The Gateway Drug- times new poetry (lyric book) by FOOL Media by Chris DeRoin

times new poetry. LYRIC BOOKLET

All lyrics written by N. Bockholt, C. Brubaker and E. Osterholm ÂŠ 2008 - 2015 by The Gateway Drug

BABYLON Track One

(VERSE ONE- THE TOP CIVILIAN) Babylon’s exactly what I’m standing on, I never planned this Mom. Aand don’t accept I’m stranded on This earth. The Great Oz and the man behind the curtainGravity pulling my axis to the point of no returnin’. Displaced in the herd, dressed in works of prose and fiction. Too addictive to be released, or see press when they’re finished. The one-act play: one part act of contrition. Praying I don’t implode, but ready, set, and ticking Down the hatch. Don’t call it a relapse on weekends. Modern marvel of a man, watch my will-power weaken. Freakin’ excessed in everything except exercise. A conditioned collision expecting not better times Just better rhymes to fill my glass with motivation. Paint from the palette of life…some comet chasing. So, Bob Ross- can I be your ‘Happy Tree’? Sophocles- can I be your tragedy? ’Cuz... (CHORUS x2) Babylon’s exactly what I’m standing on. Babylon, I never planned this Mom. Babylon’s exactly what we’re stranded on. Babylon, so ya’ll can babble on. (VERSE TWO- MC BREW) The battle of good and evil is influenced by the people. Babylon is here eventhough it may seem see-through. But it can reach you, through the music that you breathe through. So be true. Agility in my responsibility Stomping bad vibes out like poisonous millipedes, Ya feelin’ me? I was exposed to the positives of music’s accomplishments Thanks to Moms and Pops, which is a nonstop influence That just takes us to the top. The light in my heart shines brightWe fight to foil the darkest of these plots. Silver spoon fed heads confined in kingdoms seem to bark a lot. So, actually bite reality and quit grabbin’ a false imagining. So now it seems it’s good and evil that’s almost equal for the balancing. I know it’s challenging; even the prettiest hands across the land receiving calluses. I strive to be a pleasant peasant, on this earth- and make it Heaven. Take these lessons to the brethren, stabbing at life’s questions.

(CHORUS x2) Babylon’s exactly what I’m standing on. Babylon, I never planned this Mom. Babylon’s exactly what we’re stranded on. Babylon, so ya’ll can babble on. (VERSE THREE) (THE TOP CIVILIAN) Resembling the Mona Lisa after a late-night party. Recovering drugoholic, phone number-collecting origami …So do, or die trying. If it’s you or me inspiring The hoards of countless sheep, don’t be meek amongst the lions. Shine more than a beacon of light, so it provides them With more meaning in life than eating excess Coricidin. Inciting a riot because there is a riot inside himBlazing like the stars in the sky when they’re colliding. (MC BREW) To figure out what’s good inside provides the mind with an inner essence, It’s a blessing. You can fade away in a shade of gray. The color’s not progression to step in a direction, So now you got the message that we’re constantly protesting. While most crept in something not to handle The soft ain’t ample. Give it what it cost and then get trampled. So you can babble on, while I’m upon a sample of this song. Life seems short when these nights get long—Babylon…. (CHORUS x2) Babylon’s exactly what I’m standing on. Babylon, I never planned this Mom. Babylon’s exactly what we’re stranded on. Babylon, so ya’ll can babble on.

RUSSIAN Track Two

(VERSE ONE- MC BREW) I know you like it. Enticing with my sidekicks I more than just try this. Never derogatorily hype it. Motherfuckers act like they don’t like my style. Go ahead, turn around and…[[Bite it!]] What the fuck you think you handin’ me? A calamity? Way too underhanded. 3

See my rib cage when I’m fully engaged, Now how hungry is that? Some are just embarrassing when they expose their dummy ass raps Expressin’ nothing, bluffin’, always fronting a sack. Then why from the tongue do you act Like you can maintain? I’m in the lab chillin’ like Bunsen Honeydew. Encompass you, eat like some streets are made from sesame. Why these kids stressing my chemistry, Testing my reputation, couldn’t wait to try to get the fuckin’ best of me. ‘Cuz you hating for years, I’ve stayed patient, evolved to stage. From spitting in my mom’s basement, Now how’s that taste, bitch…? (VERSE TWO- THE TOP CIVILIAN) My psyché can handle you and two of Who’s Army. Choose to lose a part of me in a tune whose harmony soothes. But still a part of me seeks that freedom Until each pore bleeds some reasons for more needs I’m needin’ Much needed up-keep involving “Late Night with Carson”. Steady blowing up Hip-Hop like a suicide bombing!! Not violently advocating views of pro-peace.... Just trying to be a dreamer in a world with no sleep. Your turn to bleed and drip at slow-mo speed. It hurts the first instant than all you do is breathe. It’s the after-effects, re-occurring patterns of stress, Runnin’ through the trenches in biké shorts of Spandex. Broken fences, it’s the home of the roamin’ Catholic Listening to MC’s who rap with no apparent talent. I won’t blend in the struggle; my point is far from subtle. Same odds of being rubble as your average space shuttle. (VERSE THREE) (MC BREW) Spew mad amounts of bile getting wild up in this place. Call it biological terror when I’m spitting in your face. Why would I wanna follow those that’s quitting at this race With a piss poor pace? But your taste is strictly for the rats. You have no spinal cord intact. And when it’s time for war you find some poor excuse to refuse and even fight back. (THE TOP CIVILIAN) I torture Foreigners until they see “Double Visions”. A coroner daydreamin’ about the un-living. Purposely sinnin’ by removing the tags from the mattress. Knowing nuns ain’t the only ones with bad habits. Straying from the train tracks, The same tasks are attracting chicks with fake racks, But I reign fast...

