In Aria Lirica

The Racketeer

2009-09-15T22:34:00.002+02:00

The Racketeer

Slip a sum of money,
some will make it past the cops.
Slip a silver cigarette
to make the checking stop.

Wrap the contents neatly,
place a T-shirt right above.
Wrap them in a rubber band
and pass it past the Gov.

Hide them in the lining
of a jacket or your coat.
Hide it in your brolly
"Nothing's wrong" is what he wrote.

Written on Tuesday, 15th September 2009 while waiting for the dentist.

Break the Oath

2009-09-15T22:13:00.001+02:00

Break the Oath

I dare not break the circle.
I dare not break the oath.
Sworn to secrecy,
thievery breeds thievery.
Hide your face from the crowd.

Do you believe in a heaven or hell?
Is the game in your favour?
Maybe you'll be better on the front lines.
A soul illusion in an empty shell.

Walls are crumbling,
fire burns away the sky.
Rebel defender of the faith.
Rage sets in,
take control of someone's life.
A separate existence in your mind.

Will the luthier snap his strings?
Can Obama play bass?
Tribal markings that decorate the face.
The dream of failing divine.

Written on Monday, 14th September 2009 on the bus on the way to MCA.

Abstain

2009-08-31T16:24:00.002+02:00

Abstain

Abstain from your self-fulfilling fate.
Before you know it, it's too late.
Revolt.
Resist.
Reform.
Concealed spate.

Refuse to state your case in silver,
mainly copper, sometimes gold.
Redundant causes leave you blinded,
stranded streams untold.

Destroy the entrails, morphine figures
dance the very night away.
Symphonic sunsets clad in purple.
Silhouettes with strings attached.

Abstain from your self-fulfilling fate,
where divine love leads to treacherous hate.
There's nothing left for you tonight.
There's nothing left alright.

Written on the 30th of August, 2009 in Marsalforn, Gozo.

The Warlord

2009-08-31T14:45:00.003+02:00

The Warlord

Clenched fists and AK47s
waving in the air.
Where a face draws a blank
and you're just part of the crowd.
A riotous affair.

A saviour dressed in black arrives,
he speaks the very truth.
He won't waste time on frivolities
or trivial pursuits.

A year has passed; the people, gone;
the land a ruined mess.
The warlord sits and ponders life,
he's clearly in distress.

(Speed written on Saturday, 29th August 2009 in Marsalforn, Gozo.)

Riot

2009-08-31T14:40:00.004+02:00

Riot

Hail-fellow-well-met my lord.
Message for you.
The king is dead, and you're next.

(Written on Friday, 28th August 2009 in Gozo. Bernard and I were trying to create Boeing poems, a variation on haikus with a pattern of 7-4-7. Here's my result.)

Angostura

2009-08-12T20:05:00.004+02:00

Angostura

Sensory perception, defining, dividing.
A grenadine illusion to your ears.
Silver chords that pop and crackle
way into the night.
The angostura bitters of your fears.

Phantom feelings leave you stranded.
Severed thoughts that reprimanded
me, I should know
the bittersweet taste of your soul.

A floral congregation; illusion, contusion,
a sickening parade of pink and green.
You've covered up the dreams,
and you've shown your condescent.
The puppet master found behind the screen.

The stifling hand of the dungeon master,
the sweet sweet lies of the small frail pastor,
the dextrous poise of the brigand rogue.
The silverback nightmare reviled.

(Written on the 12th of August, 2009 on the bus on the way to work at MCA. It's strange how one particular song can bring back so many memories. It's even stranger when that song happens to be a trance remix.)

The Light In Your Eyes

2009-06-29T10:04:00.002+02:00

The Light In Your Eyes

Silverpine rifles that riot with smoke
to take out the light in their eyes.
Like stars in the night,
they flicker; they're gone.
Success.
Defeat.
The butcher has sold his meat.

An eyelid sunset fights to stay
in the twilight of their eyes.
Where reddening seas take you by surprise,
they gleam.
Success.
Defeat.
It's now that we'll finally meet.

Written some time in June at night.

String of Hearts

2009-02-10T09:08:00.004+01:00

String of Hearts

Certainly you're meant to recognize
the friends, the foes, the enemies.
But there are no shades
of black and white
and every grey
is green.

Where at the time you promised,
that friends we'd always be.
Now a year has passed,
time's much too fast,
now you're just
a memory.

One's much too old,
One smiles too much and laughs at everything
One's insecure with low self-esteem,
One would simply be a fling.

I wear a necklace string of hearts
round a starlit neck aligned.
A pavement freshly built today,
already found defiled.

Yesterday, the day has gone,
Today, the day that is.
Tomorrow, the day will never come,
I'm consoled for I know
that I'm not the only one.

(Written on the 9th of February, 2009, just before I went to sleep.)

Perdition Fiction

2008-11-09T22:21:00.003+01:00

Perdition Fiction

Clouded thoughts in stormy minds
where new opinions cannot shine.
Peering through the liquid darkness,
searching once again.

Greasy bolts and slickened cogs,
grinding in man-made machine.
Gazing past the murky ocean,
yearn to understand.

Hyperbolic ideas
become a framework for belief.
Pure invention,
writing stories as you go along.

Deus ex machina tonight.
Unlikely answer for us all.
Getting past the stifled blackness,
the Thought Police that order us.

Phantom relics, illusion saints.
Mind ruled by a Boolean false.
Believe the picture that everybody paints,
after all, perdition fiction awaits.

(Written sometime in early November or late October, on the bus.)

The Pyrambulist

2008-09-19T17:40:00.005+02:00

The Pyrambulist

Treading on the hot thin wires,
Entertainment at its very finest.
Walking amidst the funerary pyres.
Hardened feet, with resistance to heat.

Thinking on the lines of a tightrope walker,
Balancing your act for the crowd.
Begging at the mercy of the flame invoker.
Reddened scars, burns, a charred masquerade.

A torturous apprenticeship,
bandages as companions.
Defying the edge of life and death.

