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Empty Halls Can Feel Like Crowded Rooms

by Darren Black

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  • Full Digital Discography

    7
    releases

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    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Empty Halls Can Feel Like Crowded Rooms, Playing With The Truth, WISPERAU, Lord Abergavenny's Hills, Rise Above the Mumblings, Thinkers & Fools, and Silent Poetry. , and , .

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1.
Empty Halls Can Feel Like Crowded Rooms 03:08
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Colour falls like paint to the floor Night draws in too soon Changing form, re-shaping all That blooms Empty halls can feel like crowded rooms Empty halls can feel like crowded rooms Light breaks through in shades renewed You can feel again Brightened hues sparkle new Like rain Empty halls can feel like crowded rooms Empty halls can feel like crowded rooms Autumn rain can draw no pain Yet sun can rake a smile No-one sees what you can see And why Empty halls can feel like crowded rooms Empty halls can feel like crowded rooms
2.
Her Westerly Womb 04:36
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Safe from the harm there's a calm You've not seen in a while It flickers and charms You feel safe in its arms and that's fine She'll keep you there In a place, unaware of her plans Making you feel This is for real and will last Would you comfort me, would you die for me Would you let me be if I asked Would send for me, would you cry for me Would you aim for me if I left Next thing you know She's letting you go like a raft Waltzing away To another whose prey will be next Now is their time Her attention to vie Feeding their doubt only she can put out Fed and cocooned in her westerly womb Now you're caught Would you comfort me, would you die for me Would you let me be if I asked Would send for me, would you cry for me Would you aim for me if I left Go now, please go now And throw me a line Would you comfort me, would you die for me Would you let me be if I asked Would send for me, would you cry for me Would you aim for me if I left
3.
Your Wily Ways 02:41
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Down to the wire Love a trier When it's down to the wire Close to the line Cuts fine When it's close to the line Suggests we're not so far apart But this is where the trouble starts What you want I want no part Of your wily ways Cold to the bone Hurts most When it's cold to the bone Too close to home You know when It's too close to home Where you dare to bare your heart Trouble shared is trouble halved What you want I want no part Of your wily ways All my days I've seen your gaze Come my way But I won't play Down to the wire Who loves a trier Who's to decide Who's to call time If we're not so far apart Show me where the likeness starts As it is I want no part Of your wily ways
4.
Nothing Disagreeable 03:03
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How can we get through this, time plays tricks When there's much, too much to miss We kid ourselves that we're alive With caution as the folks outside Go about their business and their kicks You had roses in your garden Horses on your fence Nothing to aggrieve But you were bitter then, bitter then. The willow weeps, the ivy creeps The net is closing in Shallow is the trust we keep them in Time we called a curtain on A sobering divide That lets the cats fatten up their pride You had roses in your garden Horses on your fence Nothing disagreeable But bitter then You were bitter then So tuck up with your 'bible', or a paper of your choice One that gives the anger to your voice One that speaks the language And the words you want to hear One side of your coin is always clear You had roses in your garden Horses on your fence Nothing to aggrieve But you were bitter then
5.
Shoulder To Cry On 04:11
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Peel your face from the wall Hide it no more Leaving no sense that you've been there at all Hope is a gift Shiny and swift Use it before it fades Say now to me That you will be More than a shoulder to cry on Restless and free Always to be More than a shoulder to cry on to me Tease the tin from the stone The meat from the bone Feed when you're lonely, but not alone Tide changes fast Ice doesn't last People will fade like lines in the grass Say now to me That you will be More than a shoulder to cry on Restless and free Always to be More than a shoulder to cry on to me Last chance again For my only friend Last chance again For my only dear and lonely friend
6.
Chip Away And You'll Find The Fruit 04:03
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Apples will fall from the tree where our company grew, in better times Nothing could stall what we wanted to do Waiting for winter when the cover's gone, exposure won Shorter days but the light can get through And it grew, oh how it grew And it grew, oh how it grew, for you Talisman comes and he promises love, and better times Reassured that tomorrow will bloom Sometimes shadows hide the good inside a shell Chip away and you'll find the fruit And it grew, oh how it grew And it grew, oh how it grew, for you Always trying to turn water to wine Only to find the water was good Feeding thoughts that are best left benign Cut from the vine before they take root Apples will fall Apples will fall Chip away and you'll find the fruit....
7.
Come What May 05:40
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A pity you left so early tonight They came and took you to where you must hide Hatched like a small bird in front of my eyes Taken before the phoenix could rise Come what may, come what may Come what may you won't stay Forceful, insistent, all I am not Sparkle like crystal in all that you've got Shameless and fearless, misty and proud I'll take my leave before envy turns sour Come what may, come what may Come what may you won't stay A pity you left so early tonight They came and took you to where you must hide Hatched like a small bird in front of my eyes Taken before the phoenix could rise

about

A collection of new songs reflecting on emotions; on states of mind and the commotions within - both personal and observational. Anxiety, optimism, bitterness, gratitude, dependence, acceptance, trust and hope. Affirmation too. They affect us all and influence our view on the world, and ourselves.
​
"Aside from the obvious, the last couple of years has given us time in a different shape, with space to reflect and reassess. For me it awakened or accentuated aspects of my own personality that have always persisted: over-thinking, a questioning of life decisions, irrational fear. But also gratitude and appreciation for what I do have, and have overcome, for what is real and is here and now, both emotionally and creatively. And, to a slowly increasing degree: acceptance. We need a mixture of emotions in order to inspire, drive and level us; but sometimes lines are crossed, especially in times of crisis.

These songs deal with those emotions in the way that I know best. I'm not one to bellow from the rooftops; I'm a sensitive soul, and this has always been my platform from which to express what I am feeling.

​In terms of sound, I try to give each album a different vibe, whilst always retaining the same backbone to all my songs: namely picked guitar and vocals. This one features layers of vintage electric pianos, including Wurlitzer and Rhodes, with additional electronic effects woven through here and there. I've enjoyed creating and experimenting with these sounds enormously, and it has opened up a whole new pallete from which to draw."

credits

released January 20, 2023

All words & music by D. Black
Guitar/vocals/keyboards by D. Black
Recorded, engineered, mixed & mastered by D. Black at The Orchard.
Produced by D. Black
Cover photo & design by D. Black, inside photo by Alec Bowman_Clarke
Copyright D. Black 2023, Whole Records.

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Darren Black Winchester, UK

Darren Black is a Hampshire UK based musician, songwriter and composer whose songs are rooted in sociological and political observation. His latest album 'Empty Halls Can Feel Like crowded Rooms' was released in January 2023.

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