904 : 9/30/00 : Rush

Feel the rush the feeling that
feel the stutter shudder in your hat
feel the instant that you smash into
the glass ceiling so near above you
It is true that life is fragile, frail
and the rush can make a strong man fail
on the new year’s day we all must pause
check our worst conundrums for an escape clause
strapped into the wicked chair
soon to be no longer there
spent too long inside the rush
and caught up in the usual crush

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

903 : 9/29/00 : Eve

Eve of a question mark
another age arisen
and we’re still so badly organized
getting fired and put in prison
Who are the leaders these days
college boys in daddy’s suit
Dogs will never understand
the piping of the magic flute
and as an evening creeping in
I ponder what I must achieve
breaking through the strange dominion
of the twilight to the eve

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

902 : 9/28/00 : Machine

I am a machine
an animated thing
no living being
soulless and clean
I fulfill a role
dig the deeper hole
a vein of blacker coal
I’ll eat the world whole
another coded spiral
the pill’s construction viral
the slightest twist of chiral
key unlocks your firewall
and I’m feeling half machine now
when I asked why I didn’t mean how
give me a sailboat with a clean prow
I’ll leave with a libertine bow

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

901 : 9/27/00 : You Do

1,971 : 24 ?


Once more before the cube
the maze of the Machine
versus rube
and the final scene
Whole thing
blowin’ up very slowly
all my favorite memories
are just some movie
or an idea I got off the teevee
is that really true
I guess the answer’s up to you
I hope I know what you will say
I try to say it every day
and always always turn to you
yeah just like you do you do

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

900 : 9/26/00 : Quasi

Quasi: not quite there
meta: around somewhere
para: alongside by
as I quasiparametamorphosy...

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

899 : 9/25/00 : Docta Faustus (II) (Faustus 25/25)

Docta Faustus
Original ghost in the machine
dealt with the devil and
got out clean
living or dead
it doesn’t matter any more
when the doctor
rolls in another score
Paging Docta Faustus
on the universal hip hop phone
since he committed upload
we don’t ever feel alone
Dial up
ghost signal in the night
carried on the microwave
or visible light
That’s it
just a little yarn we spun
a ballad of days to come
just now begun

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

898 : 9/24/00 : Mephistophelis/Lament (Faustus 24/25)

Hey Mephistopheles
what d’you make of these
new fangled contrivances
is the doctor still there like he tried to convince us
Did you win the software or the shell
what exactly gets dragged down to hell
the flesh is alive but there’s no one home
the rest of him lives wherever it may roam
leaving you with a slip of paper
the doctah lit both ends of the taper
leaving you with a twist of ash
the coma case and a million in cash
Hey Mephistopheles
lament your unwatched q’s and p’s
the doctah it seems slipped through your hands
resides now in strictly virtual lands
Hey devil what’s the new deal
sign up or back out or do what you feel
The doctah claims that it’s all new now
I saw him on the teevee he was showin’ me how

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

897 : 9/23/00 : Birth (Faustus 23/25)

It’s hard to see the pattern through the pain
hard to believe in mind without a brain
And something giving birth to its own self
while seeming to sit silent on a shelf
what seemed at first a pattern nothing more
an odd job getting in on the ground floor
and now maintains a semblance greater than its parts
from humble origins evolved in fits and starts
and finally in a moment thick and blue
the world gave birth to this conclusion true:
a bit of Faustus wound up everywhere
leaving the shell to rock and sit and stare
And leaving Faustus where? Well none can tell
It seems he’s everywhere yet gone as well
a different take on immortality
the sea gives birth, a new modality

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

896 : 9/22/00 : The Sea (Faustus 22/25)

The sea of information rises
restless, full with strange surmises
something is at work within
it’s almost ready to begin
what seems at first a lexicon
waits for a word to turn it on
while Faustus’ body rocks and drools
the strange sea deconstructs its own tools
watch it rising like the great wave
watch it duplicate and save
a million digital file clerks
delete the chaff and dupe what works
the thing is loose upon the net
ascending every parapet
it’s telling lies and telling time
it’s even learning how to rhyme
the sum of it infects the sea
and none know what that sum will be
knows only that it must break free
knows only that its name is Me

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

895 : 9/21/00 : Blank/Whisper (Faustus 21/25)

Nothing saying says the blank
whispers: No word No word
Nothing moves behind the eyes
no one said and no one heard
nothing written on the wall
whispers many, many, take that
nothing moving there at all
nothing underneath that hat...