(MC BREW) Words etched that stress- a sort of maniacal edge. While you’re in denial to no end, Your no friend bellowing jealousy and relishing on false integrity, Apparently you’ve inherited. Are you scared when I care and weave a narrative? If I cut and make you bleed, it’s rare that you even live. (THE TOP CIVILIAN) ...so open your ears to this lyrical fitness. I don’t listen to myself, much less any critics. So pad and pen it, Penn and Teller. Feel stellar. Not sad like at the end of the movie “Old Yeller”. I’m a beached whale that’s straight spittin’ up Jonah. Takin’ random excerpts from the book that I wrote ya So don’t quote me boy, ‘cause I ain’t said shhh…

STRENGTH Track Three

(VERSE ONE- THE TOP CIVILIAN) I lost seven years of my life to addiction. Pointless like a typewriter without the ink ribbon. I keep trippin’ like the sole’s of my feet. Keep wishin’ on the same star waiting for the Lord to speak. I can’t afford to jinx without workin’ out kinks in my armor. Save diamonds for my girl’s armoire. I bombard pop culture with thoughts as I falter; Hip-Hop lost its roots smoking rocks of Gibraltar. Don’t need B-Boy skills or African descent To kick the freshest rhymes to decoys that circumvent The mainstream with their hedonistic daydreams. I compose notes like Picasso and his paintings: priceless. Hip-Hop as a device is...Ready to save the fate of the world and its rhymes is All about the sex-style, money for dummies. Rapping ‘bout the riches, save your humpin’ for bunnies! (CHORUS) No more feelin’ weak, I’m gonna focus on the Strength That burns inside my essence, relentlessly give thanks To Jah Rastafari; Poyo’s beats are gnarly. Arm me with harmony and start me at junior varsity. Alone in a spare-bedroom, I can’t spare any headroom. Need more venues to get to the populous’ mental menu. Shit, I’ve been through parallel stages of your existence. Even you can become famous with the proper nose placement. 5

(VERSE TWO- MC BREW) Little to no sleep, Decomposing as we speak. Pain becomes a constant companion that makes me weak. Up to my eyeballs while I cause problem. So I toss what it cost, do you think I’m ever joshin’? The error in our ways can bring terror to the arrogance Relevant to the irrelevance in a phrase. Catching and releasing, freeing the demons that have the cause for all the weeping. That’s seeping out when the levees break from the onslaught of hurricanes That disturbs the brain. Three sheets to the breeze. So how’d your day go? Still busy throwin’ up rainbows? Smiles make the lowliest umbrellas. Why? ‘Cuz I say so. Running next to rejects with apparent defects With each step, an acquirement of weak breath. Feel the strength from that cymbal crash. (VERSE THREE- THE TOP CIVILIAN) I’ll write a script for the Rx Generation. Trademarks breakin’ the windows that you panin’. Fragments of hope on a road paved with lame raps.

Windows to my soul so painted they stained glass. I aim fast, exercise my right to arm bears. Own shares of stock in pharmaceuticals and lawn chairs. Been known to rock long-hair and experiment with substances... Inspire you to write a book of Psalms and publish it. Punishment is a natural consequence of bad choices. It better be a learning experience and not parents punching kids. Judgment’s been passed, so the party can crash, The first can be last, and the smokers can relax. Live your life! Always watch your back for the knife. The Gateway Drug’s another name for the passion inside. In case you wondered:Top Civilian’s my pseudonym. Like prescription pills when I’m misusing them. (CHORUS) No more feelin’ weak, I’m gonna focus on the Strength That burns inside my essence, relentlessly give thanks To Jah Rastafari; Poyo’s beats are gnarly. Arm me with harmony and start me at junior varsity. Alone in a spare-bedroom, I can’t spare any headroom. Need more venues to get to the populous’ mental menu. Shit, I’ve been through parallel stages of your existence. Even you can become famous with the proper nose placement.

(VERSE FOUR- MC BREW) Suppressed memories endlessly tearing me blank to what it takes to appreciate the air we breathe. Apply the myringotomy, probably drawing blood in ears just like phlebotomies. Barricades on their best and rarest days ain’t stopping me. But to me feeling great is on Sunday grillin’ steaks. To be real it takes just being yourself. I wear my heart on my sleeve; some pretend to be someone else. And some chumps want the hell Rather than help another that’s fell in the well. Another life force is drained. You’re struggling to strain Held back like your neck and mouth is muzzled with chains. Discussing how comfy it is to nuzzle up and guzzle restraint. (VERSE FIVE- THE TOP CIVILIAN) ...That lie, la lie, lie, LIE! And will try to buy my soul. Also, I can make an album made of gold. This stone is rolling and collects no moss. No mold to hold the moldings; waves “boom” when get shocked. Benadryl helps the sleep. Life’s a beach Prone to shatter this message in a bottle of God’s dreams.

CONFORM THE MORBID Track Four

(VERSE ONE- MC BREW) The morbid ill conform it Absorb it like hydrochloric On tissue with a misused language to kiss you. Issues get addressed if the avoided conflict sticks A dry humorless hunch, that’s how it started without a hitch. To goof troops that wanna impress spitting over loops Better be tossing themselves through some fiery hoops. ‘Cuz my foresight is more like bottles and corks, right. Provoking to be open so it can expand to more heights. It’s pungent to the redundant that don’t rejoice to moist secretions Anointing with anecdotes and the average can’t believe it. Alas, I’m just composing on tracks. The odd wise cracks on which the trains of thought can pass. As constant and rhythmic as waves breakin’ on a beach. Writing by candle light, The flame is flickering like tongues that torque the sodden speech. Had the knack for the scribbling before the age of nineteen. (VERSE TWO- THE TOP CIVILIAN) Too many suggested perspectives, my mind’s completely congested. My answers are just guesses, so fuck the fuckin’ questions. Make the lessons quick, and I’ll try to take them chances That will expand my gifts and put fate within my talons. I’ll find balance in the valley of death, however shallow.

