They Fear Us, by Ithaca (2024)

1.

It’s not a job it’s a serviceAnd i get paid in satisfactionIt’s not desire it’s purposeFeeding off the chain reactionI take your calls in the bathroomSo that no one can hearAnd wash your blood down the sinkCause we don’t keep souvenirsDon’t say you can take itDon’t think i won’t break itDon’t try to hide your shakingDon’t you know i know you’re fakingHere it goesAspiration holdsObturate, unfoldInclination codesHere it goesDon’t look so scared(This is a gift)Don’t look so bereft (That’s what you said)Here it goesWatching, waiting in that fashionThere’s no place here for compassionAching for that interactionNegative space, neutral passionHow could you know this would happenBlood for blood in the transactionPredilection for abstractionBlood blood blood blood blood extractionBought tickets for the attractionTallying up your infractionsDrip a drop here it’s your rationExpiration, final captionHere it goes

2.

Don’t look in the mirrorThey’re all broken(Tell me how it feels to want to stay)I’ve got a theoryThat remains unspoken(Tell me how it feels to still hold sway)I can’t stopI’ve got a theoryIt remains untoldI’ve got milk in my veinsI speak the language of the godsYour future self says thank youIt’s so hard to play the gameWhen leaving is so easyThe ending is the sameI can’t stop I put poison in your birthday cakeFar more evil than even i could makeGive me someone new that i can hateSick of watching myself ageNothing stays the sameEvery day marks a changeEvery first is a last in placeNo one will remember your faceI’ve got a theoryIt remains untoldThe secret combination is inset in solid goldThe worst reflection isn’t whatYou think you seeYou look so pretty staring back at meI’ve got a theoryIt remains untoldThe secret combination isOnly learned when you get oldIt’s choking on diamondAnd vomiting goldSo glad we left so early

3.

It feels like lightyears awayIf feels like decadesYou think you’ve made your escapeBut we’re catching up againWatching you make your mistakesExaltation pureDon’t quote the debt that you’ve paidCause we’re catching up againI held my breath on the way downYour tangled hair became my gownI’ll never tell you what i foundNow look who’s finally got the crownYou think we’re lightyears awayYou think we’re decadesWe’ve waited aeons to sayThat we’re catching up againSo sweet to know that you’re preyAnd it’s a blessingBathe in the mess that you madeCause we’re catching up againBow to your bloodYour queen and Your godBow to the end of Everything you loveYou think we’re lightyears awayYou think we’re decadesYou think you’ve made your escapeBut we’re catching up againStop praying to godI’m not listeningBow before your bloodBow to your bloodYour queen and Your godBow to the end of Everything you loveIt feels like lightyears awayIf feels like decadesYou think you’ve made your escapeBut we’re catching up againStop praying to godI’m not listening

4.

Just let the light pass throughI’ve got time to killI’ll let you choose the speedI’ll pick the reelDon’t move just stay right thereAccept the curseLet me devour youBecause the camera always eats firstIt’s what you do when you thinkNo one is watchingIt’s what you say when you thinkNo one is thereIt’s the way that you’re shifting Inside your skinPeel it off and show meWhat’s left withinRip it off and show meJust where you’ve beenTear it off and show meShow me how you winWho does the light pour out foreverTo hit rewind back to the disseverClick the switchLock the strapPull me inClose the gapPush the leverDrop the matchFan the flamesBreak the latchTurn the dialClose your eyesYou press playI’ll baptiseTip the candleKnot the ropeHeart your crossAnd die to hopeIt’s what you do when you thinkNo one is watchingIt’s what you say when you thinkNo one is thereWho does the light pour out foreverWho does the light pour out Who do the shadows followWho do we die withoutOur dark tomorrowWho does the screen burn forWho do the i always singWho is the end of allOf everything

5.

It’s in concentrationI can’t control myselfMaybe it’s desperationIt’s all in the reactionYou make my hold my breathWhen i need a distractionWe’re more than just a fixationIt chokes just how you likeThe ash in your foundationsI need to feel the sensationBurning each fingerprintThere’s nothing like a cremation partyI’m so proud of youThe gaps betweenWhere the nails catchTreading the fleshCaught in the actMalice outlastsSo here’s to the pastIt’s in concentrationI can’t control myselfMaybe it’s desperationIt’s all in the reactionBurning each fingerprintThere’s nothing like a cremation party

6.

This family is as good as deadAnd your exactly where we want youIgnore the blades in your bedThey only cut you where you want to Your empty laughAn epitaphA photographA parasiteWe sit and tables and don’t speakIn front of meals we never f*cking eatBloated from swallowing wordsAnd push the leftovers inside the seatWhen did i have to start begging For a single scrap of sentiment Let’s automate the embedding Til it becomes an impediment When did i have to start beggingTo return my devotion Why would i stab you in the backWhen you’ve got so many faces to choose fromYour empty laughAn epitaph that’s written onA photographA parasite born backwards onThe second SundayAnd then refused to die againMaybe one dayI’ll force you back down the drain

7.

Step down from the missing stairAnd sit up in the empty chairAn illusion of influencePainted on the ceilingIt’s not like you were ever thereSick hearts for a healthy prayerCould it be so obviousIt’s so unappealingUp to the waiting roomI know we never had timeTo say goodbyeThe flowers never bloomWhen it’\s the vase that decidesWe’re insideAnd now it’s closing inTake the lift to the basem*ntWhere they call it enslavementDon’t tell me to be patientAlways looking for somethingWhy can’t it just be one thingNothing more than an upswingI’m swinging upHide the note in the cornerMaybe it’ll be warmerWhen the sun comes i’ll warn herThirty days til elevenI never learned my lessonAnd i’ll see you fluorescentA trial inside the tombAll for the turn of the tidesWe’re insideThe flowers never bloomWhen it’\s the vase that decidesWe’re insideUp to the waiting roomI know we never had

8.

A promise madeA neck to breakI had your fingersLocked into mineLook how the moon shinesLike a weeping soreWe’ve got a problemIt’s you this timeYou should have gone backNow there’s no time for thatYou never learned peaceBut i know who i amWe’ve got a problemWe’ve got a problemWe’ve got a problemGo nowGo slowGone backTo the glow

9.

Don’t try to hide your shakingDon’t look so scaredThere is compassion hereI find the peace i never learned This gift is what I have fearedThere it goesWith nothing to opposeNo one has to know Where we had to goThere it goesWhen will i heal?

released July 29, 2022

All music written and performed by ITHACA:
Djamila Boden Azzouz, James Lewis, Will Sweet, Dom Moss, Sam Chetan-Welsh

Produced and mixed by Lewis Johns at The Ranch Production House
Mastered by Grant Berry at Fader Mastering
Additional vocal recording by Simon Small at Tunnel of Reverb
Additional brass by Susie Wedderburn
Additional woodwind by Hannah Ashman
Additional keys by Calum Muir and Hannah Ashman
Additional keys and programming by Lewis Johns
Additional vocals on ‘Hold, Be Held’ by Yansé Cooper

Photos by Martin “gingerdope” Wisniewska
Artwork and layout by Kathryn Lewis