[Verse 1]
Moon over rusted tin roofs
Ute tracks vanish in red dust
Shovel in the back
Tarp stiff
Dried brown on the stitching of the hitch strap
House lights three miles apart
He counts fences like broken teeth
Every mailbox
A throat he hasn’t opened yet (yeah)
[Chorus]
Outback of rot
Bones bloom under the bottlebrush
Outback of rot
Flies write names in the iron heat
Outback of rot
No sirens
Only cicadas scream
He is the drought
Drinking every last heartbeat
[Verse 2]
Campfire on an empty highway
He waves them in with a cracked smile
Roadhouse cap
Fresh oil on his hands
“Phone’s dead
Mate
Stay a little while”
Zip tie halo round wrists
Canvas sack breathing in and out
Esky full of frozen faces
Jawlines stacked like hunting trophies
[Chorus]
Outback of rot
Bones bloom under the bottlebrush
Outback of rot
Flies write names in the iron heat
Outback of rot
No sirens
Only cicadas scream
He is the drought
Drinking every last heartbeat
[Bridge]
He knows every gorge
Every dry creek bed
Charcoal pits where the stars forget to shine
Scarred gum trees remember every cut
Carved initials of the ones who never made the line (hey)
[Chorus]
Outback of rot
Bones bloom under the bottlebrush
Outback of rot
Flies write names in the iron heat
Outback of rot
No sirens
Only cicadas scream
He is the drought
Drinking every last heartbeat