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10 Karl

from Contact by Walther's Wallpaper

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lyrics

I saw him out of my peripheral vision. He had a sock and several teeth missing. The kids behind the counters of all those businesses were wishing that they wouldn’t have to be the ones to call the cops. I was waiting in my car for the light to change, thinking, “It’s cold out, you bastard! Can’t you feel the rain?” Now for the rest of my drive home I will feel ashamed ‘cause I got some fives, but I don’t trust beggars to give me change. As the light turned back from green to red, the car ahead of mine stopped and trapped me right beside his stupid cardboard sign. “From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs.” That sounded pretty fucking eloquent for a homeless guy to me. So, I took a quick glance at his face, but then I had to stare at his bushy beard and eyebrows, I would’ve known them anywhere. I couldn’t leave him famous and dripping wet, as daylight turned to dark, so I sat him on a blanket in the passenger seat of my car and that’s how I met Karl Marx.
(chorus) Do what you feel right? Wrong! We do what we feel obliged to. It’s rarely virtue or sin, we run on urges and whims and if you’ve heard differently you’ve probably been lied to, just like me. Don’t let it get to you. All we con do is be as polite as we can.
There hasn’t been a global proletariat uprising. With all our shitty capitalists, he found that quite surprising. For the first few days he was convinced that I was lying, but by the light of television he was shown the truth. He said that H.G. Wells would be back for him in a few days, but after several weeks I’d taken all I could take. It wasn’t easy being Karl Marx’s roommate. He assumed too much and asked permission not enough. He left whiskers on the soap and in the sink and shower drains. I really hope that they were whiskers, but it’s unpleasant either way. He would ask me what we had to eat, never offered to buy groceries, he just lay around buck-ass naked, smoking cigars on my couch.
(repeat chorus)
He wasn’t angry when I asked him to leave. He thanked me once and then he packed up his things. Communism’s difficult, I think he’d agree that we are still not ready for it, neither is he. I felt obliged to ask where he was headed to. He said he was following the recommendation of this guy he knew who had moved to the north pole and worked his troubles out. I bid him farewell and then he headed south.
(repeat chorus)

credits

from Contact, track released November 21, 2012
Ian Troester-Solbrig

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Walther's Wallpaper Idaho

Named after the inventor of the optical planetarium (W. Bauersfeld), Walther's Wallpaper presents dark and comical stories from history, art, and imagination in the form of danceable songs. Sibling duo Ian and Chloe danced to the beats of a Casio SA-8 before they started keeping their own memories. They wear more clothes now. ... more

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