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1.
Bend the world Through the lens of your eye Wrap it around like tie-and-dye Bathe in the warm colours Don’t you worry about the others And suddenly Unexpectedly You are God What is the truth, is it a lie And all the time, it comes down to you and I You can point your finger But the priest of my perception Might never see what you see And suddenly Unexpectedly You are gone All of this stage is the world And all of us are little people All of this stage is the world And suddenly So suddenly We are Here… When you’re asleep, are you alive Or just a dream in the sky, so high in the sky You’re a poor little mouse in a white maze Under a microscope that you made And suddenly Unexpectedly You’ll find your way out. All of this stage is the world And all of us are little people All of this stage is the world And all of us are little people All of this stage is the world And suddenly So suddenly We are Here…
2.
Street-wise, penny-wise hole in the wall Beady eyes, fruit pies, you can get it all Just one copy of the menu, go ahead and start And you can bet your life, they’ve never heard of a la carte Watch your step, tread carefully, Watch your step, tread carefully, Some places don’t divide your tea by two… Watch for the Chainese item, the chainese item You really don’t want to bite them You really don’t want to bite them It’s a dictionary nightmare This mongoloid fare The chainese item, the chainese item You really don’t want to bite them You really don’t want to bite them Don’t expect me to tell you how But watch out, watch out, for the mean mean mean mean chow… The second verse gets worse like the flied lice Don’t curse the nurse when you have to pay the price Warned about the chicken, you suspect fowl play Go ahead and order, live for today Watch your step, tread carefully, Watch your step, tread carefully, Some places don’t divide coffee by two… Watch for the Chainese item, the chainese item You really don’t want to bite them You really don’t want to bite them It’s a dictionary nightmare This mongoloid fare The chainese item, the chainese item You really don’t want to bite them You really don’t want to bite them Don’t expect me to tell you how But watch out, watch out, for the mean mean mean mean chow…
3.
Paper Puli 05:28
Just met this funny man From the funny papers Is there any other kind Said he hadn’t heard much About my rock n’roll band Sure hoped he had a story in mind He seemed indolent and carefree Lit up a cigarette offhandedly And then he asked me if I wanted Some good publicity Hey Aren’t we just All in the same game You need a rag to write for And I need one to shine up my guitar But tell me do I really have To talk to you The name in bright lights Do you really want my picture As you can see I look really cool Do you want me smiling Or the three-quarter profile We’ve got to make this proof for the fool Got to have that aura of mystery Keep them guessing indefinitely After I drive into the wall you can say It was such a pity Hey Aren’t we just All in the same game You need a sneaky angle I need to fill that monthly rectangle But tell me do I really have To talk to you
4.
The Steal 04:48
You’re in a weird weird world Said the spider to the fly Nobody knows the enemy But everybody knows the lie You can believe And be a paying member Of my congregation It’s quite a revolution Round and round in spiral circles The game of half truth we play I’ll take my chances with the steal ‘Cause when the roads are all done There’ll be no gas for my wheels We’re in a Technicolor world Said the audience one day We’re tired of black and white It really is so passé And we receive It’s like a mindful prayer A minor libation To the gods of our vacation Round and round in spiral circles The game of grey love we play I’ll take my chances with the steal ‘Cause when the bridges are all done There’ll be no rivers underneath It’s a safe safe world Said the president Our benevolent Armageddon Will make those heathens repent Round and round in spiral circles The game of half truth we play I’ll take my chances with the steal ‘Cause when the songs are all done There’ll be nothing left to feel
5.
I Live Here 05:53
It’s a delicate hurrah The lines on my face Will only stretch so far And I won’t ever leave I’m a rootless tree Tied up to a memory And I don’t want to be Anywhere but here The quiet times ran away It wasn’t my fault, it was the asphalt Now the road sings to me Everybody’s going from A to B So quickly But I live here… Everybody’s gone, gone To a better place And I’m the only one And I won’t ever leave The shadows grow long The evening of my years And I don’t belong Anywhere but here The quiet times ran away It wasn’t my fault, it was the asphalt- Now the road sings to me Everybody’s going from A to B So quickly But I live here…
6.
Dead Inside 05:13
