[Verse 1]
The garden blooms in blood-red hush
Gold on the wall, and ash in the brush
They wear white teeth, they wear the crown
But every saint here shoves you down
Sun on the square, a smile so clean
Under the paint, the cracks run deep
They bless the hand that hides the knife
Then call it peace, then call it life
[Pre-Chorus]
I see the stain
Under the bloom
Hear the lie
In every room
The sweetest face
Has the oldest scars
The brightest sky
Still guards the dark
[Chorus]
Painted rot, painted rot
The good guys feed the plot
Painted rot, painted rot
We see you, yes we do, yes we do
Painted rot, painted rot
In the light, you’re still not
Painted rot, painted rot
The whole world sings like a locked-up wound
[Verse 2]
The children laugh by the riverbank
But the water remembers what it drank
Old bones sleep in the lemon trees
Names on stones, and broken keys
The town keeps dancing on a buried door
Boots on the past, and they ask for more
Every bright flag hides a darker seam
Every clean hymn hides a scream
[Pre-Chorus]
I see the stain
Under the bloom
Hear the lie
In every room
The sweetest face
Has the oldest scars
The brightest sky
Still guards the dark
[Chorus]
Painted rot, painted rot
The good guys feed the plot
Painted rot, painted rot
We see you, yes we do, yes we do
Painted rot, painted rot
In the light, you’re still not
Painted rot, painted rot
The whole world sings like a locked-up wound
[Bridge]
Oh, let the curtain burn
Let the garden turn
Every buried name
Comes back to learn
I won’t kneel
To the polished lie
I won’t praise
What rots inside
[Final Chorus]
Painted rot, painted rot
The good guys feed the plot
Painted rot, painted rot
We see you, yes we do, yes we do
Painted rot, painted rot
In the light, you’re still not
Painted rot, painted rot
The whole world sings like a locked-up wound
Painted rot, painted rot
Yeah, the bright side’s got a cut
Painted rot, painted rot
And I’m screaming till the painted truth comes through