1. |
a hundred and five
01:48
|
|||
|
she and i finished our coffee
went back to the room
her father was still asleep
you could hear his breath if you wanted to
as the afternoon deepened
the light outside the hospital window changed
to the soft gentle colour of autumn
a flock of birds rested on the electric wire
outside and flew on and on and on
she and i
sat in the corner of the room
talking quietly the whole time
she read my palm and predicted
that i would live
to a hundred and five
|
||||
2. |
second thought
01:54
|
|||
|
once i had my place sorted out to some extent
i spent the next few days buying the things i needed
in the nearby kichijoji shopping district
and started cooking simple meals for myself
it was hopeless
i thanked her and hung up
i really couldn't blame her for being that way
what with all the moving and fixing up
working for extra cash
i hadn't given her a second thought
not even a second thought
|
||||
3. |
water bottle
01:54
|
|||
|
you knew when you saw those eyes he was going
and i assumed there was no sign of life in his flesh
just the barest trace of what had once been a life
his body was like a dilapidated old house
from which all the fixtures and fittings
have been removed
awaiting its final demolition
around the dry lips clumps of whiskers sprout like weeds
so i thought
even after so much of a man's life force has been lost
his beard continues to grow
a water bottle, a glass, a dish
and a small clock stood on the night table
near the head of the bed
from a large paper bag under the table
she took some fresh pyjamas
underwear and other things
straightened them out and
put them into the locker
by the door
there was food for the patient
at the bottom of the bag
two grapefruits, fruit jelly
and three cucumbers
|
||||
4. |
blood wouldn't stop
03:03
|
|||
|
halfway through that week
i managed to cut my palm open
on a piece of broken glass
i hadn't noticed that
one of the glass partitions
in a record shelf was cracked
i could hardly believe
how much blood gushed out of me
turning the floor bright red
the shop manager found some
towels and tied them tightly
around the wound
then he made an emergency
phone call to the nearest hospital
it was nearby fortunately
but by the time i got there
the towels were soaked in red
and the blood they couldn't soak up
had been dripping on the tarmac
people scurried out of the way for me
they seemed to think that i had
been injured in a fight
i felt no pain to speak of
but the blood wouldn't stop
|
||||
5. |
fogged over
01:26
|
|||
|
She invited me to meet her on campus
and have lunch on the tenth
when we had to enrol
"i put off writing to you as long as i could
which makes us even
so let's make up
i have to admit it, i miss you."
i read the letter again and again
four times altogether and still i couldn't
tell what she was trying to say to me
what could it possibly mean?
my brain was so fogged over
i couldn't find what connected one thing to the next
|
||||
6. |
doctor nurse
01:45
|
|||
|
i agreed to go
but in fact i didn't feel much like eating
the cafeteria was packed
long lines of chair and tables
filled the huge underground cavern
where everyone mouth seemed to be
eating or talking about
sickness no doubt
the voices echoing and re-echoing
now and then the pa system would break through
the reverberation with calls for a doctor or nurse
while i laid claim to a table she brought two set meals
on an aluminium tray
|
||||
7. |
fruit juice
01:31
|
|||
|
it finally hit me
some dozen or so years later
i had gone to the beach
to interview a painter
and while sitting
in a local pizza parlour
drinking beer eating pizza
and watching a miraculously
beautiful sunset
everything was soaked in
brilliant red
my hand and the plate
the world and the table
my hand and the plate
as if some kind of special fruit juice
had splashed down on everything
|
||||
Awkward Pedestrian Selangor, Malaysia
Awkward Pedestrian is a solo project from Anwar (guitarist of Malaysian pop-punk outfit Pasca
Sini).
It plays a version of pop punk that is a smooshing together of Modern Baseball melodies, Blink-182 chord progressions and My Chemical Romance guitar lines.
Its first project "Kayu Norwegia" co-opts paragraphs from Haruki Murakami's Norwegian Wood to illustrate scenes from the book in song-form.
... more
Awkward Pedestrian recommends:
You're Gonna Miss It All
by Modern Baseball
The album that introduced me to the magic that was Modern Baseball. Their ability to tell vivid stories that allow you into the realm of heartbreak is breath-taking to say the least.
go to album
Never Hungover Again
by Joyce Manor
Joyce Manor is my number one most listened to artist ever since I was introduced to them in 2018 with this album in particular. It's everything I want to be: simple, emotional, catchy and loud.
go to album
Somewhere City
by Origami Angel
The future of pop-punk in all the best ways. Insanely underrated duo that create mind-blowing tunes that are loads of fun. People u immediately want to be friends with because of how chill they sound.
go to albumIf you like Awkward Pedestrian, you may also like:
Bluest Year
by Girl and Her Bad Mood
Girl and Her Bad Mood are a dreampop band from Indonesia who excel at nestling heartbreakingly beautiful melodies amidst silvery guitars.
go to album
Taking cues from Midwestern emo and early ’10 pop punk, this Leeds, UK outfit are full of heart— not to mention hooks.
go to album
Another perfect release from contemporary emo powerhouse Run for Cover records.
go to album
