the gifted children - chinese food takeover

Release date: March 17, 2001

The short, catchy, indie rock songs of the gifted children past begin to flirt with more ambitious post-rock noises and knob-twiddling, outlining the shape of the gifted children to come. You shouldn't be bored by this album.

Credits:
brett dreyer - metal shelf on 2; acoustic guitar on 6; tenor saxophones on 5 & 8
tim grimaldi - drumset 1-4, 6 & 9; metal shelf on 2; ride cymbal on 5
jeff suszczynski - voice on 1-6, 7-10; guitars on 1-3, 5, 6 & 8; piano on 1, 3, 4, 8 & 9; keyboard on 5 & 9; electronic drum programs on 5 & 8
bill trautman - bass on 1-10; electric guitar on 2, 4 & 10; keyboard on 4 & 10; electronic drumset on 5 & 10; voice on 2, 4, 6, 7 & 10

recorded, produced and mixed by the gifted children, january-march 2001 on yamaha md8, at artcraft optical, rush rhees library, and various apartments in rochester and buffalo, ny.
mastered by tony gross at gfi studios (webster, ny)

songs by suszczynski except:

2, 4 & 11 by suszczynski/trautman
7 by trautman

lyrics by suszczynski except 7 by trautman

layout and design by brett dreyer

Lyrics and individual track credits:

01           how was your show?

how was your show? –
catalog deficiency
used carburetors
you have fake parts.

elegiac landing pad –
my own private base
plug me in coach, I think I’m ready!

tim grimaldi – drumset
jeff suszczynski – guitars, piano, voices
bill trautman – electric bass

02           keith radford’s puppet head

hinted beauty – poised and ready
but not enough spark to set it off
you made the bulletins and newsclippings
you’re just taped to folders now
freezeframed we are ghosts
caught in the flood of commonplace
i would extend a hand in confidence
but the stairs are steep now...

brett dreyer – metal shelf
tim grimaldi – drumset, metal shelf
jeff suszczynski – electric guitars, voices
bill trautman – electric bass, electric guitar, harmony voice

03           contact lens family tree

glasses over eyes
we steam and shroud
we are the golden age:
there's a door fixed on the ceiling
not to be opened soon.

appearances in restaurants
where fickle food gets lodged in throat
with listening booths featuring
"The Golden Sounds of Contemporary Disasters"
etched on the cover is only after-rubble
of storied sidewalks.

tim grimaldi – drumset
jeff suszczynski – guitars, voices, piano
bill trautman – electric bass, expert knob twiddling

04           doppler sleep mechanics

it’s getting cold now – your breath is visible
they’re watching the skies now, they’re tracking the satellites
so drive away from:
the endless inside
the frozen outside
the face that makes you cry.

does she still occupy your starcharts or is she your satellite? -
always in your sky but not in sight
well, tonight you fly -
just go to sleep.

tim grimaldi - drumset
jeff suszczynski – voices, piano
bill trautman – all guitars, bass and other noises

05           smoke

smoke
you love your smoke
you need your smoke
you lie to yourself and say,
“It's not like you need it your whole life.”
smoke

brett dreyer – tenor saxophones
jeff suszczynski – acoustic guitar, voices, keyboard, dru m program
bill trautman – bass, drumset
tim grimaldi – hi-hat

06           yearbook superlatives

our closest dreams are too far -
i feel us aging
here comes the funeral choir,
the sadsack procession is following
into the hall of remorse.
collectibles and their clones
are harvesting the choicest
future potential subjects of documentaries.

perhaps we are self-serving
but we're better off than the pricks -
let's leave now.

we left an hour ago: i'm already thirsty.

brett dreyer – electric guitar
tim grimaldi – drumset, voice
jeff suszczynski – guitars, voices
bill trautman – bass, voice

07           curtains

bill trautman – all instruments and voices

08           chicago: remedy the guestlist

i'm enlisting your shadow to walk with me today
tumble into skylines with the outline of your face

my mythological timelines now just posters on a wall
had you ever been there you could've had them all
you could've had them all...

brett dreyer – tenor saxophones
jeff suszczynski – acoustic guitars, voices, electronic drum noises, piano
bill trautman – electric bass

09           the stanchion gas credo

always subtle as indicated
extra-special fashion and dark lenses
no counterfeit.
exchanging minions for pocketwatches
it's a property tax war.

we're threadbare, we're from here
don't blame us.

clayfood luncheons
when stomach acids are neutralized
hotel banquets where guest speakers are canonized
and soon forgotten
the coveted warmspot and now knowing:
the secret's in the stanchion gas credo.

tim grimaldi – drumset
jeff suszczynski – piano, keyboards, voices
bill trautman – electric bass

10           the center of your heart

i'm going into the center of your heart –
please don't freeze me

jeff suszczynski – piano, voice

11           skylab love scene

once when I had everything
nothing seemed alive as me
but now my collections have stunted limbs
and the universe is shrinking...

i missed the signpost, you took my hand
and declared resistance is futile
immersed ourselves in gas station landscapes
and power lines and pitted streets
we waited months for the leaves on the trees.

we never sparkled, the dust untouched
and you said, “You think you're so much better than me
but I know how you got that scar.
I know how you got that scar.”

we kept the fire night and day
until you had to go away.

quite a surprise, when through it all
we always pretended that it was
under control.

some time, when you have the time
i hope you call just to say hello.

justin sheehan – harmony voice
jeff suszczynski – voices
bill trautman – guitars, basses, electronic drumset, keyboards, all other noises