[Verse 1]
There’s a man in a tailored grin
Selling fear in a polished tin
He paints the fence with a powder gun
Calls the cage a place for fun
He locks the gate, then blames the night
Puts a mask on wrong and calls it right
Hands on the wheel, eyes full of sand
Feeding the machine with a shaking hand
[Pre-Chorus]
And the drums keep marching
Boots on the floor
He wants the key
To the room next door
[Chorus]
Red white chains, red white chains
Wrap around the ballot stains
Red white chains, red white chains
Say the name, then shift the blame
Red white chains, red white chains
Smile so sweet while it corrodes
Red white chains, red white chains
Heavy on the nervous roads
[Verse 2]
He sold the flag with a velvet tongue
Fed on the old while the kids got swung
One eye on the book, one on the gate
Counting up the souls he can break
He loves a crowd when it leans his way
Loves a law that can’t disobey
He turns the mirror toward the wall
So nobody sees who’s building the fall
[Pre-Chorus]
And the drums keep marching
Boots on the floor
He wants the key
To the room next door
[Chorus]
Red white chains, red white chains
Wrap around the ballot stains
Red white chains, red white chains
Say the name, then shift the blame
Red white chains, red white chains
Smile so sweet while it corrodes
Red white chains, red white chains
Heavy on the nervous roads
[Bridge]
It starts like a whisper in the breakroom air
A uniform smile, a borrowed stare
Then the rumor gets legs, then the room gets cold
And the weak get told what they’re told
But the weld can crack
And the crowd can wake
Every borrowed lie
Has a price to pay
[Final Chorus]
Red white chains, red white chains
Wrap around the ballot stains
Red white chains, red white chains
Say the name, then shift the blame
Red white chains, red white chains
Smile so sweet while it corrodes
Red white chains, red white chains
Break the lock and break the code
[Outro]
Break the lock
Break the code
Red white chains
Let it go