Happy birthday, Brett
Lay down, what's wrong?
You're sounding too refreshed to come undone, so just play along

Look, I'm prepared to part with my possessions, make the ultimate exception
Tear the entrance down, go underground until nothing works
Nothing is forever—let me leave

Happy birthday, Brett
Write aimlessly
You'll wander past the edge of incomplete and then fall asleep

Look, I was out too long to be exhausted
Stood up too slowly to be nauseous
If it was the knife I needed I think I'd be self aware and stay unconscious
Seize control of the dream, resurrected routine, deconstruct the machine until nothing works

Nothing is forever—let me leave
Our past, a curiosity
The forest floor is in retreat
Just let me suffer enough to recover a melody
Nothing is forever—let me leave
Our past unravels elaborately
A wealth of knowledge just out of reach
Let me suffer enough to recover a melody

It goes:
Nothing is forever
When the music ends, you made some friends
You did your share
You're almost there

Happy birthday, Brett
Lay down, be calm
Are you ready to accept there's something wrong, or just move along?

Look, I'm prepared to talk through my misgivings
Roll the tape from the beginning
Attempt to redefine a quiet life as one worth truly living
But you must come alone
Stop taking notes, please listen to me closely
I cast a spell upon the mirror
I dreamt the end was drawing nearer
I brought this shame upon my family
No, please don't cross me—I'll disappear
Conjuring a strange reluctance
I'm sentimental, I'm losing focus
The weightless thoughts of the kid who cannot reminisce out of fear of being noticed
All at once, a disruption
An earthquake, a suffering
I realize I'm nothing and nothing works

Ten years older, where do I begin?
Returning to my parent's basement, holding hands beneath the blankets
Passing secrets through the train tracks
Who's tripping? Who's ballroom dancing?
We were cursed—it was perfect
We were both convinced that darkness is a path to permanence
Made special by isolation, the panic merging with vacation
You left me too many books to read and walked into the ocean
I held my breath and filled the bathtub until it overflowed
It overflowed, so I declared emergency
You drew that sunset beautifully
The band was breaking up, there was too much noise to justify
So I drove back and forth across that bridge, though I was terrified
Eventually it just seemed practical to share a bed, to share a life
Ten years older, where do I begin?
We renounced our useless innocence
It's Christmas Eve service on acid, from crooked rain to skipping classes
Then it's home again, a responsible threat
Repainting the walls before paying the rent
Soft safety net has lost its effect
Drink to distraction, a passionate mess
Across the town, needed proof, so fireworks fell on that tin roof
There was no naked crowd, apocalypse now
We communicate in excuses
I was still spinning around the artwork and album
Board up the doors and record like a thousand lies that allow for desperate nostalgia
We wrote them together, it never occurred to me
Nothing is forever and opposites are heavy
Once the basement was locked, the apartment was empty
Oh no, a different coast now
The unemployable joke of a household
It didn't matter, we laughed in the face of inaction
Free at last to greet the groundswell
Instead of settling down in accessible hell, we divided our guilt
Man, it never occurred to me
Nothing is forever and there are consequences
When the worry wears off, you return to your senses
Oh yeah, we're faceless neighbors
A problematic comparison plagues us
As jealously haunts the garage where a fire was formed
This house wasn't robbed of its charm, it was torched
We attract some stares in a crisis of character
Barely embarrassed, it never occurred to me
Nothing is forever, features slowly fading
A connection convenient can be separated
We're spiritless bodies impressively staging apologies
Honestly, never occurred to me
Nothing is forever, no one is truly crazy
We are small, we are wasting our lives hesitating
It's over, it's been over for years
I did the work and now I'm finally here
All at once, it occurs to me:
Nothing is forever
No one is necessary
No reason to give up
No reason to keep going
Happy birthday, fall asleep

Okay, let's sing:


































Happy birthday, fall asleep
Slip into uncertainty
We're all somewhat lost
We've got to trust each other
We're allowed to change
Nothing is forever