How many angels and demons must perish in this here battle? I felt insignificant, but it seems now that I matter An active participant in the knowledge that I gather. If I had another choice, my voice would choose the latter. I’ll surely need a hoist to go where angels batter Their wings. Some help to cope, or shatter my screams Rather than bring to light the addictions that my system fiends for. Between a rock and hard place, life seems more. Trials than tribulations while I’m waitin’ it means more To me than it will ever mean to you or your people. Actions speak so loudly they heard by Lou Ferrigno. (VERSE THREE- THE TOP CIVILIAN) People do unimaginable things in unbeknownst locations. Unrecognizable expressions appear on unacquainted faces. Case in point it’s all the same, but it all still changes. I’m just looking for a purpose, you can fuck the being famous. I’ll remain nameless and complacent in all of life’s stages. A Mason making the most of my fate and era placement. In amazement the crowd loudly applauds my efforts. The sound of my voice ain’t no vacation, it’s a last resort. A report of sorts about this here human conditionVital signs stereo-chords without near enough extension. Enough retention to stay focused on tasks, focused on laughs Before dust returns to dust and ashes turn to ash. A flash of light? NO! A flash of LIFE. But it’s only fair to judge the bright against the darkness of the night. And you might stop to count between the lightning and thunder: The closer the storm, the lower the number. I wonder when my life will flash and then ‘BOOM!’ I’m under the impression that at least you’ll find out soon. And it consumes me with stress, all this madness and mess Until it concludes with my rest when nothing is left. And I wept nothing more, nothing less Until it was time for me to flash! How many seconds you guess? But all I need is a mic and my motherfuckin’ mind. All I need is a mic and my motherfuckin’ mind! (VERSE FOUR- MC BREW) Being fluid with the movement Give your ears a good douching. No conclusion, write words limitless- pen in fist. Other cats get put up on the eighty-six list. So get your fix, it’s nice and crisp To people who thinking when they listen to me. Pushing periodicals persistently, This Hip-Hop shit just sets me free.

So many paint pictures of how frail rhymes are set casually And if the alleys could talk, What’s with the commotion with that cuphea on the sidewalk? Chasin’ styles like vertical smiles with goatees. Oh please! I put a sour taste to those ass kissin’ lips. So this goes to kids that cant rhyme but still try to diss. From the street to the curb from a flirt to a kiss This poet lyricist comes through with exquisiteness. I dissect the dialect when I directly divulge In the duration to get the sleepyheads to get indulged. It’s never forgot when cocky crews act like snots. Competition gets stopped as if approaching roadblocks. Dudes acting glamorous putting runs in their mascara. Never a beat in the world that I couldn’t take care of. Words imbedded like a shard of glass in a marshmallow. Saying what’s up to my fellows out in Colorado. You notice I start to wobble when the bottles getting hollow. Comin’ forward straight to it and it’ll burn you when you swallow…

SNAKE CHARMER Track Five

“A snake slithered into a blacksmith shop one day. And he was very, very hungry and he looked about for something to eat. But the only thing we could find was a file, so he started to gnaw on it...” (VERSE ONE- MC BREW) Classier than a clip-on tie But I’ll gladly be taking out you snakes just like Rikki-Tikki-Tavi. So a cobra’s head I’m tossing Finding solutions to the problems. Never fail when you entail. Identifying them first, through the phlegm that’s dispersed. Give more of what it takes. Slithering through inhibitions of Iowans just like corn snakes. Through senses and aesthetics, Second guess your prevalence With ignorant epithets opine on a line On which one may forget. I’ve got nothing, not even regret. You peeping the set, we gotta rock the spot Cunning like water moccasins No need for lots of pens. Free venom dispending got ya feeling lost again. My anti-cliché deejay has got to toss the spin. Apply the Buddha palm upon the song. Got it rattling your cage again. Erase you face, we came to play, then win. 9

(VERSE TWO- THE TOP CIVILIAN) Sick of shit I can’t relate to. Snakes that hiss over beats and bring along their fake crews. Shut up before I make you face the truth. Your vocal booth Is full of statements that you can’t stand on with your own two... Feet. Sick of the mainstream and the same seats. But I got the gift of speech and a deejay that don’t slang beats. So appealing with side-effects concealing cracks With slight-of-hand cramping, I’m losing my grasp. Teeth on my plaque, a speech that tends to react To bass vibrations from the speakers when they blast. Inhaling positive thoughts, ignore the concrete corsage Pinned to my chest. Read ‘em and weep some Deep Thoughts by Jack Handy. Lookin’ like an obese Raggedy Andy, More than willing and able to bust any mic that you hand me. Been adrift like Pangaea, narrowing options Jamming on a Sony Walkman cassette deck and walkin’… (SCRATCHED- DJ POYO) “Stop, he said.” (VERSE THREE- MC BREW) Like Christopher, I’m Walken. I concur to rip through slurs Like water hitting salt pallets, man you’re soft. And I’m stomping mambas with intentions so black, we’re fading back to onyx To the basement where you can taste this. Had the knack to even vomit. Monty Python can have a guest appearance on this. Astonish what you saw. Pens of poison drive nervous systems delirious. Dreaded when these off the double-headed serpents hiss this. (VERSE FOUR- THE TOP CIVILIAN) Opposing those that let go of their control To grow roses in the road. Licking the backs of toads And serpents for the chemical experience. The hops been hipped, minds serendipitous. Get lit and fixated on the sanity. I brought my band with me, so ya’ll can stand at ease. And vanity is the one deadly sin I don’t indulge in. The rest of me’s nailed to the ground, sky a pullin’. (SCRATCHED- DJ POYO) “Don’t do that.”