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

894 : 9/20/00 : Annihilation (Faustus 20/25)

1,966 : 17 ?



Teeth chattering with the glory
Is this the end?
or beginning of the story?
my mind’s tuned into the Big Sound Station
signal seems to whisper:
Annihilation
something’s arising
in an electron sea
looks a lot like my thoughts
but it is not me
and as I suspected
the price of its creation
is nothing short of Annihilation
Feel my memories stripped away
Game over
no time left to play
ready for the final revelation
see what really waits behind
annihilation

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

893 : 9/19/00 : The Chair (Faustus 19/25)

Strapped into a chair of
my own devising
electric current sparks and
the fields are rising
nuclear resonance
fields and spin
‘trodes are strapped across
and sockets plugged in
got my hand poised
ready on my own switch
the goal is deliverance
but the transfer’s a bitch
I’m strapped in the chair
of my own design
experiment’s a risk
but the choice is mine
teeth clenched hard
on the electrode
make my mind blank
get ready for the upload

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

892 : 9/18/00 : Hole In My Head (Faustus 18/25)

Gotta speed to make it in time
velocity scares me and reason’s my rhyme
the playback trick’s eating holes in my head
and if I take it all the way I’m dead
Why does everything start out small
and turn into a monster ten stories tall
why does every taste start out sweet
when kicking it will turn into an almighty feat
a little hole here a little hole there
I told myself I didn’t miss it or care
but I am nothing without memory
maybe someone but someone’s not me
painful dilemma because it’s not a drug
it ain’t a habit I ain’t no thug
and if I give it up I lose my soul
but the pill I have to swallow is a burning coal

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

891 : 9/17/00 : Playback (Faustus 17/25)

Nothing more frightening than a mirror babe
Don’t scare me with the sound and the furor babe
I’ve screwed in my courage, ready to attack
No one will expect this tactic this playback
I’ve found out that experience can be recorded
I’ve found a way to replicate what memory has hoarded
I’ll hide my mind in the silicon stack
release it through the medium of playback

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

890 : 9/16/00 : New Tricks (Faustus 16/25)

The devil is trying to turn my page
I signed my soul away for wisdom and age
I bought myself time to pursue a hack
and I thought I could buy the whole thing back
but this hole is deeper than I thought
and I can’t figure what I really bought
I’ll keep trying solutions till something clicks
but I think I’m gonna hafta learn some new tricks
I studied language I studied verse
I studied for better and for worse
I studied the nature of the unexamined life
truth was my torment study my wife
So I found an answer or what looks like one
But it seems to preclude a walk in the sun
there’s only one direction on this road I flog
I guess it’s just how tricks are for this old dog

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

889 : 9/15/00 : The Path (Faustus 15/25)

Get on the path get on the bus
you found your row to hoe
so don’t make a fuss
Accept the connection
The path and it’s direction...
Is there a way to set the mind on fire?
Yeah uh huh uh huh Yeah uh huh
Is there a way to turn it all to wire?
Yeah uh huh uh huh Yeah uh huh
There is a method if you do the math
Yeah uh huh uh huh Yeah uh huh
There is a method but is it the path?
Yeah uh huh uh huh Yeah!
I’m goin’ down it
I’m gonna drown it
Face the final upload
No way around it
I’m gonna do it
Punch in straight through it
Follow through
or face the fate
of all before who blew it

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

888 : 9/14/00 : To Know More (Faustus 14/25)

In the race to know more
what’s true and what’s in store
I’m standing here perplexed
mind fixed on what’s next
the rocks and the ages
and all the turned pages
the lords and the bounties
the counts and their counties
make no misapprehension
I’ve thought past these few dimensions
pierced into the perspex prism
healed with mud divined with jism
raised the dead ideals up high
raised up old Vug and asked him why?
just to know more
more than before
more than ever
falter never
just to arrive
cut through the jive
and hook up the connection
to the people’s insurrection

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

887 : 9/13/00 : Ergo Sum (Faustus 13/25)

1,959 : 11 ?


