine your light on me

She told me that she never could face the world again
So I offer up a plan

We'll sneak out when they sleep
And sail off in the night.
We'll come clean and start over
The rest of our lives.
When we're gone we'll stay gone.
Out of sight, out of mind.
It's not too late,
We have the rest of our lives.

We'll sneak out when they sleep
And sail off in the night.
We'll come clean and start over
The rest of our lives.
When we're gone we'll stay gone.
Out of sight, out of mind.
It's not too late,
We have the rest of our lives.
The rest of our lives

Because we won't back down
We won't run and hide
Because these are the things we can't deny
I'm passing over you like a satellite
So catch me if I fall
That's why we stick to you game plans and party lines
But at night we're conspiring by candlelight
We are the orphans of the American dream
So shine your light on me

Because we won't back down
We won't run and hide
Yeah cuz these are the things that we can't deny
I'm passing over you like a satellite
Cuz these are the things that we can't deny now
This is a life that you can't deny us now

Like a new day rising,
Like a calm before the storm
Like fog lifting from valleys
On a sleeping forest floor

Eyes open slowly as the dust is shaken off
To gaze upon the wreckage
That the midnight hands have wrought

And now I feel my temperature rising,
My body explode
I feel like somebody is watching
Like I'm not alone
I stopped and I vowed right then I said that

"Whatever path you take, wherever you might go,
Whenever you decide to leave, I will follow."

We face a crossroad
Never knowing what's in store
There's an angel on my shoulder
There's a devil at my door

She proclaimed, "Tonight will be
The greatest of our lives."
But I said, "Don't be so sure,
Let's just wait until the morning light."

I feel my temperature rising,
My body explode
I feel like somebody's watching
Like I'm not alone
I stopped I vowed right then and said that

"Whatever path you take, wherever you might go,
Whenever you decide to leave, I will follow.
I will follow"

There in the clearing, we gathered close,
Under the moon's pale light
We laid out the tools
"You don't have to do this
And I'd forgive you if you don't"
She just looked away and said, "I know."

Gripped by the midnight hands
We cradle futures
They would prevent
Gripped by the midnight hands

The line's crossed over
The dawn grows closer
Let's bite off too much
Let's jump with a blind trust
In water over our heads

"Whatever path you take, wherever you might go,
And whenever you decide to leave, I will follow.
I will follow"

I won't bet on the falls you take
I won't let go if you started to stray
I'll be there until you don't wake up
I will follow, I will follow

"Whatever path you take, wherever you might go,
And whenever you decide to leave, I will follow.
I will follow"

"What are you talking about? America isn't going to be destroyed"
"Never? Rome was destroyed, Greece was destroyed, Persia was destroyed, Spain was destroyed. All great countries are destroyed. Why not yours? How much longer do you really think your own country will last? Forever?"

Block the entrances, close the doors
Seal the exits cause this is war

All gave some, some gave all
But for what I wanna know

Carry on, don't mind me
All I gave was everything
And yet you ask me for more
Fought your fight
Bought your lie
And in return I lost my life
What purpose does this serve?

A folded flag
A purple heart
A family all but torn apart
I fought with courage to preserve
Not my way of life, but yours

Carry on, don't mind me
All I gave was everything
And yet you ask me for more
Fought your fight
Bought your lie
And in return I lost my life
What purpose does this serve?

The cowards preach from pedestals
With words like courage and resolve
But what they meant was f*ck them all
Because freedom isn't free

They send our daughters and our sons
To deserts under burning sUns
A sacrificial slaughtering to fill
The pockets of the weak
An artificial enemy
Are we so easily deceived?

"You're a shameful opportunist! What you don't understand is that it's better to die on your feet than to live on your knees.
"You have it backwards. It's better to live on your feet than to die on your knees. I know."

Carry on
Just walk away
How many more sent to their graves
In this lesson ignored?

I fought your fight
Bought your lie
And in return I lost my life
What purpose does this serve?
What purpose did I serve?

Hey man, now did you hear?
Your final days are near
In a free fall of fire and ice
And explosions in the sky

A fate that we deserve
There's no escape, no
It's your turn
Now it's your turn

It's been years since our luck ran out and left us here
Like broken mirrors
Ten million shards of glass and tears
But now we are awake enough to shatter what we hate
Like broken mirrors
Reflections of an unfamiliar face

hey, hey!

Hey man you got the time
And can I trouble you for a light?
Who me? No I'm not the ole town crier
I'm the one who sets it all on fire

A fate that we deserve
There's no escape, no
It's your turn
Now it's your turn

It's been years since our luck ran out and left us here
Like broken mirrors
Ten million shards of glass and tears
But now we are awake enough to shatter what we hate
Like broken mirrors
Reflections of an unfamiliar face

We hide from the mirrors
They might show our scars
There is the person that we want to be
And the people we are (the people we are)
Confront your reflection
Smash what you see and let's restart
Because mirrors can't see our hearts

It's been years since our luck ran out and left us here
Like broken mirrors
Ten million shards of glass and tears
But now we are awake enough to shatter what we hate
Like broken mirrors
Like broken mirrors
Like broken mirrors
Like broken mirrors
Like broken mirrors
Reflections of an unfamiliar face

Do you see the world in different colors?
Do you see the world in black and gray?
Alone in your thoughts
How many others have stood where you stand
Where you stand today?
I've stood where you stand
But oh, can you...