An incendiary existence,
Born from the warmth of the forge.
And fire is fought with the fire itself,
committing the theft of the flame.

An unnatural resilience
to the furnace's sweltering heat.
The bonfire ablaze, try to look past the haze
of a grim caloric lifestyle.

(Written on the 19th of September 2008, on my way to Birkirkara.)

Beast at the Door

2008-07-09T08:45:00.003+02:00

Beast at the Door

I can hear something scratching at the door.
It wants to be let inside the house.
It's breathing heavily,
Might be hungry.
What is it?
Go see...

Thud.
What
was
that?

The door
It's been knocked down,
Blown clean off its very hinges.
Rhythmic heartbeat hangs heavy in the air.
I can hear the thing's breathing.
A dark shadow lurches,
It pounces.

Yum.

(Written on the 8th of July 2008, on my way to Valletta to watch a production of Macbeth.)

City Fire

2008-07-09T08:04:00.003+02:00

City Fire

The iron light that shines
through the darkened veil.
Rings of fire that gleam no more
because of tarnished steel.

A quickened death of rusted green.
Colours replaced by monochrome.
An eerie feel to the night,
as if something was watching...

Grunts replaced by screams,
vampiric bricks draining all thought,
all charm, all rationality.
Smouldering leaves.

The fire starts.
Colourful displays of shades of red.
The whole world's ablaze,
leaving only rust.

(Written on the 8th of July, 2008, on the way to Valletta to watch a production of Macbeth.)

Concentric

2008-06-03T23:06:00.002+02:00

Concentric

In the evening when the sun shines bright,
At the dawn of dusk, the beginning of the night.
You looked at me with a long awaited stare.
As you held my hand, said it wasn't meant to be.

The living dead that lurch unsteady
through life, heed the advice of others,
never thinking for themselves.
Never daring to delve through troubled times.
Concentric circles surround their empty minds.

So war is hell.
Blank faces round that hollow shell.
Smile sickly sweet.
It's the same people to whom you retreat.

(Written on the 3rd of June, 2008, after the exams and after SACfest, in response to a certain behaviour I witnessed.)

I'm Your Enemy

2008-03-30T22:28:00.002+02:00

I'm Your Enemy

Writhing beneath the dark earth,
the struggling worms.
Soil churned, rocks with froth.
Playing in the dirt. I'm your enemy.

Watching you in your daily life,
always right behind you.
You can never see me, you never know I'm there.
I'm your enemy.

Blocking out the sun at night.
The very meaning of the word fright.
Disaster as far as you can see.
I'm your enemy.

Who do you think was behind the Gulf War?
Who do you think killed Kennedy?
I left this earth in 1945.
I'm your enemy.

(Written on the 23rd of March 2008, while waiting for a Physics lesson.)

Are You Alright?

2008-03-19T12:12:00.003+01:00

Are You Alright?

Centre of the city square
with nothing but the cold as company.
Invisible to many,
except when needed.

My child has grown,
left the house to lead his life.
Now I'm forgotten,
despite the fact that I'm still here.

Alone on yet another summer morning,
with people wondering about the last three weeks.
Meet you in the street, bow their heads in shame and fright.
Probably out of spite, telling me, "Hey, are you alright?"

Frigidly remembering past memories.
Was I treated as a friend,
or was I simply there to please?

Just an entertainer,
ignore him when you will.
So I guess I was right.
"Hey..." "No, I'm not alright!"

(Written on the 19th of March 2008, waiting for a Physics lesson in my spare time. EBM is a wonderful thing.)

L?ve

2008-03-16T12:47:00.006+01:00

L?ve

Oh.
Lost beneath words and thoughts.
Misinterpreted.
The greatest hurt.

E.a.
Ex aequo, yet nobody wins.
Create more problems than you've solved.
Gain more worries than you've lost.

Eye.
For an eye, and tooth for a tooth.
The common law.
A vengeful symphony.
Expressive figures in the dark.

Sometimes letters placed in a certain order
mean more to others than most.
Sometimes words overused
can mean nothing at all.
Words underused,
never said
at all.

(Written on the 16th of March, 2008, while listening to Rage Against the Machine and :wumpscut:)

Watch Me

2008-03-15T10:23:00.002+01:00

Watch Me

Feed me poison,
Feed me lies.
Choke and splutted
as I watch you watch me die.

With a vice-like grip,
a sadistic gleeful smile.
Where twisted visions enter
dark corrupted minds.

Pour a spoonful
to down the whole bottle.
It's just a game,
you know that everything's alright.

Pour a cupful
and don't look fearful.
Seriously now, tell me
what could possibly go wrong?

As you watch me watch you die.

(Written on the 14th of March 2008, after the Cyanide gig)

Eschaton

2008-03-13T15:24:00.004+01:00

Eschaton

Immortalize the fallen warrior.
Death is not the end,
he lives on in the hearts of common men.

Cultures that worship death,
glorify death,
more important that life itself.

Twenty twelve comes and goes,
or so the Mayan say.
No-one left to celebrate who'd gone.

Written on the 13th of March, 2008.

No Harm Intended

2008-03-13T11:35:00.003+01:00

No Harm Intended

A whirligig of constant thought,
A flurry of opinions.
There's no time left to be yourself,
Your home holds full dominion.

There's nothing left to do right now
As boredom takes a hold.
Everything is soon to change,
very soon, so I've been told.

A wall has been built recently,
made of ideal self-expression.
With silence falling on the outside,
and inside, much depression.

Apathetic, I know I've tried my best,
And nothing's changed at all.
Then it's solo from now on,
where I'm stuck behind this wall.

Written on the 13th of March 2008, about current life experiences.

Based on Acceptance

2008-03-07T19:46:00.002+01:00

Based on Acceptance

Reconciled, but not forgiven,
to a fate worse than death alone.
Living in a state of pure hatred and mistrust.
Shunned, hermit's solitude.

One by one they dropped,
lessening by time as the word spread.
Simple lies, false words
that travel quicker than truth around the world.

Accusations.
Nightmares in themselves, illicit horror.
Ghastly shades and their wretched kind;
caustic thoughts that corrode the mind.