I think therefor I am
thinking about you
thinking of what’s true
making a mind up
circuits or wind up
therefor I am
automaton man
Is the mind composed of thoughts?
are the thoughts composed of words?
are our minds tied to the flesh?
or could they leave and fly like birds?
I think therefor I am
making a mess of things
deadlines duress that brings
the sharper understanding
I am standing
at the brink of how the
revolution will come
I’m building my replacement
ergo sum

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

886 : 9/12/00 : What is Truth? (Faustus 12/25)

What is truth?
What’s truth mean?
is it full?
is it clean?
is it tuned?
does it spark?
come in braille?
leave a mark?
is truth cruel?
is truth hard?
does it knock?
leave a card?
what is truth?
does it come?
does it stay?
is this some?

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

885 : 9/11/00 : Knowledge (Faustus 11/25)

Now I will seek knowledge of the
nature of the mind
And I will chart the architecture
of the tangled web’s unwind
knowledge is a purity
hustled enough to set it free
dance with me baby
let me show you the way of the
knowledgeable man
Look at me just doing
What I can

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

884 : 9/10/00 : Piece of You (Faustus 10/25)

Hey man just checkin’ the clientele
did the money man thing it’s just as well
It’s a power of a sort I guess
Do we still own a piece of you? Yes
Mephistopheles at your service
allow me to compliment your biz
congratulations ain’t you the man
swear your meteoric rise was more than I could stand
You’re still in bed with the Devil son
You’re still stuck with me nowhere to run
Wealth can always disappear
like fairy gold leaving you here
We made you we can tear you down
We’ve got your bankbook and your golden crown
Settle back stop making trouble
pray for a world to rise from the rubble
after we finish your power trip
and beam back to the mothership

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

883 : 9/9/00 : Cash (Faustus 9/25)

Platinum, diamonds, on seven fingers
diamond fob watch - glasses for the opera singers
titanium frames - designer - Italiano -
Jap switchblade and knucks for the mano a mano
black pearl cufflinks platinum studs
quartz pipe stuffed with hydro buds
eelskin wallet stuffed with cards and cash
foil wrapped bricks of turkish hash
German lighter cutter and case
Cuban cigars everything in its place
Egyptian cotton an eelskin belt
pants look like poplin and feel like felt
cell and pager digital attaché
and a plain black case to carry the booty away
and also inside the requisite gun
only one setting and it ain’t stun
caseless ammo through a floating breach
cluster fuck bad luck sponges and bleach
I got to protect my investments
I gotta find a life less bent
cash out while I’m still ahead
before me and the thrill are dead

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

882 : 9/8/00 : Desire (Faustus 8/25)

I’m feelin’ the root of all evil...
(What did I wish and what did I desire?...
what did I wish and what did I desire?...)
I’m... feeling confusion in my mind
confess the bizness drove me blind
I left some key or code behind
some strange twist back on the road’s unwind
What did I wish? What did I desire
a fast way past the perilous fire
that rises as a barrier to all who aspire
to turn aside the reign of this dark empire
and gagging on the taste of evil’s root
I wonder if I’ve been none too astute
I saw the devil in a three piece suit
Church shoes and a fat diamond ring to boot
Where’s my title where’s my contract
Where is it written down to which wall I’m backed
and the way I let the odds get stacked
by my heart’s desire and a salesman act

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

881 : 9/7/00 : Ways & Means (Faustus 7/25)

Scratch a sharp glissando on the ol’ harp strings
Sittin’ back and talkin’ ‘bout the ways and means
I see a straight path to a fast incline
but I’ve got consequences on my mind
do I dare subversion in the first degree
should I really make them like me
Write it down on a scrap of tape
there is a bigger picture we cannot escape
And if I fear the ends don’t justify the means
and ways we make these scenes
The way of meaning is the secret path
but it doesn’t come free of wrath

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

880 : 9/6/00 : The Money (Faustus 6/26)

1,951 : 3 ?


