Source Decay

by The Mountain Goats

From the album: All Hail West Texas

Track 13 of 21 on All Hail West Texas (2002).

Duration: 03:47

All Hail West Texas cover art

Lyrics for Source Decay

Once a week I make the drive, two hours east To check the Austin post office box And I make the detour through our old neighborhood See all the Chevy Impalas in their front yards up on blocks And I park in an alley And I read through the postcards you continue to send Where as indirectly as you can, you ask what I remember I like these torture devices from my old best friend Well, I'll tell you what I know, like I swore I always would I don't think it's gonna do you any good I remember the train headed south out of Bangkok Down toward the water I always get a late start when the sun's going down And the traffic's thinning out and the glare is hard to take I wish the West Texas Highway was a mobius strip I could ride it out forever When I feel my heart break, I almost swear I hear it happen, in fact, clean and not hard I come in off the highway and I park in my front yard Fall out of the car like a hostage from a plane Think of you a while, start wishing it would rain And I remember the train headed south out of Bangkok Down toward the water I come into the house, put on a pot of coffee Walk the floors a little while I set your postcard on the table with all the others like it I start sorting through the pile I check the pictures and the postmarks and the captions and the stamps For signs of any pattern at all When I come up empty-handed the feeling almost overwhelms me I let a few of my defenses fall And I smile a bitter smile It's not a pretty thing to see I think about a railroad platform Back in 1983 And I remember the train headed south out of Bangkok Down, down toward the water

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More from All Hail West Texas

  1. The Best Ever Death Metal Band in Denton
  2. Fall of the Star High School Running Back
  3. Color in Your Cheeks
  4. Jenny
  5. Fault Lines
  6. Balance
  7. Pink and Blue
  8. Riches and Wonders
  9. The Mess Inside
  10. Jeff Davis County Blues
  11. Distant Stations
  12. Blues in Dallas
  13. Source Decay
  14. Absolute Lithops Effect
  15. Hardpan Song* - Bonus Track
  16. Answering the Phone* - Bonus Track
  17. Indonesia* - Bonus Track
  18. Midland* - Bonus Track
  19. Jenny (alt. take)* - Bonus Track
  20. Tape Travel Is Lonely* - Bonus Track
  21. Waco* - Bonus Track