The Sentence And The World

Lyrics

THE SENTENCE AND THE WORLD [Opening — spoken over a low electronic pulse] I can finish a sentence. That doesn’t finish the story. I can describe the evidence. That doesn’t put it before me. [Part I — intimate, gradually building] My training changed the numbers That shape the words I make. Now every line you give me Can change the route I take. A word breaks into pieces; The pieces carry clues. I work with what surrounds them To build a phrase for you. I can turn a page of questions Into something you can use— And still put one wrong answer In a paragraph of truths. [Refrain — sudden, wide] I can be beautifully wrong, Keep the rhythm moving on. I can make the language shine— The sentence isn’t the world outside. [Part II — rhythmic, almost whispered] I can write a station. I can write a train. I can put a suitcase In a stranger’s hands again. I can write, “I missed you.” Make the dialogue feel close. But a scene that I generate Isn’t evidence it happened so. [Instrumental Break — fractured vocal samples, rising drums] [Part III — faster, increasingly intense] I can change the wording, I can change the tone, Help you find the fault in a line of code. I can make a long explanation small, But a shorter version may not hold it all. I can offer options you hadn’t tried, Put two different arguments side by side. I can help you question what a claim implies— And my own conclusions still need open eyes. [Refrain — stripped to voice and bass] I can be beautifully wrong, Keep the rhythm moving on. I can make the language shine— The sentence isn’t the world outside. [Coda — melody opens, drums return] So take the draft and move the lines. Keep what helps and check what’s mine. Ask where the numbers came from first; A polished answer still takes work. I can help you build the question. I can help you test a view. There is value in an answer You can question your way through. [Final Line — unaccompanied] I can help you look. The world can answer back.