Organ grinders
with wicked soulless tunes from a claustrophobic box.
Grinding more than organs
from the cesspits of the damned.

A freedom denied,
and deep down inside,
hidden from the view of common men;
a desire to be the same.

We all want what we don't have.
We all want to be on top.
Even if crushing others is what it takes.
The good, the bad and the natural mistakes.

(Written on the 7th of March, 2008, reflecting on current life experiences.)

Stained Glass Heart

2008-03-05T08:28:00.002+01:00

Stained Glass Heart

Knocking to come in,
but there's no response.
There's nobody home;
nowhere to call home.

Shattered stained glass heart,
tinted red and blue.
Abandoned watchtowers, with nothing to see.
Sublime fog, that turns the mind askew.

Phantom stairway, down to the very depths of hell.
And yet, you're pallid inside that vibrant shell.
Pregnant women screech with pain in labour.
The final result is out for everyone to see.

A pink moon slowly turns bright red,
red sheep across the early morning sky.
A week's gone by, time does fly,
but this stain hasn't yet been removed.

Written on the 4th of March.

Dime On You

2008-02-19T18:15:00.003+01:00

Dime On You

Show yourself!

Double faced Fiend,
I trust you not.
Cold stones stare you down.
Blaspheme.

Three wings, black and torn.
Horns to impale your foe.
Hated object. Cursed wretch.
Yet you keep people in business.

Written on the 24th of January 2008.

Suddenly It's Stopped

2008-01-23T20:02:00.000+01:00

Suddenly It's Stopped

Stained on a dark Christmas eve, all alone.
My Sadie has died and my children have grown.
The only comfort I feel is a warm glowing fire,
conversation with my left side, that liar.

The flame burns cold,
my mind has turned to stone.
A heart as white as bone.

Victim of life,
hardships endured too much.
I've lost my own crutch.

I stumble and fall...

A white roof greets me, speeding down the road.
Sirens wailing. Nurses wailing. Children paling.
I'm trailing behind, what's happening?
A sudden jolt, the searing pain.

It stops.

Shirt ripped open, cold steel pressed against the flesh.
First spark, jump, second spark, jump.
An dark ecstasy of delight.
My last breath trails away, a line appears onscreen.
The last sound I hear is a long, trailing, beep.

"The only thing that we had found
was a concrete heart buried underground."

(Written on the 23rd of January 2008, when I got bored with Physics)

Blind

2008-01-23T19:57:00.000+01:00

Blind

With blurry eyes,
I lurch forward
clutching, grasping
for a helping hand.

A vision black.
From whence I came,
I see not solutions.
Pitch darkness, a pit.

Is anybody there?

(Written on the 21st of January 2008.)

The Next Step

2008-01-20T22:44:00.000+01:00

The Next Step

No more miracles to be performed.
Beyond all hope, beyond your reasoning.
All is lost, without that doubt before.
Forever lost, for now and ever more.

There's nothing left that can be done,
we've reached the end of our time.
Hold on tight, the ride has only just begun.

There's nothing left, I shed a tear.
Inside of me, awakening fear.
Only uncharted territory lies beyond.

No more miracles to be performed.
My life ends now, there's nothing left for me.
Awaken memories buried deep.
Leap forward, rediscovering your past.

(Written on the 20th of January 2008, while rewriting Ethics notes and listening to Millenium.)

Sound Waves

2008-01-19T21:52:00.000+01:00

Sound Waves

Sea of sound,
rushing towards an
ever-expanding
infinite void.

A choir of ticks and beeps,
a multitude of pitches.
Rhythmically in unison.
A slow melody,
entrancing, gripping.

Echoes of angels
streaming direct from the heavens.
Nature's song of the woods.
The clouds themselves start to sing.

It can only be heard
by those who listen.

(Written on the 19th of January while listening to Stockfinster.)

Speak to Me

2008-01-19T08:00:00.000+01:00

Speak to Me

Speak to me,
I know you're there,
inside my head.
Waiting for a question,
an answer in reply.

Talk to me.
Several voices in my mind.
Each one with different types of views.
They're all inside.

Intrawar.
I need some help
I don't think I can go on.
There's too much left to do,
and not much left to go on.

Need some more.
Several silences,
a stutter slurs your speech.
Restrain your inner thought,
a sense of feeling incomplete.

And I try make sense
of all these things around around me.
But there's really
nothing interesting to see.
I've given up on everything I've hoped for.
I've given up on everything I can be.

Speak to me,
I need to know you're there.
Inside my head,
each one not quite the same.
I'm waiting for an answer
to my question.
I'm waiting for an indirect reply.

Speak to me,
I need some help,
exhausted all my tries.
I don't think I can go on,
and if I should, I don't know why.

(Written on the 18th of January 2007, at around 11pm)

Stick Figures

2008-01-19T07:53:00.001+01:00

Stick Figures

Mindless self indulgence,
or lack of it.
Stick figures come to life.
Walk, stick. Fall...

How is it my problem?
My constant remains the same.
Proportional K.

Too interested in a round number.
A nice-looking number,
printed neatly, all in caps.
Yet what gains the roundness,
lacks it.

Feed off the air.
Breathe through your skin.
Faint. Your eyes are colourless,
skin is pale.
More shirt.

Yet I'm the one to blame?
Don't project.
Phantom voices pull me back, pin me down,
hold me tight.
But are they right?

More billboard, less model.
Skulls on frames.
A skeletal parade.
Walking graves, grave walking.

Or lurching. Retching.

Sight delirious.
A warped mirror warps the mind.
Like a virus, suddenly
there's more of your kind.
Stay down! Upchuck.
Little bits mixed with the brown.

There's nothing left of you anymore.
But how am I wrong?

(Written on the 18th of January 2008 on the bus back home.)

Forever Incomplete

2008-01-19T07:49:00.000+01:00

Forever Incomplete

Turn the hourglass,
setting time in motion.
Grains of sand that fall,
the hours ticking past.

A single thought,
an action taken.
A journey there,
ideas mistaken.

