5. Arlito's Way Podcast Episode 5: Memory Laundering Machine
Getting ready for an upcoming show.
2023-03-02 15 min
Description & Show Notes
I wrote this one a while back in my old apartment on an eight track. It was all improvised and I used drum machines and other instruments. Over the years it has become what I played here. It's one of my dearest songs because it is such a time travel experience going back to my childhood and my youth.
Lyrics:
Memory laundering machine
Lyrics:
Memory laundering machine
Buggies and butterflies
who hears the silent sighs?
hightech cribs and fancy sips
sat at my spot at my favorite bar
waitin' for you to show up
and did you show up?
I guess you didn’t because I didn’t see you
the window was so steamy I couldn’t even see through
it was special you know like when anything matters
and soon all my dreams lay there defenseless and shattered
and the bartender minded her own business
and though she didn’t speak she asked me
what the fuck is this?
I kept flipping through my phone and
thumbing through my memories
ate a tuna sandwich that I took for a ham and cheese
and the rusty pieces we jammed over garden fences
into concrete driveways vandalist romances
trashcans thundering through the darkness
slicing the night and although it seemed harmless
I barfed red wine that looked just like rotten blood
you asked me if I was ok and all I did was nod
you lived above a gunshop that sold hunter’s equipment
the dark red doorway was now soaked in the scent
of red whine and vomit and I could only hum it
this was no summit your room was badly lit
I plugged into the memory laundering machine
because I knew you were gone and would not come back
at a thrift store I found a turtle
and I bought it for next to nothing
I fed it sage and myrtle
and I kept it in a glass cage
despite the fact that this turtle was cheap
its intellect was gonna put you to sleep
it also helped me to balance my pace
so now I just slip slower through the daily rat race
it’s a mad chase but we move to the slow lane
making room for the idiots and their clogged veins
we used to have a cock outside in the barn
it acted like a cop and did a lot of harm
so one fine day all the chicken united
they could no longer take it and were ready to fight it
we found the corpse on an easter egg hunt
my sister threw right up but I was too stunned
I was afraid of toyguns and afraid of your parents
avoided eye contact and never left the clearance
my sister had to pull the trigger in the snow
so she became the central figure and ran the show
she was wearing sandals and her night gown
hiding behind the kitchen window I was just a clown
I wanted this shot so bad so I was glad when she fired the gun
but it drove her mad she could not react nor protect me from the sun
I plugged into the memory laundering machine
because I knew you were gone and would not come back
Give us Feedback
Whether you'd like to give us general feedback on our Podcast or discuss a certain episode, this is the place to go. Just enter your message and select the specific episode. Thanks so much for reaching out to us!