Wait for me now
To take off this crown
To break all these vows
Don't you know?
Wait for me now
The air's running out
Wait for me, wait for me
Wait for me, wait for me now

A promise of safe return I delivered
But the oceans were
Wider than I first guessed
When roads disappeared
I followed the rivers
But somehow got in over my head
So a deep breath I'm taking

Wait for me now
To take off this crown
To break all these vows
Don't you know?
Wait for me now
The air's running out
Wait for me, wait for me
Wait for me, wait for me now

A lost dream of what could have been
A house on fire a tangled web
The key turns
To find the locks have changed
In time to hear the back door slam
A sound that to this day I can't forget
The colors drain to black and gray
Oh...

Wait for me now
To take off this crown
To break all these vows
Don't you know?
Wait for me now
The air's running out
Wait for me, wait for me
Wait for me, wait for me now

the pain, disorder
a cataclysmic dawn
we trusted but something has gone wrong
we bought in
but woke to find it gone
impact in 5-4-3-2….

Brace for fallout
The radiation creeps
On cat's feet
We scatter in the streets
She asked me
"Do you think it's safe to breathe?"
It doesn't look that way to me

We stormed the gates
And raised new flags
But it's just the same old story
We seized the throne
Subjugate
We should have burned it to the ground
Woah...
Some might say we've lost our way
But I believe we've not gone far enough

Afraid we cower
To interests not our own
The power to free or to control
We let it slip through
Our fingers to the floor
Watch as the bodies wash ashore
Woah...
Nobody lives here anymore

We stormed the gates
And raised new flags
But it's just the same old story
We seized the throne
Subjugate
We should have burned it to the ground
Woah...
Some might say we've lost our way
But I believe we've not gone far enough

And how long will we fall for this?
And how long will we fall for this?
How long will we fall for this?
And how long will we fall?

And how long will we fall for this?
And how long will we fall for this?
And how long will we fall for this?
How long, how...?

We stormed the gates
And raised new flags
But it's just the same old story
We seized the throne
Subjugate
We should have burned it to the ground
Woah...
Some might say we've lost our way
But I believe we've not gone far enough

Once upon a time I could take anything, anything
I always stepped in time, regardless of the beat
I moved my feet, I carried weight
What I could not do I faked
And I dug seeking treasure
Just to wake up in an early grave
So I stopped right then and said

Go on alone, 'cause I won't follow.
This isn't giving up, no this is letting go
Out with the old dreams I've borrowed
The path I carve from here on out will be my own
The path will be my own

This is the part where the needle skips
And the chorus plays like a sink that drips
A syllable repeating, like a warning we're not heeding
Until all of a sudden we notice it
When the wheels brace and the tires grip
A map we've been misreading
A defeat we're not conceding
Until now
There must be some other way out

Go on alone, 'cause I won't follow.
This isn't giving up, no this is letting go
Out with the old dreams I've borrowed
The path I carve from here on out will be my own
The path will be my own

(Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!)

The wind died
The whole world ceased to move
Now so quiet
Her beating heart became a boom
We locked eyes
For just a moment or two
She asked why
I said "I don't know why"

I just know

The wind died
The whole world ceased to move
Now so quiet
Her beating heart became a boom
We locked eyes
For just a moment or two
She asked why
I said "I don't know why"
I just know
I just know

Go on alone, 'cause I won't follow.
This isn't giving up, no this is letting go
I made the most of all this sorrow
I tried to brave this discontent but now I'm through
I'm letting go of you.

This is letting go
This is letting go

Once upon a time I could take anything, anything.

And on that day, they'll tell you
That life hummed on with no clue
The warning signs were all
Dismissed or shouted down
So it goes
The kings all failed to tell us
The madmen failed to sell us
On what would then become
The only life we know

Were they burning signal fires
To guide us to the fields?
Or building funeral pyres?
The outcome of a final appeal

The city lines are down
The kerosene's run out
The fracturing of all we relied upon
Let's shed this unclean skin
And start to feel again
Because all the shoulders
On which to cry are gone

The paranoia gripped us
The rain turned engines to rust
The panic set in like a cancer to our hearts
Spreading through
We bet on finite genius
Or prayed for gods to save us
But there was no antidote
Disease tore us apart
We left bodies in the fields
So numb that we forgot how to feel

The city lines are down
The kerosene's run out
The fracturing of all we relied upon
Let's shed this unclean skin
And start to feel again
Because all the shoulders
On which to cry are gone

He looked at the fields
And then his hands,
"All I need is what I have."
Then shed a tear of happiness
She watched the world crumble away
"Is this the end of yesterday?"
"Lord, I hope so," is all he said
Gone are the old guards
Gone are the cold, cold wars
Weightless we go forth
On wings of amnesty

The city lines are down
The kerosene's run out
The fracturing of all
We relied upon
Let's shed this unclean skin
And start to feel again
There are no shoulders,
Shoulders to cry on now

No more, no more
No more, no more
No more, no more
The weight that we once felt is gone.

[No lyrics]