Grain of a Town

[Verse 1]
Same four streets
Same three bars
Same old parking lot
Counting scars in the back of my car
Gas station coffee
Holding my breath
Walking past the neon doors
Like they’re an ex I never met
[Pre-Chorus]
Friends still drowning Friday nights
I’m stuck sipping melted ice
Talking big about a better life
But I’m scared to even try
[Chorus]
I’m making memories out of nothing
Polaroids of empty air
Sober in this nowhere town
Trying hard to still be here
If I can stand inside the silence
Let it hurt and let it sound
Maybe I can learn to love
This grain of a town
[Verse 2]
Woke up shaking
Heart on fast
Sink full of dishes
From a future that never passed
Scrolling through the highlight reels
Of people I don’t really know
While my laundry hangs like white flags
Across my bedroom window
[Pre-Chorus]
There’s a party three doors down
Laughter bleeding through the walls
I pretend I never hear it
Turn the volume up on my thoughts
[Chorus]
[Bridge]
I walk the long way ‘round the liquor store
Counting cracks in the sidewalk
One
Two
Four
Breathing in
Breathing out on the corner
Like maybe this time I’m getting warmer
I tell my fear
“just ride in the back”
You can talk but I won’t look back
If all I have is this cheap sky
This cracked ground
I’ll still spin my little life around
[Chorus]

Raw emo-rock band feel; close-mic’d male vocals over clean, slightly chorus-touched guitars that crack into overdrive on the hook. Tight, punchy drums and warm bass keep it driving. Verses stay restrained with palm-muted patterns; chorus explodes with open chords, gang vocals on the title line, and a brief, melodic lead line weaving around the vocal. Final chorus pulls instruments back for the first half, then full-band surge with cymbal wash., emo