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A Handful of Soil

by Lauren Mettler

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1.
Daisy 04:33
She hears the rooster crow Rises to answer his impatient call and she opens the gate to allow him to graze in the sunshine “What does he wonder and what is it he hopes to find?” She dotes on him fondly and revels in knowing his mind So many chase And chase things away But she stands perfectly poised with an animal grace Creatures or people she treats them the same And so they stay Oh, Daisy trusts her instincts and patiently shows me the way She holds a dying hen Won’t leave her side ’til she breathes her last breath And she watches in pain As the hen’s body strains to move onward Carefully wraps her inside of her warm woolen vest The hen cannot make a request So she offers her best So many chase And chase things away But she stands perfectly poised with an animal grace Creatures or people she treats them the same And so they stay Oh, Daisy trusts her instincts and patiently shows me the way Oh, Daisy trusts her instincts and patiently shows me the way
2.
Milk & Honey 02:29
Oh, you’re worried That I’ll overbook my stay That I’ll turn your sights away From you’re goin’ But I’m still so far from my journey’s end I’m not looking for a home, I’m just lookin’ for a friend And I don’t mind if I’m a wayfarer here I don’t mind if I can’t stay Just as long as you take me out of the rain And offer me some rest along my way And I can’t promise that I’ll want to leave When the bell, it tolls my time But if I must go, I’ll do so peacefully If just for now, dear, I can call you mine I know well that I could go it alone The wind and the stars my only guide But my tender heart could use the company If I expect to travel satisfied And I’m not askin’ you to stop and wait If a brighter path you find But if we’re both in search of some promised land Well, maybe we’ll arrive there side by side Trust me, I don’t believe I have reached the land of milk and honey, milk and honey I’ll help you if you try to help me to the land of milk and honey milk and honey
3.
Our little home was made So the pathway of the train tracks Ran in through the front door Out the back one Beneath the kitchen table The best that we were able Obscuring what we couldn’t hope to hide The planks and stakes ran by my bedside “Oh, my little lady, you pay them no mind” You told me as you cradled me and held so tight But still their presence haunted me on sleepless nights Ohh Lord knows I’ve waited for my slaughter Praying that that train would never come But that whistle just kept blowin’ louder Proclaiming that it had a fated course to run Ohh I’ve gone to lay me down where the train is sure to come Now that I know there ain’t no use in runnin’ Won’t beg my home to spare For the fair young maid who lived there Was surely bound to perish either way Ohh
4.
I wandered through the woods last night and was startled by a monstrous roving bear I froze in fear, but to my surprise He drew my hand and pressed me to his side And we stood there, only breathing ‘Til my panic finally subsided And I gathered all my courage To look up into his eyes And he is not so terrible He is not so terrible He is not so terrible as it seems He showed me in his humble cave Pulled up a chair and offered me some tea Then three young cubs huddled in The smallest one he placed upon his knee And they think him something vicious But they have not seen his face When he’s playing with his children Or just how joyful his gait Oh he is not so terrible He is not so terrible He is not so terrible as it seems We nestled in to go to sleep In strong protective stance he clutched me near But in the last eve’s fleeting light I glimpsed his visage, bound and worn by fear And now sleeping in the bear’s den You’d think I was out of my mind But if you come close as I have I am certain you’d find That he is not so terrible He is not so terrible He is not so terrible as it seems
5.
There’s no way to break it gently that we don’t belong There’s no way to say it kindly that my God-given compass is wrong This is not confusion This is all I know And the most important part of me Why shouldn’t I let it show? Why shouldn’t I rest in my love Just as you rest in yours Why shouldn’t I rest in my love It seems but a matter of course If you were in love, you’d do just the same So how is it wrong if I call my love’s name? I’ve two eyes to guide me And my heart that pounds Say the one who stands beside me Is the greatest treasure I’ve found I would offer myself blindly Give my heart, my home To lay in her light when I come home at night Why shouldn’t I call her my own? Why shouldn’t I lie with my love Just as you lie with yours Why shouldn’t I lie with my love It seems but a matter of course I’lll love her the same ’til the day that I’m dead So how is it wrong if I lie in her bed? Oh, what a strife To deny the greatest joy of my life ‘Til death do you part you’ve solemnly vowed So tell me now, why shouldn’t I? Why shouldn’t I marry my love Just as you’ve married yours Why shouldn’t I marry my love It seems but a matter of course Couldn’t find a better match if I planned So how is it wrong if I take my love’s hand? How is it wrong if I take my love’s hand?
6.