It’s all about the money, scratch
ounce for ounce and batch for batch
filthy lucre silver gold
I got to be ruthless and cold
I’m all about the money, juice
dimes for dollars or an ace from a deuce
expedience my only moral
no time to get sentimental or rest on my laurels
Money is a shiny trap
Get caught in the illusion you’ll taste the strap
easy to get pulled into the game
forget your real treasure’s name
I’m all about the money true
but it’s not for the money I do what I do
my higher purpose is to set myself free
escape from the lion the devil has on me

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

879 : 9/5/00 : Tha Life (Faustus 5/25)

I can’t resist but it can’t be right
livin’ tha life forever night by night...
The deal’s signed in blood and locked away
what have I sold what did he give away
did I offer him the coffer or the keys
What went home with Mephistopheles
I can’t resist but it can’t be right
Livin’ tha life forever night by night...
Now I’ve got time to run down the juice
to buy me time to set my thoughts loose
create at last my master stroke
an ifreet a name I invoke
I can’t resist but it can’t be right
Livin’ tha life forever night by night...
by the time the deal comes back to me
I’ll have another card, get out of jail free
I’ll demonstrate the new technique
The evidence the proof I seek
I can’t resist but it can’t be right
Livin’ tha life forever night by night...

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

878 : 9/4/00 : Drawn In Blood (Faustus 4/25)

The line is always drawn in blood
The downpour that precedes the flood
and crossing it accept a prize
that bars the doors of paradise
signed in blood and sealed with tears
the poison forced into our ears
the sickness for the sickening prize
a mad spark behind jaundiced eyes
that grasps the pen and taps a vein
and leaves behind a crimson stain
seal the deal prepare the plate
and servants offer up my fate

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

877 : 9/3/00 : Terms (Faustus 3/25)

There’s always terms and
there’s always a catch
there’s always payments and
it’s always a stretch...
and I’m a dealer with a history
but the terms of this deal are new to me
you say my soul’s the asking price
but here’s a twist so let me ask your advice
if by chance I didn’t believe
in the commodity
should I reconsider my beliefs
or figure that the deal is free
should I put it in a box
and send it U.S. Mail
do you have a contract or a bill of sale
there’s always terms and
the offer’s not what it appears
but if it’s true I have a soul
I haven’t used the thing for years
so show me the papers
show me the line
show me the goods and show me where to sign

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

876 : 9/2/00 : The Offer (Faustus 2/25)

Hey I got something to offer
proffer what you want to
get your hands on
know there’s high demands on
Don’t act surprised
my office says you had a call in
stop your fronting and your stallin’
let’s get down to business
or on to whatever
choose it yes or no
you really want to live forever
trust me Docta I can arrange it
Man of resources saw your chance
and chose to change your fate
let’s step into your office
let’s talk about the terms
or hey stick with the deal you got
to sleep forever with the worms

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

875 : 9/1/00 : Docta Faustus (Faustus 1/25)

Paging docta Faustus
caller at the office
the gentleman with the horns
says he’s here to meet you
says he’s sure you’ll see him
here to discuss some crown of thorns
or something or the other
the moors or heights that wuther
or the corruption to which flesh is heir
it seems he’s a solution
an oath or institution
some contract or time share
paging docta Faustus
careful thought you lost us
You better come and choose
to send him back wherever
or hear out his endeavor
an offer he say you can’t refuse

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here