Shatter the hourglass.
Forever incomplete.

Relieved as motion,
an arrow standing still.
The same emotion is
when you can't see me.

Time is of the essence.
Which one?

(Written on the 17th of January 2008 on a bus back home.)

Don't I Feel Safe at Home

2008-01-15T23:19:00.000+01:00

Don't I Feel Safe at Home

Point source
Stars shoot shades of
reds and greens
The sky's a stage
of little dancers flickering in the dark.

Beyond the dark side of the sun
The hidden becomes seen
One star eats another.
Don't I feel safe at home...

Beyond the unseen moons
of planets far apart.
Little creatures stare.
Don't I feel safe at home...

Asteroid headed,
crush the silver silence of space.
Impact! Debris is born.
The death of a rock?

An empty void
Filled with nothing.
Expands its nothing
Trapped inside...

Don't I feel safe at home...

(Written on the 15th of January 2008. Inspired by Anthrax.)

Mind's Eye

2008-01-10T21:54:00.000+01:00

Mind's Eye

Solid glass.
Peek through.
Reveal the confines of your mind.

Reinforce
hidden thoughts.
That lie there,
though not forgotten.

Tame and calm.
A cat on winter's eve,
by a fire, sound asleep.

Or enraged.
Bloodthirsty Spartan.
Restrain the beast.

The confines of ideas.
Library of thoughts.
Genius, sex.
Stupidity, malice.

(Written on the 10th of January 2008, while answering the call of nature.)

Smile for the Camera

2008-01-10T21:46:00.000+01:00

Smile for the Camera

Seething anger,
flowing round me.
Hot water volcano
erupts a liquid death.
Charred and wet.

Grab an axe!
Behead the corruptors of reality,
in flames they drown.
An empire of hope dashed.

Can't you see we're not interested?
The sun burns brightest
during your time of need.
Torn asunder, no remorse.

Plead. Watch your cross burn bright.
A wooden firework.
Vault your sacrifices;
attic-hidden, if any at all.

Seems that this is the extent
of your self-inflicted pain.
The shame.
A human gone to waste.

(Written on the 10th of January 2008, while waiting outside for my drum lesson.)

Floor Tiles

2008-01-08T23:18:00.000+01:00

Floor Tiles

Up
Down
Bounce
around

Roll over
Roll
under, left

Short
sweet
not necessarily what you'll meet
Through a full-view mirror.

Long
tall
or simply not at all.
It's found inscribed

On the back panel,
past the front,
inside the outer shell,
the inner link
connected to the door.

On the back panel,
that opens, giving way to more,
inside the outer shell,
a trapdoor in the floor.

(Written on the 8th of January 2008. Inspired by Lewis Carrol's Through the Looking Glass, and by System of a Down.)

Howl Mockery (They Show Us Lies. We Shove Them Back)

2008-01-08T23:09:00.000+01:00

Howl Mockery (They Show Us Lies. We Shove Them Back)

"The truth is out there,
Somewhere...
It could be anywhere...
but just, not, here."

Howl mockery,
and show no mercy.
For the truth has been revealed.
Stone dead,
the cross becomes heavier still.
Carry it or drop it,
You're the one they want to kill.

Crucify the hostage,
let the killer run free.
The fire brigade arrives just too late,
Another one bites the dust...

Sole survivor,
the truth describer
Making his way past this oil charade.
BANG.
He's dead. Instead,
we're left with lies.

(Written on the 8th of January 2008. Title inspired by Leviathan, a black metal band and by general pop punk bands.)

Storm Cloud

2008-01-07T21:13:00.000+01:00

Storm Cloud

Defy the rain.
Reign of tyrants
Cascading one after the other,
Little storms.

The next one rises.
Meets our eyes.
Passes tests with ready made notes.
Clutches power, fails the rest.

The system is failing,
Survival of the fittest.
Power hungry;
Self corrupting,
Now society's derailing.

Dog eat dog eat dog.
One step forward,
Two steps back.
Send another, let's see how long he lasts.

Mass power, lost from the masses.
Minorities becoming stronger;
Each to his own.
Where's MY advantage?

And as I'm trailing
Behind the latest novelty,
Realize it's all so limited.
Mass campaigns, mass murder.

Four scores,
Three trees.
Two nations at war.
One ruler, wants power,
fighting for more.

(Written on the 3rd of January, on the bus on my way home.)

Saħansitra

2007-12-31T11:46:00.001+01:00

Saħansitra

"Saħansitra" twila wisq.
U inti x'taħseb?
Saħansitra titwal ferm.

(Written on the 27th of December, 2007, on an expedition at night. We were camped at Xgħajra. We tried writing haikus, which are supposed to be in the form 5-7-5, but we couldn't remember the form, so they ended up as 7-5-7. Woops.)

Il-Bniedem

2007-12-31T11:43:00.000+01:00

Il-Bniedem

Siġra, pjanta, annimal.
Ġejjin il-bnedmin!
Nar u mewt, ma fadal xejn.

(Written on the 27th of December, 2007, on an expedition at night. We were camped at Xgħajra. We tried writing haikus, which are supposed to be in the form 5-7-5, but we couldn't remember the form, so they ended up as 7-5-7. Woops.)

Fidi

2007-12-31T11:20:00.000+01:00

Fidi

L-Eminenza waqaf qal,
"Tgħid din verità?"
U kollox jibda jaqa'...

(Written on the 27th of December, 2007, on an expedition at night. We were camped at Xgħajra. We tried writing haikus, which are supposed to be in the form 5-7-5, but we couldn't remember the form, so they ended up as 7-5-7. Woops.)

Qabel il-Waqt

2007-12-31T11:14:00.000+01:00

Qabel il-Waqt

Weġgħa emozzjonali.
Tgħid fiżikali?
Għad ma nistax nimxi sew...

(Written on the 27th of December, 2007, on an expedition at night. We were camped at Xgħajra. We tried writing haikus, which are supposed to be in the form 5-7-5, but we couldn't remember the form, so they ended up as 7-5-7. Woops.)