Oh, the world is aching She can hardly catch her breath Oh, her lovely heart is breaking She’s given us her all and we’ve pressed her near to death There was a time when man could read her face Those who would press their ears to the ground To discern her whispered words Can they still be heard? Or are we killing them right along with it? are we killing them right along with it? Killing them right along with it? Oh, my mother taught me To be grateful for what she gave And if I in turn disgraced her Then she’d swiftly turn back and she’d take those gifts away There was a day when people knew her grace Those who were taught from the day they were born To kiss the beast they struck down Can they still be found? Or are we killing them right along with it? are we killing them right along with it? Killing them right along with it? Oh, the world is trembling If we bend her more, she fears she’ll break Her desperate plea she’s murmuring, and if a woman tells him no, a man has no right to take There are so few who still can read her signs And what will become of them when she’s shackled and shorn, are they sure to die by her side? Our only chance to understand her Is to listen to those in which she confides And we’re killing them right along with it Yes, we're killing them right along with it Killing them right along with it. Right along with it….
7.
Oh, my teacher I have taken all you’ve taught me here for naught For all you know, and for all I’ve showed It appears I damn forgot All the care you took to show me that your lovin’ sure was true Oh my darlin’ Oh my dear I forsook what we’ve been through And from here on out you’d better bet I pledge to do my best ’Til I have done you proud, my friend I swear I will not rest For the lessons that we tided Through the sunshine and the rain Oh my darlin’ Oh my dear I will do justice to your pains And whether life has written that we two may love again In greater strength and fuller stride The two of us will stand For in sifting through the darkness We will surely find what shines It is not one another but the past we leave behind Oh my darlin’ Oh my dear If you need a reminder, I’ll be near Oh my darlin’ Oh my dear Oh my darlin’ Oh my dear, I’m still here
8.
On My Knees 03:36
I've got my seeds I've got my fallow field The sun above me shines The promise of a yield I've got my plow Daylight gleams off the steel It's got the blades to turn this earth But it ain't got no wheels I've got fields I need to plow I've got secrets underneath My task lies before me and my limbs cannot afford relief Oh I've gotta get down on my knees This land is wild Rough and overgrown Friends say if I knew what was best I would have left it long ago But this land is mine The ruts and rocks I've known If they tell me I can't turn straw to gold then I'll sew my plot alone I've got fields I need to plow I've got secrets underneath My task lies before me and my limbs cannot afford relief So I've gotta get down on my knees My seeds are few This ground is cruel I know But it's the only land and the only chance I've got to help them grow The dirt is hard Fortune don't visit much But if I lay her a proper bed Perhaps I'll win that lady luck I've got fields I need to plow I've got secrets underneath I will not leave here But I will not stand in disbelief So I've gotta get down on my knees I've gotta get down I've gotta get down I've gotta get down on my knees
9.
The silence that follows Is one I can bear Oh, I’ll sit and whisper Sweet love to the air My unfailing witness Leave me in the dark Leave me here in longing For I’ve torn you apart And the silence that follows is one I can take If it means you will heal from my gravest mistake My light in the darkness Leave me here behind If out in the distance Your peace you will find The silence that follows Creeps under the door Where your tender footsteps Will not tread anymore It is here I must stay dear While you crest the far hill And although I have hurt you I’ll be loving you still
10.
Come to me One last time to me I have let my cannons down Come to me Don’t run from me I can’t stand to send you away while there’s still tears in your eyes I lashed out at the world and somehow you got caught in the blows I’ve come to show That you haven’t lost my heart That the strength you knew in me Has not vanished in the fray For I know you must be free Let me hold you in my arms Though our time here will be short Kiss me once before you go This one’s for the road Come to me One last time to me We don’t have much time to spare It won’t be long before you sink beyond the horizon, my dear I knew from the day you arrived, one day you’d have to go But even so To love you brought me more strength than I ever knew I had To reach you come what may Is the thought that held me fast Which is why I stand before you, Now I know you won’t forget Keep it safe and hold it close This one’s for the road

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released October 14, 2016

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Lauren Mettler New York

Lauren's voice, nuanced and beguiling, captivates her listeners as she leads them through epic romantic ballads, comedic anecdotes, and poignant anthems. A versatile indie songstress, her repertoire displays shades of the blues, world music, and is sprinkled with sweet little ditties reminiscent of favorite jazz classics. ... more

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