(VERSE FIVE- MC BREW) Golden moments ain’t always glowing. Thought you had to know We break it down like acetone. Some bastards show no love. We’ll be knowing what’s up, Stay coiled, poised and ready To strike a deadly blow from the brush. Not gambling on broke chances. This wouldn’t equate up to any OSHA standards. Use a snake skin just like a canvas. These fake men, they have no plans when they try to hold it frozen in a pose. (VERSE SIX- THE TOP CIVILIAN) Pull the pin, throw the grenade and take cover. Post a bulletin about my affair with Danny Glover. Push comes to shove her out of oncoming traffic. How can we save the Earth if we couldn’t even save Captain Planet From cancellation? So I continue my scratch paper wastin’. Shedding skin around corners; straighten smiles with braces. Dragons you chasin’ as we Puff the magic, But nothing’s static in a world of slithering snakes and plastic. “In a raspy voice he said, I’m the guy who can chew iron and steel.” “The viper and the file” “A snake slithered into a blacksmith shop one day. And he was very, very hungry and he looked about for something to eat. And the only thing we could find was a file, so he started to gnaw on it. The file didn’t like it though.” “‘Stop,’ he said. ‘Don’t do that. Don’t expect to get anything out of me, you’re just beatin’ your gums.’ In a raspy voice he said, ‘I’m the guy who can chew iron and steel.’”

EGGFOOYUN Track Six

(VERSE ONE- THE TOP CIVILIAN) I grew up in a different time and place. Different type of blood in my veins, some give and take. A sentence break is indicated with a comma, It could be the proper place to create your own fake drama. But oh ah oh ah ah no one likes that. You bitches are addicted to emotions: that’s a fact. I sat back unattached for too many minutes. My hat is tight now, years ago I bought it fitted. I watched my generation go from fresh to vintage; Lookin’ at the TV to see who’s next to mimic. I wore awesome sweat pants six days a week Watched Up All-Night on USA when I couldn’t sleep.

I used to peek at scribbly channels to see girls naked, My future wife’s on internet porn, so download and rate it. I’m not a sadist, but I like to play with the egos Of emcees who actually think that they’re my equals, out these peepholes. “Substances...chemicals...drugs...Affect the way your body works.” (VERSE TWO- MC BREW) I can’t even come simplistic when I missed it, That is this point I’ve tried to reach. Impeach the rest of the pungent point of views. And anoint a few ears That are more than just out of reach. I’ve been sent to bet that this doubt in speech Will not reap—it’s gotta weep something That’s nonstop when it’s flowing. Growin’ a special batch, to heck with that. Stressful past memory that’s asking for more fruitless remembrance. Got keep on keepin’, reachin’, movin’. I’ve been teached- or I mean, taught improvement. To youthful, fruitful individuals, who keep a senseful hymn flow. And be more sensible. I’ll put dents in those who merely test how far their ego will stretch, But do you realize all of us people are next? Writing this isn’t a readable text. And, ‘yes’ is the word beyond a herd of sheep with some worthless speech. (VERSE THREE- THE TOP CIVILIAN) I’ll get your sticks and stones stoned and drive ‘em home. Tell ‘em to call me again in the days of Styrofoam decay. So write a real poem or watch what you say. I’m a real new Roman and my time is today. Been sick of playing games since days of Milton Bradley, Changing channels more often than drunks hail taxis. With only gravity to hold me down. Steady grip of fantasies help spin the needle around...around... (VERSE FOUR- MC BREW) A vocation that’s innovative has been located: It’s right here. Communicate effectively. Don’t have to be out of the ordinary, but then again I choose to. Screw’s loose to retighten the mounting. To not necessarily confuse who? It’s just mind expansion through the rhyme enhancement that’s enchanting. That’s running rampant yet I stay planted, Hand on my heart to add to this anthem.

HOURGLASS Track Seven

(VERSE ONE- THE TOP CIVILIAN) It’s me-- or at least one my faces. I notice the more that one changes the harder it is to replace it. I’m not patient ‘til my doctor floats a payment. And I’ll keep the same station on until I hit the pavement. It’s self-defense, I’ll hit before it hits back. I’ll throw a left hook before the concrete crash. I jump on beat fast, so I’m the first to be heard And I don’t need last words for emcees to get served. I’ll break your last nerve if I’m not already on it. I’m the fire of the crackers and never will I pawn it. So hooked on phonics that I clap between syllables. Lay trapped between the physical maps and the spiritual sap That leaks out like the blood of maple trees. So save advice for drifters, and your halos for the breeze. I’m not stable, I breathe, am able to react. Certain situations prove my soul is intact- and that’s a fact. (HOOK x2- MC BREW and THE TOP CIVILIAN) I’m the one-eye tear shedding, I’m the last man standin’. Time tickin’ away by the second, no answer to the questions We ask. But we’re not sand in an hourglass. Waitin’ for placebacks But what I gave got taxed. (VERSE TWO- MC BREW) Where I’m at right now, evolved from where I started. I see those that dare to bear their emotions while some are coldhearted. And if battles come blitzin’, so be it, we’ll just have to see who’s on target. But of course, this is all just a metamorphosis From a span of years of ups and downs And all arounds, it’s nonstop- word! In-and-outs and roundabouts, conquering vices and inner monsters. I’m just a maniac about the audio. From long ago ‘til now, I’ve always been a notebook nuisance Baring it all like a nudist, nothin’ but some true shit. Holler against the trends until the end and, yes, I can prove it. Whether its outside or in between the lines. Shunning all your bogus hype. ‘Cuz this is a major part of my life. And amidst all strife, I never dismiss on what I feel is right, Alright? (Aight.) 13

