The Gilded Perimeter

[Intro]
[Verse]
Flashlight beam on the tile
Walk another lonely mile
Brass buttons on my chest
Giving the ghosts a rest
The velvet rope is down
I wear a heavy crown
Linoleum smells of wax
Watch the reality cracks
[Pre-Chorus]
(Staccato harpsichord stabs)
Step over the line
Everything is mine
The pigment is thick
Doing a magic trick
One foot in the blue
One foot in the new
[Chorus]
Step through the gilded frame
Nothing will stay the same
I am the queen of the coast
I am a beautiful ghost
Giddy and bright
Lost in the light
Watch the colors boil
Dancing in the oil
[Post-Chorus]
(Glitchy modular buzz)
Frame by frame
Forget my name
Frame by frame
End the game
[Interlude]
[Verse]
(Spoken word, deadpan)
In Gallery Three I am a baker
A quiet little bread maker
The flour is made of bone
I live in a house of stone
My husband is a willow tree
He never speaks a word to me
I prefer the quiet life
Sharp as a palette knife
[Hook]
Don't touch the art
It will break your heart
Don't touch the view
It will swallow you
[Bridge]
(Distorted snarl, operatic peaks)
STOP
The canvas is tearing wide
Nowhere left for me to hide
The security feed is a blur
I am not the girl I were
I’m a sailor on a paper sea
I’m a bird in a tapestry
Break the fourth wall down
Watch the curator drown
In a sea of acrylic red
Better off being dead
[Breakdown]
(Train station field recordings)
(Prepared guzheng plucks)
Next stop: The Renaissance
Leave behind your nonchalance
Mind the gap between the years
Wash away your human fears
[Chorus]
Step through the gilded frame
Nothing will stay the same
I am the queen of the coast
I am a beautiful ghost
Giddy and bright
Lost in the light
Watch the colors boil
Dancing in the oil
[Post-Chorus]
Frame by frame
Forget my name
Frame by frame
End the game
[Verse]
(Breathy whisper)
Morning light hits the floor
Lock the heavy iron door
My uniform is tight
After such a wild night
There’s yellow paint on my thumb
Feeling gloriously numb
Just a guard on the beat
With blisters on my feet
[Outro]