I wear my skin quite well today The monkey looks up out of my eyes The double-helix is spinning away But I feel so dead inside Doing, walking, smiling, faking I feel so dead inside I wring myself to drip these words Where has all the water gone Can’t even spit in anybody’s eye I feel so dead inside Doing, walking, smiling, faking I feel so dead inside Where have you gone Where have you gone Where have you gone Where have you gone The snake and ladder game in my head I think I’ve gone and lost the dice See the poor man beg for a crust of bread God I feel so dead inside Doing, walking, smiling, faking I feel so dead inside And like summer magic Suddenly you’re here Open the windows Clear out the cobwebs Breathe… I feel so alive…
7.
It's a cynical world All the stops have been taken out, it's all a swirl Well-dressed generals making speeches, referendums, proxy verbal wars You don't have to be too bright to know it's all a farce The poor get poorer the right get higher Keep up with me if you can Nobody cares about your fire Unless you want to be part of their plan What are we going to do, before it's too late (Before it's too late) We've got to stand up, join hands and tempt fate (We've got to tempt fate) No more eulogies, fancy fake poetry (No poetry) We've got to get off our backsides now Right here right now, baby, Take off all your clothes and give me some love That's what's expected of us, are you wearing rubber gloves Lingerie catalogue fantasy girl, be my wife, if only for a while Who's got time for love, let's just get in bed Instant satisfaction, chivalry is dead Ella's gone, gone for ever, she's taken all her songs We'll have assembly-line babies not before long What are we going to do, before it's too late (Before it's too late) We've got to stand up, join hands and tempt fate (We've got to tempt fate) No more eulogies, fancy fake poetry (No poetry) We've got to get off our backsides now
8.
Galacktiqua 04:07
Just a little more just a little more just a little more just a little more The streets they have too many names Screaming shouting neon lighting In my face behind my eyes All the time Sometimes I wish I’d never learned To read a word, a letter turned Right side up or upside down All the same Even my body is advertising space The scraps of decency that cover my disgrace Too many words, too many lies, too many seeds, too many cries Too many thoughts, too many lights, too many times, too many times Roll up the windows Turn away the smoke the questing hands Don’t want to hear any more Don’t want to hear any more How do I get away Eye-candy tells me what to say Drive out under the country stars Never get away from the cola wars Even my body is advertising space The scraps of decency that cover my disgrace Too many words, too many lies, too many seeds, too many cries Too many thoughts, too many times, too many times Live in the middle of a million lives You want it all and hate every minute The blinding lights Are in your mind To stay Don’t lose your grip on that wineglass Just a little more Just a little more
9.
Motorbyckle 07:25
I read Bob’s book so well So many times And here we are The edge of the world isn’t so far I’ve got an old machine 40,000 miles by the numbers Just the numbers And here we are Trust in the motorcycle star We go through this old land Will you give me your hand We are heading into the sun Highway children laughing at all that we have done The hours go by with the broken line Tell me darling, do you like the wind How it sings in your head, go on, let it in Moving mountains is easy when you’re on the road On the road When we stop for a while Touch the warm earth and smile Cause here we are And the edge of the world isn’t so far Do you know where we’re going Does it really, really matter at all Cause here we are Trusting the motorcycle star We go through this old land Give me your hand We are heading into the sun Highway children laughing at all that we have done The hours go by with the broken line Tell me darling, do you like the wind How it sings in your head, go on, let it in Moving mountains is easy when you’re on the road On the road
10.
Intermission 06:12

credits

released January 15, 2005

All songs - lyrics by Bruce Lee Mani, Music by Thermal And A Quarter, except Cynical World – lyrics by Rajesh Mehar, Music by Thermal And A Quarter

Guitars, Vocals - Bruce Lee Mani
Bass, Vocals - Rzhude David
Guitars, Vocals – Rajesh Mehar
Drums, Percussion - Rajeev Rajagopal

Recorded at Mahati Studios, Chennai, by Didier Weiss
Mixed at Film City Studios, Hyderabad by Didier Weiss.
Mastered by Didier Weiss at SoundWizard, Auroville

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Thermal And A Quarter Bengaluru, India

"Thermal And A Quarter (TAAQ) is on the vanguard of the Indian Rock Scene" - NPR, USA

Founded in 1996, TAAQ is an eclectic, irreverent (but usually relevant) band that considers itself and its music as bastard children of the world. At home everywhere, belonging nowhere. Always true, tight, intense and ready to laugh.
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