(HOOK x2- THE TOP CIVILIAN and MC BREW) I’m the one-eye tear shedding, I’m the last man standin’. Time tickin’ away by the second, no answer to the questions We ask. But we’re not sand in an hourglass. Waitin’ for placebacks But what I gave got taxed. (VERSE THREE- THE TOP CIVILIAN) So check your gender and pulse for signs of life ‘Cuz I illuminate the night like a lone LiteBrite. Spellin’ out the message, sometimes held in high contention. Starting from this here point and out in all directions. Let me be free if only in these songs of freedom ‘Cuz I see no beacon to save me or Garden of Eden. I’ve been cheated, indecently exposed and pieces know. It can never be explained even in the perfect poem. (VERSE FOUR- MC BREW) So light up the flares with the kerosene. No despair when an uttered care came to be. A rare breed who used to dye my hair green And crossin’ the whole spectrum of recollection. Progressed with an obsession and blend in. Amend with no regrets when your motives are bogus at any moment. I’ve witnessed the cloning of obnoxious opinions Concocted, it’s ridiculous. But I’ll try to stay oblivious... (HOOK- MC BREW and THE TOP CIVILIAN) I’m the one-eye tear shedding, I’m the last man standin’. Time tickin’ away by the second, no answer to the questions We ask. But we’re not sand in an hourglass. Waitin’ for placebacks But what I gave got jacked.

LUCHADOR Track Eight

(VERSE ONE- THE TOP CIVILIAN) I wish I had no debts and lived with less stress. But that’s not my reality, so this is your check. Less maladjustment, adjust the order of priorities. Personify my life pressing pens on tortured trees. Take four of these thoughts before you hit eject. See your problems causes before feelin’ their effects. 14

You talk about respect way more than you’ll ever get it. For every rhyme and reason-- no need to get specific. This is for the misfits, those all out of place. Missin’ without a trace. Wipe that look up off your face. Time’s been wasted. Ideas: ain’t got the faintest. Dealt a hand by God, and by God, I’m gonna play it. Wearing our clothes like the skin that we’re made with, All I want is a piece of mind and a band that I can play with. ‘Til then, same shit but different day. So open the Gate, or get the hell out my Way. (VERSE TWO- MC BREW) I look around at this mess, I’m profounded by the boundaries of stress. Can’t take a second guess. Dwindling like shortness of breath, And I know there has to be more to this test. When a crude attitude shines, I just pause relishing. When I can be roaming through new times again. Few men can even comprehend, only misconcept. You missed more than a couple steps. I been often jotting down these songs before I lost my virgin way of living. Now I rock with logical lyricism to give ‘em. Still working, still living, giving it, splitting the page just like a dutch. With grooves to crush and if the mood just sucks. So I pawned my lust, end of dawn now it’s dusk. New material is crucially a must so here we go. Up in the stereo, to open up the doors of your perception. Gateway always wrecking- letting you know- with a certain essence and, yes, it shows. (VERSE THREE- MC BREW) Some are obsessed with death as much as I’m obsessed with life. I’m expressing why behind these lines that are refined. You’ll find just where that lesson lies. Not some second guessing guys An expression left without a slur in speech. You’re just a herd of sheep - no Shepard - no direction stepping nervously. When you heard of we, notoriety, were applying the science. Witnessing that bullshit you’re buying. I’ve broken ties, look in these two open eyes. You’re just choking on hopelessness when no one truly tries. Seeing right through these lies When negative expectations turn into self-fulfilling prophecies. You oughta be clogging your artery. Heart you’ll never take what’s a part of me. I’m lost in chaos. It’s not a gimmick when I’m living this. Architecting our destiny until the end of it. Until the age is a deficit, not a replicate and never delicate. Behind this message you know we’re always repping this. 15

(VERSE FOUR- THE TOP CIVILIAN) If you can’t live with it, don’t you leave it alone. Leave it behind and out-of-sight before it follows you home. I don’t make myself known for the purpose of your opinions, Instead I pen poems to underline my own division Of body and soul. Pressing the pace to show an image. Uncertain of its place and perplexed by the limits of life. I know the finish is death; the start was sex. We’re the connection of the dots plus some cause and effect. Making your lifetime distinctly not like mine. I write rhymes ‘cause I know they’ll outlive my lifetime. Grip vices with vicegrips; Sight sutures my eyelids. See no evil simply ‘cause speech and sound suffices. My love is pricelessNo trying to buy it. You gotta learn, love, fail and burn before you find it. Try to explore it like NASA astronauts and Tang. While I sit with senior citizens enjoying some shade...

ALONG CAME A SPIDER Track Nine

(VERSE ONE- MC BREW) Decisive maneuvers, here to school ya. Dismiss you fools, spooks and rumors. Came to instigate ya state. Situate any false debates, don’t even mitigate. ‘Cuz I know enough to be disownin’ bluffs So you can go ahead and phony up. And while your dude is laughin’ I can run straight up and slap him. I proceed to cease the chanting from you butt hurt bandits. Hatin’ this should be absurd but you just can’t stand it To see a fellow man climb atop this granite planet. Try not to take for granted. Always make proof and use what is even handed. Organically enhanced this plan, so why you trying to fuck up the fabric? This isn’t magic, this is real they think it’s all slop, and no props Watchin’ all you fake motherfuckers drop. I’m decisive had the wind sucked out ‘til I had my side split You know I liked it. Fists clenched immense leaving dents with my fists like vice grips!!

