The Wrong Side of Morning

[INTRO|wrong dawn,lake air,tape hiss] [spoken low] Sun came up from the wrong damn side Still don't know how Phone said WELCOME HOME Like it had somewhere better to be than me Truck still smelled the same Cold coffee Dust Old jacket on the seat Good Something had to [VERSE 1|88 BPM,dusty drums,Track 1 groove slightly wrong] Sherman looked normal from half a block Then the corners quit lining up Fourth ran farther than Fourth should run One stoplight missing One extra one Storefront where the empty lot had been Brick looked old like it'd always been Street sign pointed east at the lake I laughed once Then checked it twice Map on my phone said take Lakeside north Lakeside never bent that way before Blue dot moved while I stood still Then snapped back like nothing was wrong Mountain line sitting where I knew it Lake below looking calm and blue Everything close enough to call it home Everything wrong enough not to [CHORUS 1|wide bass,warm but uneasy] Morning on the wrong side Same sun,wrong light Same town wearing somebody else's life I know these roads They don't know me right Every turn says familiar Every block says lie Morning on the wrong side Tell me what changed overnight [VERSE 2|groove opens,subtle detune] Pulled in where I always get gas Guy behind the counter looked up fast Didn't ask my name Didn't check my face Just said [spoken] Back already? I said You know me? He went quiet Like I asked something dangerous Woman outside with a red knit cap Stopped mid-step when I walked past Said Thought you weren't coming back Then crossed the street before I could ask Two people Same look Not surprise Recognition Checked the date on every screen Same month Same year Same damn week Newspaper box said Wednesday too Weather matched what I'd lived through So no This wasn't twenty years ahead No future skyline over my head Same date breathing different air Whatever this was It was already here [PRE|bass thins,road noise bends] Drove toward the water looking for proof Buoys sat wrong off Independence Point Red where green should've been Numbers I never learned Harbor map bolted beside the walk Showed three markers that don't exist And one shoreline road in faded print That ended beneath the lake [CHORUS 2|larger drums,uneasy doubles] Morning on the wrong side Same sun,wrong light Same town remembering some other life People know my face I don't know why Every answer gets smaller Every question gets teeth Morning on the wrong side And it keeps recognizing me [BRIDGE|drums sparse,truck interior,phone taps] Went back to that impossible brick Bronze plate by the door caught light BUILT 1978 Forty years before that lot was empty in my life Pulled up a photo from last July Me and the truck parked right outside Same curb Same tree Same mountain behind Nothing but gravel where the building stood Held the phone against the windshield Photo said empty Morning said brick Plaque said it had always been there [dropout] Not the future Not a dream Same date Different history [VERSE 3|bass returns,calmer flow] Back in the truck Locked both doors Like locks meant anything anymore Opened maps Satellite Street view Old saved pins My house was there My road was there Three blocks over A neighborhood I'd never seen I kept trying to make it make sense Bad data New construction Anything but this Then I looked down at WELCOME HOME Still sitting there like a verdict Okay Quit asking what year it is Quit asking when Wrong question Where am I And why the hell does it know me [FINAL CHORUS|heavier,more resolved] Morning on the wrong side Same sun,wrong light Same town carrying somebody else's life I know these roads But memory ain't proof If the map and the pavement disagree Which one tells the truth? Morning on the wrong side Fine Show me what you are [OUTRO|truck idle,beat strips away] Turned the key Dashboard lit Radio dead Good Pulled onto Sherman Made it half a block [radio click] Display went blank Then one number 3 [static enters] No station name No bars Just that low tone from midnight I reached for the knob [wooden-flute growl under static] Then my own voice came through Older Tired Close [distorted voice] Don't touch the radio I froze [voice] You still keep the spare key taped under the seat [heartbeat] Nobody knows that Except me [radio hiss] [older voice] Good Then maybe you'll listen this time [cut to silence]