nil by mouth | More To Say

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'More to Say' was recorded in early 2012 when Michael took some time off work, hired a piano and set up a rough home studio in his parents' lounge room.

It was initially intended to be a time for writing new songs, but as Michael recorded the song ideas as he went along, it ended up starting to sound like an album.

He recorded himself playing guitar, piano, drums, bass, melodica, harmonica, tin whistle and a few other random instruments, along with the vocals

When it needed something special, Michael wrote some arrangements and asked friends to come around and play on the alubm. Frank, James and Shota played some great brass on a number of songs which really brought to life. They played on 'On the Stage', which is a new version of a song Nil By Mouth originally recorded in 2004.

Kara played French horn on a few songs, including the horn-driven 'Waiting for the Song', which began its life as a very long horn solo with no vocals. It gradually turned into a more Nil By Mouth-sounding pop song, but still has some great horn playing on it.

Jeremy added some violin, especially in thick layers in the breakdown of the title track, 'More to Say'. He also played some great pirate-inspired violin on 'The World'.

Once all the tracks were done, it was time to ask Lamar Lowder to polish the rough lounge room recording into something serious. And he did a great job of it.

See photos of the recording process by clicking here.

All songs written, arranged, recorded and performed by Michael Collins

French horn: Kara Hahn
Saxophone: James Mackay
Trombone: Frank Dasent
Trumpet: Shota Matsumura
Violin: Jeremy Curran

Mixed by Lamar Lowder

Mastered by Adam McElnea

Thanks to mum and dad for letting me record this in your lounge room.

www.nilbymouth.com.au

More To Say

Sometimes she tells me she thinks everything's great,
But we'll be lucky if it lasts through the day.
I want to tell her that her star's on the rise,
But all I'm seeing is the moon in her skies.

I know it's so familiar, I know it's very hard to change.
But it won't be are tomorrow,
And we can fight about this then.
I know we've got plenty more to say.

It won't be easy coz you want it to be.
I only like you coz you never agree.
Don't try to tell me this not how you dreamed.
I know you liked having these nightmares with me.

It's not a waste of time, I know that you'll be fine.
And I will be here for you when they're gone.

That Man

They came around.
They were too scared to ask me why I've been so long without someone to worry about.
We might feel bold with our luxury of getting old.
So we'll take our time.
I look at you an wonder why we're the same people.

You're no good.
You've come back again after you ran away and found that man.
He's all you wanted and just what you came for.

They'll take their money and spend it best on a silver dress that she will not wear twice.
The feeling they'll get is all part of the price.
It's not for one day. Some of it will just wither away.
But theyll do it well. They won't stop that ringing bell.

You hear the words about you in the verse.
You’re hiding under your hat.
They listened close and I'm happy to boast: they wouldn't know you from that.

So you can try if you follow the line leading us into everything.
You will be fine. You're not living a lie if this is what you can do.

Break Your Home

You built a little home.
You've done your best to fill it up with little guys who call your name.
And nothing is the same.
You thought the world would change around you while you watched it.
Comfortable and happy for it.

You don't know. You don't care about your make up or your hair

I'm not the only one who's saying that I can see that you're feeling old.
And your love's gone cold.
But I can see the diamonds on your rings.
And I wanna know if you're ready to break your home.
I can see it's gotta be the only way.

I haven't made a home. I haven't built the walls around me.
A quick escape and I'll be free.
But as I'm getting on I wonder if ill ever feel the need to tell you everything.
Then I remember.

I don’t know. I don’t care that you'll never understand.

Giving the Game Away

You're much nicer than your letters.
You read like such a jerk.
But since I've come to know you I really like your work.

You're doing what you should do, singing all their songs.
But I'm hoping that you're thinking you won't be here for long.
In a year or two from here, will you, will you still be here.

You're just a man on your own ticking away the days.
When you do what you've done you can run away.
But how will you say goodbye when you're giving the game, when you're giving the game away.

You really should be working on more stamps in your book.
And maybe when you're fifty you'll stop and have a look at the places that you've been to, the people that you've seen.
You won't remember this place, you won't remember me.

I hear these things I've said. I look at me instead.
I look and see you're me, you're me.

On the Stage

Who are you running from?
We all saw you leave the bomb.
We don't know what you meant,
But necessity can make 'most anyone bent.

Well you ought to see how we can be when we're on the stage.
You ought to see how we can be.
We get awful strange.