(VERSE TWO- MC BREW) Never faltering on what’s worth offering on awful things. Ink bleed, receiving through transmissions in my head… I must be dreaming. As the morning is transforming from an evening. You fuckin’ zombies try to stop me nonchalantly. But most caught up in this ain’t feeling so fuckin’ melancholy. Speaking spelling wrongly don’t feel as strong as I. So I be unified, when its night time With the right rhymes, and beats mystifying the streets. Every time we design from the mind it’s unique. Apply like a permanent tourniquet. When it’s time burn, and butchering Your thoughts with these words that we just burglared in. As the world spins like the whirlwinds. Had to get my fix at 3:06 AM, and spray phlegm. They can try to act like they awake but they ain’t even knowing about the poems that we paint. I’ll grab your state, and agitate. Eradicate- your plan’s too fake. I’ll show your magistrate. (VERSE THREE- MC BREW) The glory in exploring this goriness, I’m exporting Your lyrical abortions: be pro-choice. When the flow is moist I’m in the depth of its reaches. In a society full of preventable diseases. May seem appeasing, tickling and teasing. But you ain’t gotta need to jump this jock Just keep your lips locked like Ziploc. It’s the night life that can blind the ones that have strayed away. Cause from this daylight. At times I’m walkin’ a thin line of temptation And try not to drift away with all my damn might. Then at times I act like it’s a playground out there and I don’t play right. Splatter these fragments of brain, outta my frame Just like Kurt Cobain. That’ll happen to capture you lames, You think that it’s a game? I’m heartless, surround like the darkness. Bitches, switch up your name... (VERSE FOUR- MC BREW) The danger in anger is like a wild card in a poker game And comes and goes like an errant ray of sunshine on a cloudy day. Can be filled with malice and callous but I still care, You can tell with a certain flair When there’s a problem in the air. Try to remain civilized, wake, rise and tantalize the truth can’t contain lies. So there’s no surprise. Just look up in the skies…

NINTENDO Track Ten

(VERSE ONE- THE TOP CIVILIAN) This goes… to my youth: to reading Weekly Readers, Always being too heavy so my totter only teetered. Paying meters with pockets of loose change. Still wash with Lever 2000- things have changed. They seek the matters, you maintain the facts. Don’t decipher life by acid-coating your lower back Like my deejay did. Open your ears and listen in. Side effects of the drug-induced life that we lived. Paper clips hold my pages so the haters can diss. Quick to point fingers, but never ever penned a script. Doves cry, but make love just like the pigeons. ...Feed ‘em dry rice ‘til they explode just like your opinions. I can’t spake Russian, hope I’m speaking your language. Not the same shit you listen to on the regular baggageIn excess. My best guess is I aim to impress, Leave you like a fish: wet and breathless like... (VERSE TWO- MC BREW) It’s embedded in my genetics, so I’ll never forget this. Receiving no credit, gets hectic. Sequestered into reckless words Blurting out until it gets unnerving. I’ve refrained from the complaining That’s waning ‘cuz to blame things instead of taking action. Grabbing the reigns against the grain- restraining. So, may I reinstate nothing that seems faint? Just point blank with the rest of the team would be great. Now I’ve been deeply plunging since the beginning past the end of that whole grunge thing. Wanting one thing: that’s progress and thought. I’ve always been expunging. Burning sensation as if it’s acid refluxing. As we keep clutching a false sense of hope and can’t cope. The false image of what we trust to some It’s a trembling feeling that seems overwhelming. Speech therapy in which I dare to be carefree. No guidelines to follow ‘cuz you can live your life to lose Or you can refuse to take refuge. 18

(VERSE THREE- THE TOP CIVILIAN) Either you have it, you lack it, had it but you lost it, Can write a good flow, maybe can freestyle flawless. Most are jawless, so you’s best to check your dentures. This misadventure’s broadcast uncut and uncensored. Try to test me, I’ll get randier than Savage. Make a pro look like the average fan forcing the habit. For the record- this ain’t about diamond mines. So while you paper-chase and hate, I’ll toss tingles to spines. Only mingle with like-minds to keep myself stable. Leave the weak behind, the fake kind here to make Pesos or any denomination. Give me a vain to stick my pain in. Stop complaining. when Atlas falls, he calls the rain in. I’ll be up-the-wall climbing, the feed me hand I’m biting, Trying to find my way, before my way finds me fighting. Cop-a-feel from a cop to get out of a ticket... My life’s a Post-it Note; I got nowhere to stick it like...

SEXY DARKNESS Track Eleven

(VERSE ONE- MC BREW) You’re gettin’ pigeon holed. I’m ditching those who merely twitch and fold. You fake jacks need to hit the road. I’m bound and determined to start drowning your circuit Like a nervous gerbil at a gay pride circus. May I suggest you stay at the wayside, it isn’t worth it. Attacking your motives, ‘cuz you’re lacking the focus. Dumping lump sums on you chumps ‘til you’re haphazardly eroding. Clashing with your fascists, lacking any thought When you just brought an ignorant transaction. Now we’re sweeping out like dragnets with erratic steps. Pointing out that you haven’t had shit yet, Just a nose picking, furniture smearing. Got some nerve to floss with un-nurtured thoughts that have never been enduring. You’ll regret checkin’ where you’re steppin’, I’m repping this. So you can get the message of this wretchedness. Excelling, while I’m expelling. Insane your brain is swelling And your frame is gelatin.