Poeta

2007-12-31T11:11:00.000+01:00

Poeta

Maqful ġo tinda waħdu
Jiktbilna haiku
Magħluq ma' ħsibijietu

(Written on the 27th of December, 2007, on an expedition at night. We were camped at Xgħajra. We tried writing haikus, which are supposed to be in the form 5-7-5, but we couldn't remember the form, so they ended up as 7-5-7. Woops.)

Il-Bandiera

2007-12-31T11:04:00.000+01:00

Il-Bandiera

Drapp aħdar ċar ma' arblu.
Tiela' filgħodu
Bdiet gwerra kiefra ghaż-żejt.

(Written on the 27th of December, 2007, on an expedition at night. We were camped at Xgħajra. We tried writing haikus, which are supposed to be in the form 5-7-5, but we couldn't remember the form, so they ended up as 7-5-7. Woops.)

Ħsieb bil-Lejl, Waqt Mixja

2007-12-31T10:58:00.001+01:00

Ħsieb bil-Lejl, Waqt Mixja

Ir-riħ li jvenven
madwar kamp fejn l-ilma jġelben.
Tinda safra, qalb siġar ħodor.
Qamar kwinta, misteru ta' bla kejl.
Fejn l-annimali jtihom ħmar il-lejl.
Barbaġann iħares sieket.
Saħansitra l-ġurdien nieket,
għax bil-ġuħ illejla.

Mixja għada.
Ir-riħ li jvenven.
Iżomm u jimbuttak.
Maltemp li dlonk javżaw.
Fittex kenn,
ieqaf hemm.
Kompli għada.

(Written on the 27th of December, 2007, during an expedition. We were camped at Xgħajra.)

An Orange Sky

2007-12-23T23:08:00.001+01:00

An Orange Sky

Instead of watching the sunrise
With a girl by your side
Face competing with the light
You ask yourself why…

Instead of holding hands
Down the road
On a summer afternoon
Old people smiling as they pass
You ask yourself why…

Will it last? Will it end?
Is she more than just a friend?
Stay by my side
Hearts open wide

Cos to love is to live
And to live and let live
For in the end
You know
You’re not alone

(Written sometime around the 18th of October)

Watch the Clock

2007-12-23T23:00:00.000+01:00

Watch the Clock

Tick
Tock
Tick
Tock
Watch the clock
As time goes by
The voice drones by
Like a lullaby

Tick
Tock
Tick
Tick
A clock that sticks
As time stands still
More time to kill
Pay attention if you will

Bore a hole inside your head
Instead, you’re dead
Nothing more that can be said
Open spoken carven lies
Impressive as he tries
Ego reaching to the skies
And through the hole
Inside your mind.

Empty words
Empty vessels
Make no noise
Dark noise
Slo-noise
Slow motion
No notion
Of the world

Instead of acting, you’re just preaching
But instead you’re really teaching
That just actually
You talk and make no change.

(Written sometime around the 18th of October, at school.)

Midnight Rain

2007-12-23T22:54:00.000+01:00

Midnight Rain

Tears fall down
Like little raindrops from the sky
And I cry
I wear a wedding gown
To marry sorrow

Lightning strikes down
The anger rages round me
White flash to see
I walk a lonely road
And I’m all alone

Amidst the rain
I stand and stare
A storm is coming
Smell the air
The freshness, everything so clean
Crystal skies, and diamond tears

I feel the pain
Abandoned there
Eye of the cyclone
A single tear
Is shed, it crashes down
My sorrow’s not unsound

The birds have gone
There’s no-one singing in my life
Where I once shone
I’m just a shadow
Now the only time I shine
Is while reflecting my past time

And I’m alone
In the middle of New York
And I try
But I’m a statistic
Another figure

Rain starting to sting
Guilt overrides me
Leave me alone
But I’m alone
Stay right beside me

And in this storm
I need protection
Give me shelter
An umbrella
Full of holes
I’m wet, surviving

Barely still alive

(Written sometime around the 18th of October, at midnight, when it was raining outside)

Chilling

2007-12-23T21:05:00.000+01:00

Chilling

The fan has stopped
Circular wind
That thronged upon me
Like grey beggar’s rags.

Cold and clammy
As rubies turn blue
From chilly speech
My own mockery

Warm levels of self
Satisfaction
They droop and leave me
No confidence left

The fan has stopped
Will it begin
Again? I doubt so
Freeze dry my own faith

(Written at night sometime around 18th of October)

Turning Circles into Squares

2007-10-04T19:55:00.001+02:00

Turning Circles into Squares

Gaze into the sky
Into the stars
Deep into your soul.
There they lie.

The land of the young,
Tranquintessent.
Perfect little spheres,
Their song remains unsung.

One by one,
they enter man.
But although their bear no scratch,
no scar, no bruise
After they leave,
they are tarnished.
Silver balls lustreless.

Tir Nan Og
Is that what they call it?
The place where silver lies?
Sphere souls in balance.

ATTACK!
Does thou speak untruths?
No-one attacks Tir Nan Og!
It is protected!

...lay waste...

Bloody screams,
broken circles,
chalk dust,
and a scent of burnt gold.

Rigid but cracked,
Youthfully dead.
Tir Nan Og no more, raped and defiled.
And someone, somewhere, just stood and smiled.

(Written on the 4th of October, 2007, after a tiring day overall. Background music: Alcest.)

Feast of Flame

2007-09-29T11:53:00.000+02:00

Feast of Flame

Watch the lights...
Flickering on and off
and on
and off
Watch the lights
Colours flashing round you
Turning twice
and back
I said, Watch the lights!

The sky's on fire
Floating flames fly past
Red clouds
Masking a red sun
They will be ours

Miniature comets
Burnt birds drop dead
Fireworks, or does it?
Fireburns, and hurts
Watch the lights
Watch the charring

(Written on the 29th of September 2007. Inspired by fireworks, and clubbing.)

