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Empire of Lies
By Ariel PowellMusic
Empire of Lies episodes
- No True NorthThe world that I thought I knewHas become a yesterdayAnd now I findI have no directionNo true northI worked my lifeMy best yearsI toiled and sweated and nowIt’s all blown apartNo true northNo comfort in securityI worked my lifeMy best yearsI toiled and sweated and nowIt’s all blown apartNo true northNow only our knowledge and skillWill carry us forward as weEnter a brave new worldFight for your lifeAnd you will lose your lifeNo true northNow enter a brave new worldWhere only survivalOur true northI worked my lifeMy best yearsI toiled and sweated and nowIt’s all blown apartNo true north6 min
- Be La BraveMy dear loved oneYou’re always welcome homeEven though our differencesA chasm dividesKnow that I am hereArms open to welcome youAnd food is on the tableWake up my loved onesWake upHard times are coming for usWake up my loved onesWake upToday we must move swiftlyToday we must be braveWake up my loved onesWake upToday you will see some horrorsAnd God willing you will not bleedThe darkness has arrivedThere is a brideFrightening as it seemsThat I for one will not burnAnd if the need arisesDo not hesitateTo run across it to meFor I am hereMy house is warmAnd food is on the tableWake up my loved ones wake upHard times are coming for usWake up my loved ones wake upToday we must move swiftlyToday we must be braveWake up my loved ones wake upToday you will see some horrorsAnd God willing you will not bleedThere is a lightAnd we are the lightSo shine with joy and shineSo the evil will be blindWake up my loved ones wake upToday we respond to violenceToday we look hate in the eyeTo day we hold our heads highAnd put fear asideThe race to equalityIs a race to the bottomA race to deathA race to slaveryThere always will be a hierarchyAnd if the need arisesDo not hesitateTo run across the bridge to meFor I am hereMy house is warmAnd food is on the tableSocial engineeringIt never worksIt never worksThey always tryAnd people always dieThey say they’ll feed youBut the don’tThey say they’ll give you waterAnd forbid you to get your ownThe race to equalityIs a race to the bottomA race to deathA race to slaveryThere always will be a hierarchyNature is the only orderNature has her way8 min
- Agents of ChaosAgents of chaosWorship at the altar of warDraw a line choose a sideChaos is a ladderMake them hate each otherMash them into clayCraft the perfect slaveDivide and conquerJust please don’t buy into the lieThat killing all those peopleIs for the greater goodThey tortured and killed our loved onesSo only a human would understandThe depths of our angerAnd desperationDraw a line choose a sideChaos is a ladderMake them hate each otherMash them into clayCraft the perfect slaveDivide and conquerThey took our lives away from usExplosions and leadThey tortured and killed our loved onesDraw a line choose a sideChaos is a ladderMake them hate each otherMash them into clayCraft the perfect slaveDivide and conquerAgents of chaosWorship at the altar of warWe will go on with our lives5 min
- Mountains of BodiesEvery time a soldier diesPeople make moneyEvery missile every droneMoney money moneyJust another way to front the death machineSanctions on the innocentNever hurt dictatorshipMountains of bodiesDollars and changeCold little babies stiff in the rainIt's all for the moneySanctions on the innocentNever hurt dictatorshipJust another way to front the death machineEvery time a soldier diesSomeone makes moneyMountains of BodiesIt's all for the moneyEvery missile every droneDollars and changeCold little babies stiff in the rainJust another way to front the death machineSanctions on the innocent never hurt dictatorshipThe death machineMountains of bodiesDollars and changeCold little babies stiff in the rainThe death machine11 min
- Alphabet SoupI go out todayTo gather me some foodTo help my fellow manWe do what we canPersist and perpetuateProduce and consumeOur lives are not infiniteSo we must defend them tooAnd if I break a lawBy gathering my foodWill they of many namesStarve us within our cageThey of the many namesWill promise everything’s fineAs long as we toe the lineKeep lockstep in perfect timeFuck all of your old world godsAll of whom killed for funFuck all of your sacraments holyAll of them drip with bloodWe gave it all to youYou used it all for warWe trusted our sons to youYou killed them and asked for moreThey of many namesWill promise that everything’s fineAs long as we toe the lineKeep lockstep in perfect time6 min