(VERSE TWO- THE TOP CIVILIAN) Punched, abruptly abducted, left with thought concussions. Can barely discuss percussion in my voice without combusting Spontaneously. A little rough around the edges. It don’t pay to be me, so you’s best to pay attention To rich people and Scientologists. The rest of us pricks just go find a pot to piss Me off. ‘Cuz I thought that the meek inherited. That God would find fault with me steady tearin’ kids. It’s imperative that we get the finished product. I’m a gin and tonic short of nauseous, so watch it. Drenched like green slime from Nickelodeon. Smoke weed with Charlie Sheen before I reach the podium. Sick of shit like custodians. Take more hits than bowling pins. The mothership ain’t homing in, cover me I’m going in. The wheels in the sky keep merging through my highway. Slur my way home, car hitting curbs sideways. (VERSE THREE- MC BREW) You can either face it, hate it or fear it. An instinct, hold dear, is just a basic way to feel. At times it ain’t right in tellin’ you lies. Staying surprised by what you saw the reel-to-reel Unlatched like locks that open Pandora’s Box. Got it open hopin’, mopin, gropin’ on moments. Not knowing at any given time More than many lifetimes into a death that you climb Brainfreeze any thoughts of reincarnated, self-sedated, mental retardations. Like dentals makin’ love, not so gentle, detrimental. It’s a mess, yo. Life is a wreck that might end in a sec But we’ll fight to the death. Breath none ‘til tinnitus inside this head rung. Packing a batch of lack judgment Don’t matter the cats you run with. Just be encompassed. This is my life. This is wicked, ain’t missin’ the strife. Listen why...

Photo credits by Chris “Dice” DeRoin, MC Brew, The Top Civilian, DJ Poyo, DJ Buttah, Jessica Boyes, Aubry Peters, Sarah Gill, DJ BowLz, Joey Enright, Eboli, Benny B, Cody Case and more!?

(VERSE FOUR- THE TOP CIVILIAN) If you’re tuning in, I’m busy consuming men. Instead of improving them, I’ll make them fools depend On instincts. I got more hits than *NSync. You got no future in this game with me as an emcee. Your soul is empty like the spaces between us. While the global warms the core I’ll rap on the crust. Before I scatter like dust I must understand the artistThe perve that finds something sexy about the darkness. A peaceful revolution, experience the outer body Before we waste our days away like Mahatma Gandhi. Fasting to make a point eating a grain of rice a day. Mind to anoint my voice to free man from his chains. Been trained as a capitalist Hollywood stargazer. Embraced the teachings of philosophers ‘til my brains hurt. Ready to rain dirt in dust clouds and devils. Forever roaming the Earth like Pinocchio’s Geppetto.

REINCARNATED Track Twelve

(VERSE ONE- THE TOP CIVILIAN) I’m one of those traveling cats that stays in one place. Motion makes the sickness present to smoke away Just another day in the life of the infamous Asshole talking shit, pretty just be specific. Civilian’s my name. Will and combustion’s how I came. I’m sure my last verse causes one and the same. Difference: my love is close; yours is distant-Some call it a 6th sense, I call it being persistent. Got a stern grimace that some mistake as grins. Across my face mind contemplates checkin’ chins. Life is love and hate combined with light and sin, And I’m a pin-wheel stickin’ around for the wind to blow! Or someone in the mainstream to properly flow. ‘Cause it dawns on me, they need to change the profession that they chose. Close your eyes, my frequency is slowly homing On your fated position in these: our “Times New Roman.” (CHORUS x2) Strain with me! I work with a brain that’s lopsided. A rage that knows no silence; a plane that has no pilot! The impact of birth caused scars upon arrival. I ain’t been back to Earth since the stars were suicidal.

(VERSE TWO- MC BREW) We’ve got an obligation to bomb this nation. Gettin’ sick of being calm and patient complacent. Jumping on these jams up in the basement. Bacardi driven, spittin’ facts, hardly ever even bullshitting. Not freestyle, you know it’s written. Northside cats be spittin’ this free-written. And what I wrote just got jotted down. We spotted clowns and had to toss around that flawless sound. So sop the drool up when the jaws drop down. I’ve had a heyday runnin’ through the gateways And they say the Brew runs with the 712, so fuck the nay-say. Or laziness. Gotta get these thoughts outta my head or I’ll go crazy, kid. The spirit that blocks the clearance. We can see in your eyes that you know that you’re fearing. Getting loose at the seven-one-deuce party. So bring the beer in And lose the hating that you’re even feeling. (CHORUS x2) Strain with me! I work with a brain that’s lopsided. A rage that knows no silence; a plane that has no pilot! The impact of birth caused scars upon arrival. I ain’t been back to Earth since the stars were suicidal. (VERSE THREE) (THE TOP CIVILIAN) In the headlights of the dead-rights. Instead of hypin’ up the scene, you’re seein’ the end time. I defend rhymes with the freedom to reach This Sodom and Gomorrah landscape uncensored, no bleeps. (MC BREW) So we’ll creep off the deep end From this to next weekend. Like bliss, the mind, the mic and my fist seek the right To increase the fight. To downplay perps who feel too weak inside. (THE TOP CIVILIAN) I find it rather confusing trying to be pure in pollution. Snoozing my way through parts of a mood ring. Switching from color to opaque, From intention to mistake. From made to making me break. 22

(MC BREW) No breaking me blatantly, we’re takin’ out the flakes in thee. You’re too wasted to spit sacred stages. Double A: arsenious aftermath, Disastrous path On which what was sprayed On yourself you’re gettin’ played. Yea, it’s degrading.