Plug

2007-09-28T18:20:00.000+02:00

Plug

Live
Wire striking
Earth is shattered
Neutrality, bestiality
The colour coded curse

Die
Mandatory
Tell your story
Sordid systematic steel
Reveal the corrupt social wheel

Electric skeptic
Nihilist
Twisted
Visionless

Chimeric cleric
Corrupt
Official
Inefficient

Hive mind

(Written on the 28th of September 2007, at school)

Pride Movement

2007-09-28T18:13:00.000+02:00

Pride Movement

White sequins on black velvet dress
Silver buttons shining bright
The sound of cricket sewing machines
And the darkness of the night

Calm savannah, silent pride
A second has gone by
A hunting wolf is on the prowl
Another victim will soon die

The serenity, the lack of life
The well-deserved night rest
Explosions in the sky tonight
And tower rubble in the west.

(Written on the 28th of September 2007, at school.)

Night Time

2007-09-25T20:48:00.000+02:00

Night Time

Colourless dreams
A monochrome picture
Drifting through a vacant head
Asleep
Soundly slipping through the silence

Float through clouds
Fluffy white pillows
Giant marshmallows in pink
Pastel shades
Soothe
Effervescent giggles,

Violins and guitars
Choirs of fish
Underwater, stiller calm

Deep, deep, deep
A trance in high heaven
Regurgitate the earth

Deep, deep, deep
...sleep...

(Written on the 25th of September 2007, while listening to Andy McKee.)

Gallows' Dance

2007-09-23T11:18:00.000+02:00

Gallows' Dance

Hanging from the rafters
With a rope round hands and neck
Grim smile on his face
Wooden and lifeless, with no control

The audience cheers,
the corpse sways to and fro.
Motionless actions
Always keeping a constant stare

The murder continues
As more corpses join the first
Sardonic twisted eulogy
Festive dances, a living snare.

(Written on the 23rd of September 2007. Theme inspired by Sonata Arctica, written while listening to Juno Reactor.)

Fire Bird

2007-09-22T11:02:00.000+02:00

Fire Bird

Amidst the blackened dirty ash
Sits a tiny fire-red egg
Phoenix fire crackles round it
Waiting to bring forth the bird

Reincarnation again and again
Brought into the world
To savour death?
Or to experience new life?

Is it cursed, or is it blessed?
The fire bird cannot rest
A perpetual cycle of life and death
From the dust again it will rise.

I'd rather come back and learn more
Then to die once and rot forevermore

(Written on the 22nd of September 2007, whilst tagging music and listening to Dévényi Ádám, a folk guitarist.)

Red Flowers, Red Paint

2007-09-21T17:06:00.000+02:00

Red Flowers, Red Paint

Long stretch of winding tarmac road
Amidst a lost forgotten field
Deafening silence fills the air
Nature's sounds, the hidden gold

A headache brought by lack of sound
The common sparrow starts to sound
Uninterrupted cars run past
The little bird cannot be heard.

The field is lost, apartments built
Grey buildings like a patchwork quilt
Where nothing seems to match
and green is out of place.

The little bird has since long gone
What's left is an urban sprawl
Instead of trees and flowers' bloom
On the walls, a horrid scrawl

(Written on the 21st of September 2007 on my way to work.)

The Knight

2007-09-20T20:42:00.001+02:00

The Knight

On the bastions, standing watch
Clad in armour, sword in hand
Guard of the land

Blackened steed, and sharpened steel
Man-at-arms, to face his foes
And vanquish all

Riding out, brave warrior
Sole protector of the realm
Noble templar of the castle
Master soldier, fierce foe

(Written on the 20th of September 2007, during a creative session.)

Escape

2007-09-20T20:34:00.000+02:00

Escape

Begone! Beware! Relive despair!
The Spanish Inquistion is on their way!
Retreat! Escape! We will prevail!
Holy warriors of the crusade.

Gather weaponary, deficiency
of food, supplies, provisionary
the shelters to escape our foes.

On the move, nomadic warriors
Holy knights and royal falconers
An attempt to protect our souls

For the Spanish Inquisition
Led by corrupt unofficials
Although I question their authority
It’s my life that’s a priority

Begone! Beware! Relive despair!
The Spanish Inquistion is on their way!
Retreat! Escape! We will prevail!
Holy warriors of the crusade.

(Written on the 20th of September 2007, during a creative session. Inspired by a friend.)

Arise

2007-09-20T19:24:00.000+02:00

Arise

The inside of a coffin

Muffled
Cannot breathe any longer
But lack of air doesn’t stop me

I think I’m dead
Church bells clang
This box is muffling me
Get off me
Get…
Off…
Freedom…

Crunch.
Screams, arms, flailing in the wind
Half rotten zombie, the corpse falls
Divides the mist, broken wood that twists

His funeral, his renewal
Rebirth of death
Killing life
Death
Life
Up again
Born anew
A new purpose to fill

Undead, but not quite
Unfulfilled, a new life
The flesh falls
But mind remains intact.

(Written on the 20th of September 2007, during a creative session with a friend.)

Death Internally

2007-09-20T15:42:00.000+02:00

Death Internally

Inject a dose of fluoxetine
Mental images start to scream
As you try to numb, not to succumb
To the pain that's gripping you.

Swirling figures fade from view
Is this what's become of you?
A shell, a shambling corpse of what
before was once alive.

It's a feeling, doesn't let you carry on
In that state, you feel you just cannot move on
The searing inner pain, the blinding grief
There's no way out, you're trapped
With no-one left to care.

Between solid walls of steel
Claustrophobic, start to feel
The pressure closing in on you.
Lack of air, you cannot breathe.

Chained to concrete, apathetic
Overdosed on anesthetic
Drugged and feeling that you want to end it all.

(Written on the 20th of September 2007 on the bus on the way home. Dedicated to a close friend of mine.)

Green Light

2007-09-12T22:48:00.000+02:00

Green Light

Silent rivers
flowing
in chasms
foreboding
Essence of untainted
nature
Wilderness in peace

Gigantic fires roar
Pedantic forest fires rage
Consume all
One last stand
The tree falls

Something wild, something untamed
Something humans have never claimed
Nature freely soaring
Under threat of rusty steel

(Written on the 12th of September 2007, on the bus on the way home.)