- Remember those ShowsThere was once sunshineWe’d bathe and sometimes playIt’s brightness made us thriveAnd make the most of our dayAnd when the nights got longWe’d stumble off to bedWe’d have some funOr just pass outAnd clean up in the morningRemember those showsWe’d light up and goOur dancing was magicWe lived and died a half a million timesAnd came out on the other sideWe’d wake up in a dazeAnd wonder to the carMaybe there’s a dinerCould lift us back up to embraceThe new dayOh how I miss the sunshineWe’d bathe and sometimes playIt’s brightness made us growAnd we’d loveCome what may6 min
- We the Remaining HumansI’m treading water through liesSo thick that I might drownI come across one solid truthAnd hang on for my lifeThe fog of lies grows thickerAnd yet I find anotherI’m building something trueA grounded world viewEverything’s wrongEverything’s upside downTrust was a songA dream from a long time agoAnd we with our feet in the dirtAre bannedToo heavy for virtual blissThey’re all the sameMindless and on repeatSpirits all tamePassion for shallow useless liesWe the remaining humansTurn the long poisoned soilWe feed it our sweat and bloodWe somehow surviveMeanwhile the dronesSuccubi of sustenanceSweeping overheadExtracting every last hopeWe plant our seeds in the dustWater with droplets and careGrounded with bare feet we striveFor life on a separate plainToo heavy for virtual blissAnd still a more meaningful lifeGreeting the sun with a smileEverything’s wrongEverything’s upside downTrust was a songA dream from a long time agoAnd we with our feet in the dirtAre bannedToo heavy for virtual blissWe the remaining humansTurn the long poisoned soilWe feed it our sweat and bloodWe somehow surviveWe plant our seeds in the dustWater with droplets and careGrounded with bare feet we striveFor life on a separate plainToo heavy for virtual blissAnd still a more meaningful lifeGreeting the sun with a smile9 min
- Snow JarIt’s only together that weCan make this world betterBy treating all othersWith decent common dignityKindness and respectIt’s only together that weCan hope to make it through our livesIn peace and harmonyIt’s only together that weCan make this world betterBy treating all othersWith decent common dignityKindness and respectPeace and harmony7 min
About Empire of Lies
From the publisher's feed
"Truth is treason in the empire of lies."
-Dr. Ron Paul
Dive into the intense soundtrack to this dystopian experience in which we all find ourselves. This album follows a man through his struggle to survive, thrive, and maintain his humanity in a world ruled by evil and fear.
My name is Ariel. I love my family, and I detest tyranny, and crimes against humanity.
My original inspiration for this album came by learning about my nation’s horrific foreign policies, which result in untold millions of innocent deaths.
By early 2020, I had completed only one song toward this end, “Mountains of Bodies”. This is undoubtedly the most directly anti-war song on the album.
As the world changed, it quickly became clear to me that these wars were coming home, and the evil of our worldwide destruction was turning inward, upon us, and every worthwhile principle by which we try to live.
This inevitably changed my writing for the rest of the album.
I felt the paradigm shift. I felt the darkness arrive, and it awoke something within me. It awoke an angry, righteous, ferocious bravery, wherein I know who I am, and who I yearn to be.
So yes, this music turned out somewhat differently from my original vision; it’s more personal. In here, I rage against tyranny, then sing of loving, hunting and gardening, then reminisce about times past. I search for light in the dark, and once in a while I find some, and bask in it.
released February 22, 2022
All music, lyrics, and production by Ariel Powell.
Backing vocals on "Snow Jar" by Toby Powell.
FX Guitar on "Mountains of Bodies" by Chuck.
Bass on "Mountains of Bodies" by Andy.
Album artwork by Amy C Nichols www.anichollstattoos.com