Someone's coming on,
They don't know where to start from,
When all these things turn bad and it seems the world's gone mad around you.
Now how it all goes away.

They took the world from you and left you on the ground.
And now we're waiting for you but you can't be found.

Other Things To Do

All this time I've been waiting. I'll be waiting a long while yet.
Hoping I haven't wasted time for faces I might not see.

I feel like they're waiting for me in some places that I've never thought to be.
Could it be the drums for me?

Came right back in the morning. Its quite appalling that I’m still here.
Looking out the window at the dawning of the same day I've seen for years.

Might seem hard leaving something you know for somewhere that you went to long ago.

Don't you see that it's not that you don't wanna know you.
I’ve just got other things to do.

It's never seemed more true to say you don't know what you're doing.
I thought you were a shoe-in to beat this maze.
I wanna tell a brand new story, about the glory of our olden days.

Don’t you see that it's not that you don't wanna know you.
I’ve just got other things to do.
It's not that I don't wanna be here.
I've just got other things to see.
I've gotta open up these eyes

The World

Look dear boy you're doing well, the best young man we have.
It's good to see you rolling up your sleeves.
Just keep working hard and one day maybe you'll be me.
I really couldn't understand why you'd ever leave.

I walked around for 30 years and wondered what to do.
Wondered where to go and what to be.
Before I knew it I had grey hair and a mo,
And that's when I decided it was really time to go.

All the boys were at the bar and working through the beer.
When we saw a man who caught our ear.
Looking like he had arrived from far across the sea,
Full of hope and curious we asked him “who ya be?”.

We said “who are you what do you do and where do you come from?”.
He said “I'm from all over the world”.
“Where've you been, what've you seen, where can you take us?”
He said “come with me and I'll show you the world”.

Young man we'll miss you are you ever coming back?
It would be good to see you down the track.
Think of us a'working as you sail into the blue.
Your mother's gunna miss you and your father surely too.

I said goodbye and packed a swag and made it to the quay wondering if I was right to leave.
All the boys were cheering hoist the sail and let's be free
So off we went into the night all my friends and me.

We'd been away so long that we were nearly out of rum
We're hungry and we're burning in the sun.
We didn’t think that we could take it anymore,
Wondering when we would see the shore.

When I arrived i knew exactly why I’d left all the things I loved and things I knew.
I wasn't running away no I was changing my address.
But none of that would mean that I would miss you any less.

We took the bait and ran away and the barely had the time to say,
That we'll miss you dearly, very nearly stayed behind to carry on,

But we had to leave had to be glad that he could show us the world.

Fred

Lately I'm reminded of the Great White North and living in a house there with a hundred doors.
And I doubt that you've seen it and I don't think you'd believe it if you did.
I'm just sad I had to leave it.

Oh Fred I miss you when the cold wind hits my face.
I'm missing the place, I'm missing the faces of all of you.
Oh Fred I'd visit but you'd never be the same.
Most of us have run away to play the game.
I know Fred you'll never leave me like I left you long ago.

During my first night there I called the police around,
To see what I'd been doing, to watching me calling home.
And it's hard to explain that youve never seen the snow and you don't know Wayne.
I'm just sad I had to leave it.

They're never lonely, there's only time to eat, drink and let out a cheer.
It's always going, It’s always snowing. My windowsill was always cooling a beer.
With my tiny guitar, having a sing and a laugh, it was a real good year.

Amazing

It started out when there you were standing on your own.
Looking like the kind of girl who's never been alone.
You say you need the man of your dreams.

You know I'm amazing but I can't live up to that.
I think you're crazy and I'm gunna stand by that.

It came to be a way for me to show you what I mean.
You either burn, or live and learn. You'd better bring the girls.

They say, they need the man of their dreams.

You know I'm amazing but I can't live up to that.
I can't compete with your life living with your cat.

Waiting for the Song

I wake up every day to sounds of all you kids en route to something good while I'm just sleeping in.
Hit the roof and sing what you want to, you're already wasting your time.
When you look it's already gone by, before your eyes arrive.
You've got a reason. Don't wait around anymore.

I have been waiting for the song to come,
I have been waiting now for years.
And when I listen for a sound at night,
There's only ringing in my ears.
And it's hard to choose the words that say what I mean.

They care, they really do, but they don’t know what to say,
When all the heart attacks are hitting you like rain.