The Watcher

2007-09-11T09:46:00.001+02:00

The Watcher

Vast undying space
Inside
Cramped, confined
Outside
Incandescent and black
Fire roars in his mind

Unthinking actions
Up high
Emotionless
But alive
Paradoxic in his nature
He creates and destroys

Circles of love and hate
It's all a matter of faith
Some believe in one, in three
In five, but many hate to be alive

Brings life and brings death
Question his judgement instead
It's all about the control
Truth or not
Over the masses, you need a hold.

(Written on the 10th of September 2007, on the bus on my way to Valletta.)

The Photographer

2007-09-11T09:40:00.000+02:00

The Photographer

In a room filled with darkness
An old man sits,
Waiting to bring colour to view.
An artist's profession,
it's a hobby, his confession
Hanging photos as gallery exhibits

The photographer
and his view of the world.
Sees the beauty in the things
great and small.
The photographer
with his camera at hand.
Sunset painted
by a mysterious hand.

Shades of blue, pink and yellow
Colours mild, bright and mellow
Large and small, there's a photo
in every single thing you see.

In it's shape or it's size
Always returns a surprise.
Even common household objects
can be portrayed as art.

The photographer
and his view of the world.
Sees the beauty in the things
great and small.
The photographer
with his camera at hand.
Sunset painted
by a mysterious hand.

(Written on the 10th of September 2007, on the bus on my way to Valletta.)

Concussion

2007-09-05T20:40:00.000+02:00

Concussion

Temporary blow to the head
Is he dead?
No
Knocked unconscious, still he's
breathing, lying down on the ground.

Lack of thought
The world's gone black now
People panicking amongst the crowd
But no-one moves to help, dark cloud
descends, his story's at an end

Reason's lost, senses fading
Swirling colours fade to darkness
Yes
Clouds are spinning round and round him
Drops to the dirt and remains there

One punch causes concussions
One call could save his life
One breath might raise him from his underground
place of rest, keeps him safe

Or he could just die...

(Written on the 5th of September 2007, on the bus back home from drums. Written during a creative block.)

Downpour

2007-08-28T00:27:00.000+02:00

Downpour

Those freezing winds that set the night
Cloud-covered sky, no source of light
The moon lay hidden beneath the clouds
The darkness chalk-like, not a sound

Then starts the downpour
The endless rain
The torment, none relent
Descent of abusive cutting words
They strike the flesh
they rend the mind
leaving scars as deep as chasms
Abuse seeping in my blood

I'm left alone
The icy rain
takes hold
and freezes me!

Gale force insults, and weak retorts
Distorted figures in my mind
I'm not who they all seem to think
I am, this horrid image of myself

Then starts the downpour
The endless rain
The torment, none relent
Descent of abusive cutting words
They strike the flesh
they rend the mind
leaving scars as deep as chasms
Abuse seeping in my blood

My mind turns black
I'm good for nothing
and as I run
I won't be back

(Written on the 28th of August 2007. Inspired by a friend.)

Corrosion

2007-08-27T23:53:00.000+02:00

Corrosion

Damaged cities soaring,
chunks of concrete
cracked with age
Old forgotten lost skyscrapers
form a soaring skyline cage
Mall rats, pack rats,
thieving scum
An urban desert feast
Sewage spilling,
spoiling slop
in dirt infested streets.
Gutters overflowing,
rusty pipes left all abare.
Flickered neons buzzing,
leave most people in despair.

Caustic dreams corrode the mind
Tainted thoughts that leave you blind
Worlds are crumbling, daylight leaving
The beginning of the end

(Written in the beginning of August 2007 on my way to work.)

Dear Sam

2007-08-26T10:02:00.000+02:00

Dear Sam

Dear Sam,

I trust this letter finds you well
I fear there's something you should know
The past 2 years have been so swell
But something's changed, I couldn't show

With this last regret, I say goodbye
A hard decision I had to make
I'm sorry if I made you cry
Please don't hate me, just, goodbye...

(One of the beginning poems. Can't remember my inspiration for this, but I was at Mithna waiting for transport when writing this.)

Overbearing

2007-08-26T09:30:00.000+02:00

Overbearing

The body of a dancer that moves to the music
She is one with the sound like a dryad in nature
As she turns and she fixes her eyes onto me
The motion suddenly stops still

If you can
seek higher than high
Don't give up what you've got
If you try
you're rewarded
With a sense of failure
sink lower and lower
Raise you head, say your name
Don't wait for a yes or no

How can I stop and watch
music and dance, and enter a trance
seek enlightenment
There are some things that we cannot understand
For it's over, if you can
I won't try, my last stand
is lost to the forest of dreams

The body of a dancer that breathes in the distance
Scared of rejection but curious to see
if as far as she'll go, she'll break down and show
Her true feelings for you

But this overbearing sense of lust
I cannot overcome, I'm losing my trust
I retreat to the darkness, the silence and wait
From the body of a dancer I try to escape

(Written ages ago after a case of unrequited like. Earlier named "Love in Motion")

Dead Sea of Life

2007-08-26T08:40:00.001+02:00

Dead Sea of Life

Many cases, mild surprises
Psychedelic, shapes and sizes
Agitated narcoleptic
Frantic skeptic, truth revealed
LSD trip, swirling visions
Colours mesh, forms take shape
Wild hallucinations speaking
Acid trips, religious mind!

Frantic seizures, epileptic
Strobe-like visions flashing white
Curiosity drives you on to find
Widened borders of the mind

Brain-dead subjects, state of zombie
Drug-lined mind, a passive state
Weird sensations, formication
Underwater, cannot breath
Birth relived, the lights are flashing
Tunnels spinning, senses lashing
Laughter singing, mermaids crooning
Blackness falling, hours stretched

Frantic seizures, epileptic
Strobe-like visions flashing white
Curiosity drives you on to find
Widened borders of the mind

Stamp sized seduction,
saliva covered
state of serenity
the silent hour

Back to reality, while keeping
Inner thoughts, I've seen the truth
In four dimensions plainly
Synaesthesia for the blind

(Written on the 25th of August 2007. Inspired at the beach, and by "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" by the Beatles.)

