Marshall Law Songtext
von Kae Tempest

Everywhere is monsters
Tits out, wet mouth, heads back
Shouting and screaming just to prove they exist

Becky′s at the bar with the usual mix of
Decadent fabrics and desolate lighting

Everybody here has got a hyphenated second name
Blowing more breeze than the wind at the weather vane
Industry slimeballs, showbiz big deals
The cool new band with the retro feels
The wrap party for their video
Becky danced in it, the director Marshall Law

Head to toe in yellow velour
Is holding court about the science of image
While the sycophants giggle and grimace
Becky fidgets, tells herself
"Must stop being so cynical
Everybody here is a human, even these


Pitiful posturing pop stars and idiots"
She tells herself, "Look again, nothing is hideous"
So while Marshall Law is wanking on about his artwork
She smiles at the guy opposite, bright eyes, dark shirt
He raises his eyebrows in the direction of Marshall

"My name's Becky," she says, "What′s yours?"
She was like nothing that he'd seen before
Strong body, soft edges with something so raw
In the core of her iris

He said his name, Harry
And never in his life had he felt so happy
They got talking, three more exhausting decorum
He drank until she was so absorbing
He blanked out the party

The floor spun, he stared at her face
And felt sure something was happening here


He was kinda nervous
His eyes kept doing circuits of the room
He drank as fast as they could serve him
Then this dude comes over, sticks out a thick hand
And Harry looks at her like he's just found himself in quicksand
He gives this guy a wrap, they shake hands
Sweaty cash passed between palms
No fuss, bish bash, yes bosh
He looked at her guiltily

She waved it off smiling
"You were short of him, right? I don′t care
Becky, all I ever wanted was a place of my own"
His eyes wide and trusting
He′s staring at her, desperate for something to click
He is opening up, this is it
"A real classy place, the whole bit

Like a speakeasy, right? Chandeliers and lights
That shine off of the glasses
No hype and no arseholes
Instead of rotting our guts out in shitty old losers

We can be grown men listening to music
Real music played with heart by real bands
Not just posers looking like they're giving blowjobs to mic stands
And I′ll be in a waistcoat, dead grand
Harry's place, or at least that′s the plan"
She was half listening, half not listening
Kept getting distracted by the lights flickering
He looks like an outline that needs filling in
He leans in close, starts whispering
"The thing is, and it's weird

I never felt so able

I could talk like this to anybody ever

Recently, Becky, I′ve been really feeling the pressure
I can't tell you how good it is to get this off my chest"
Becky's holding tight to her glass
Good coat, brain fast
She watches his face as she talks
Little bump on her fingertips
Expert, quick snort
Sucking on a cigarette, feeling vaguely bored

It′s true if you believe it
The world is the world but it′s all how you see it
One man's flash of lightning ripping through the air
Is another′s passing glare, hardly there
It's true if you believe it
The world is the world but it′s all how you see it
One man's flash of lightning ripping through the air
Is another′s passing glare, hardly there

If I'm being honest, well it is, it's like a trap

I ain′t trying to be flash
I just need to raise the cash for the dream
I hardly touch it myself, look it ain′t that
But once I set myself a task
Well there ain't no going back
And I am halfway there, I am, nearly
Anyway, the point is
I kinda had to push all of my friends away
I can′t have nobody knowing what I'm up to

I keep it very secret but the thing is
I would love to, just for one day
You know, live like any other guy
I can′t have a girlfriend, you see
'Cause I don′t like to lie
It's safer all round that I just keep my head down
And yeah, the business is booming
Yeah, the business is really booming
But my family think I work in recruitment

So I get up every morning
And I put a shirt and suit on
And I get on a train, I go uptown
It's all professional users

I sit in the boardrooms and not the boozers
To like CEOs and these modern day Scrooges
Who get their secretaries to bring me coffee
It′s so stupid

Meant to be hard times, right? A recession
But these guys are buying more than ever I reckon
And I

He′s got nice eyes
It's a shame about his issues though
The party pushes on
Her cynicism′s getting vicious
Show nothing, keep smiling
She catches the eye of her mates
They're dancing by the bar, they′re in a state
Nod for "save me", they understand
Dance over, put their arms around her shoulders

"Becky, we're bored, let′s go"
His mouth slows to a stop
He seems to lose his composure
She smiles at him
"Yeah, it was nice getting to know you"

No, not like that, don't leave
Please don't make her go
We′ve just got started
Their teeth are bared, their feet are planted
They′re smirking at him like he's dirt
And now his heart is
Damped with the fury of finding and losing
This miracle girl, he feels weak with confusion
Like what had he said? How long had he talked?

He watches them walk to the doors, his blood boils
In the back of the cab, the girls sit there giggling
The driver lets them smoke out of the window so they′re shivering
They pass a bottle of wine back and forth
Let it clash against their teeth
The cab moves fast through the streets

"Who was that guy you was with?"

Becky shakes her head softly
"Him? I don't know, probably alright
But I could tell he was one of them save me types
And I couldn′t be dealing with that, nah, not tonight"