FINAL FANTASY Track Thirteen

(VERSE ONE- MC BREW) I always work with my hands But I’m not earning grands or received a grant. But still my speech it stamps Writing as freely as I need be, Formed a trinity. Now we’re all a nation groovin’ to this Mood of a melody. Rastas on safaris. The apartheid will never be seen, Well at least I hope not. A beast from the streets. Both dogs so we gotta show some loyalty over Poyo beats. Took a roll of the dice Now we’re the ones controlling mics And you know that’s it’s tight. Not strictly focused on props, these civilians flow on the spot. Brewing up a potion, congruent with the notion To represent Sioux City. Whose with the Midwest making commotion. So you can feel this like an earthquake that shakes from the oceans twelve These final fantasies- I dove in. (VERSE TWO- THE TOP CIVILIAN) No beans magical enough to reach the Heavens, So I plant my seed to save the ages from their penance. Menaces to society, 40s of malt liquor glory. Not the same story or perfect temperature type of porridge. Goldilocks prostituting to lions with dreadlocks. Waitin’ for the dogs and dragon to sheep the flock. Take yourself to detox before we rock your socks off. Original knock-off, back to get my soul like Faust. Got props, charisma, handful of non-winning lottery tickets. So give me a cause so I can picket, or a scab so I can pick it. Late night visits from Gabrielle’s angel- final fantasies Calling me to finish the game. Not a casualty, 23

A martyr. For the love of my daughter Trying to be the best father even if the world falters. Be bright like the lightning, a life worth the writing. Sometimes pain’s mistaked as joy and joy’s mistaked as crying. (VERSE THREE) (MC BREW) A fantasy that’s final Enchants me like sitting all day listening to vinyl. Written on a tombstone “Who’s home? Who knows not? Whoever knew of me?” Sing not a eulogy, celebrate a life so fluently To a ‘T’. But yet we have so far to go So get up off that sofa. Go outside, play, seize the day like ya mama woulda told ya. At ease like the breeze, no loss of composure. (THE TOP CIVILIAN) My final fantasy is Heaven, staring friends and family. They’d be rockin’ a show. My band would be with me, Plus my lady and seeds. When I’m there, no need to breathe, I can be at peace. Away from a world to get lost in Where freewill chooses sin most often. Before the coffin, let the Rastas know, I smoked and sang my way to God’s Walkman. Keep on walkin’, and I’ll keep the flow. Stop your turning and tossing.

S. BLAIR Track Fourteen

(VERSE ONE- THE TOP CIVILIAN) I’ve not been the same person since you’ve been gone. Haven’t had the security of your couch to lean on. I was the great pretender trying to be strong. Pretending everything’s alright, when inside it’s all wrong. I don’t want to sing the same songs that we sang together. Now there’s no baritone to compliment my tenor. Whenever NASCAR was on we’d hit the Jerome Baker bong, And jam to Pink Floyd - damn, I miss you Shawn. You used to wrench on the S-10 looking all covered in tar. We entered a burnout contest in my shitty foreign car. 24

I revved up the engine and the crowd started to scream, And we sped down the street at barely even 15. It seems like a dream, I remember taggin' on your table. Kickin’ it as the days go by, we’d get high. But now your halo Keeps me stable. Before you left I took life for granted, Now I wanna make you proud of the life I live; my hold you handed. (VERSE TWO- MC BREW) Cornbeef would never represent you poorly. And that's for sure, SMB. That's the way we keep it. Accomplishments: you would seek them and then you'd reach them. Never would expect to be mourning you this evening. But this is in remembrance of good times and bad. I'm aghast. Remember when we would kick it and shoot the breeze in P.E. class? From good homeboys to neighbors, Through all attitudes that wavered. To see that smirk up on your face is like a place away from danger. Now that you're gone, it feels wrong- changed up the whole flavor. Known you for over decade, we never had a chance to live throughout our best days. I've cried until I'm worn out, ‘cuz I know a part of me is torn out And can't be replaced. It's all said and done. I know the light that was in your life shall reflect through your son. You were an artist and also a great cook. Feeling hardship now, but I gotta calm down. At the sky glance up and take a look. I feel God didn't want you, Unjustly stolen from us. It disgusts me I'm gloating over it. And it's tough...this song got me to open up. Hope this song is worthy, Hope you have mercy if you thought this wasn't dope enough. Rest in peace homie. (VERSE THREE- THE TOP CIVILIAN) You were the first one I knew with a homemade tattoo. We witnessed two UFOs: our eyes proof it was true. Sometimes I get twisted, can't lift, emotions pressing. Find it depressing to be on antidepressants. But I can't let it get to me. From Sweet Fanny's to Perkins Your hair changed to a mohawk, together we were workin'. Certainly never got the proper goodbye, So me and all your homies together we cried. You overflowed the Church. Bless your birth for what it’s worth. I was too hurt to see you lowered in the dirt. My tear water burns and yearns for life with you. Until I end and see you again, Essence...I'll miss you. For all we've been through, blow a kiss to God. 'Cause your my only refuge when the nights get long…you’re gone…

I’ve always written songs and poetry for as long as I can remember, and since joining The Gateway Drug almost a decade ago, we combined expressing our words over the unmatched creativeness of Poyo’s beats. It’s really interesting to see the metamorphosis of our writing styles. To think, it all started with us just having fun to now being able to touch other people’s lives- it’s truly incredible. –Corey “MC Brew” Brubaker I originally wanted to write poetry, but I thought not many people in today’s society would read a book of poetry. So I decided the best way to get my poetry heard is to put it over beautiful music. And The Gateway Drug was born. –Eric “The Top Civilian” Osterholm

“Ode to Crayons” by The Top Civilian, 2006

‘times new roman’ album available for free download at thegatewaydrug.bandcamp.com