Blackmail

2007-08-23T13:35:00.000+02:00

Blackmail

And I'm gone

There was nothing left, could not hold on

And I'm gone

I left, one fine April morn

Leaving's not all cracking up to be

Couldn't leave so easily

I left cause I was forced off my own path.

I thought I stood another chance

But that was really the last dance

I was kicked out, and banished from my village

So if you see a man in misery

Not living life as it was meant to be

The only explanation is, it's me!

And I'm gone
There was nothing left, could not hold on
And I'm gone
I left, one fine April morn

Murder on the second floor

My wife and kids, could have been more

Shot their head, slit their throat to kill

For asking mainly for my rights

Led to large series of fights

It was blood of mine that they were out to spill

So if you see a man in misery

Nearly blind, can barely see

Then you'll know that person probably is me!

And I'm gone
There was nothing left, could not hold on
And I'm gone
I left, one fine April morn

(Written when I got bored of working out integration problems. Cross between two particular songs by Helloween and Sonata Arctica.)

Soul Infusion

2007-08-23T13:20:00.000+02:00

Soul Infusion

Factories of bodies limp
Restricted knowledge, no experience
Lifeless shells of what will be
And what should be
Caught limb from limb

Hypodermic needle falling
Injections sorting
The strong from weak
Soul infusion, life injecting
Light prescribing, giving an end

Soul infusion, create the open minded
Known transfusion from death to life
A model used as a basic idea
Based on his image...

Souls corrupted, weak, bent on destroying
Brain dead changelings
Madmen and politicans
In the end, it is easy to see
That being evil is like being free

Sirens wailing, in case of emergency
A thief has broken in
Soul survival, break the glass
The technology of life, genetic engineering
Soul infusions cycling the used...

(Written on the bus on the way somewhere. I believe a woman was reading this over my shoulder, I recall her giving me a funny look.)

Destiny

2007-08-19T20:39:00.000+02:00

Destiny

It is just
an exaggerated form
Of being, unproposed, unfilled
And lost to meaningless society
That try
And conform to the natural standards

Followed by many and abhorred by few
For it is when you lose an item
That you realise that it was worth something
After all
If philosophy were taught
Intelligent design adhered by teachers
Following
A simple plan, the master plan
The blueprints of life

Good music, fine wine
Great food, a friend
If not
For a populous lost beneath the
Sex, smut, and horrors within

Society would be a much better place
And heaven would be here

(Written on the 18th of January 2007, trying to emulate a different style of writing as used by Dark Tranquillity.)

Love is Only a Game

2007-08-19T20:22:00.000+02:00

Love is Only A Game

Love is only a game
Played by gods wielding dice
Betting on future’s demise
Enjoying ex-lovers’ cries
Oh it’s only a game

Did you ever stop to think
And wonder if you liked him/her
Is being a friend the end,
An angel, godsend or maybe something more…

And yet, they say that rolling stones gather no moss
But once you stop rolling, it’s not a girlfriend you’re just lost
Circles have no beginning, and they don’t have an end
But if you try to think it through, you’ll see you’ve lost a friend.

So put away those poker cards
And throw away the chips
This isn’t another roulette game
But a new source of pain

(Written on the 30th of December, 2006, after a case of unrequited like.)

Forsaken

2007-08-13T13:55:00.000+02:00

Forsaken

Forsaken, forgotten, alone and bereft
Am I alone? Left me a solitary wreck
What have I done to deserve his departure?
Depressed and confused, I’m void of all laughter

(male voice) That’s right, stay down! That’ll teach you to cross me!
(female voice) But what did I ever do to you? Explain!
(male voice) You know damn right what you did! I’m better off!
(female voice) Then I guess there’s only one solution left…

I’m about to leave! (Please don’t go!)
There’s nothing left for me anymore (Please reconsider!)
I’ll be better off now! (I’m not so sure…)
It’s the only way (Think it over)

(Written on the 23rd of July 2006)

Disconnected

2007-08-13T13:41:00.000+02:00

Disconnected

I’m lost in this false reality
Clone dependant, virtual confide
Though I really know I shouldn’t
Become addicted, get trapped inside

A public consumed, complacent, being given what it wants
But I know there’s something more than this
Peace driven world that the government enforces
A tyrant keeping this eternal bliss

There’s something more on the outside
Are they conspiracies that drive men mad?
Are they truth or are they lies?
Is this the fact held in disguise?

Unleash the rebels, let us rise!
We should be disconnected!
Don’t trust a leader full of lies
Untruths should be expected…

False theories, a cover-up scheme
A made-up tale to impress the media
We, the public, are not amused
For we demand the truth!

Unleash the rebels, let us rise!
We should be disconnected!
Don’t trust a leader full of lies
Untruths should be expected…

(Written on the 3rd of January 2007)

Wedding Ring

2007-08-09T17:22:00.000+02:00

Wedding Ring

Dear John,
I can’t believe the things you said to me
Last night, I never thought that it would end this way…

Dear John,
I started shaking and I grew cold inside,
A fright, a sense of disbelief

It can’t be true, it cannot be
2 years weren’t good enough or so it seems
A dream, or harsh reality?
I scream, thrown in despair

Dear John,
The rejection that you harboured deep inside,
I never heard those inner thoughts

Dear John,
Had your feelings since long gone?
Was I redundant? Despite the care I showed for you

Dear John, how can this be?
2 years weren’t good enough, and the end defined the means
Dear John, you’ve left for good…
The wedding ring I bought for you, it should…

Dear John, oh why….
Every night I cry, the feelings never gone from me
Dear John, I try
Accept the facts, the consequences of your actions shattered me…

And yet I see you day to day with another girl
A blonde, with attractive little curls
I feel betrayed, I feel alone, I feel long gone…

(Written on the 5th of August, 2007, with a particular person in mind.)