Development & Compromise
Lyrics & Credits
The second full-length album
by Chase Tremaine
Released November 18, 2021
Independent, in partnership with Post Emo Records
Download the digital album for free
Purchase the CD on Bandcamp
1. “Saturday AM”
I’m in love with the idea of perfection
I’m in love with the idea of love
I’m in love with the idea of driving a car
With an endless highway in front
Because Saturday AM
Saturday AM
My mind wanders off
To Saturday AM
My bed’s the last place I want to be
I’d rather go out
Chasing my dreams
I’m in love with the idea of the destined
I’m in love with the idea of love
I’m in love with the idea of finding myself
By doing what has never been done
Because Saturday AM
Saturday AM
My mind wanders off
To Saturday AM
My bed’s the last place I want to be
I’d rather go out
Chasing a fantasy
I’m in love with the idea of adventure
Of finding another home
A place where the chances seem risky
And the choices are all my own
Because Saturday AM
Saturday AM
My mind wanders off
To Saturday AM
My bed’s the last place I want to be
I’d rather go out
Chasing what I want to dream about
Because there’s so much I’ve yet to see
I know there’s gotta be something
Out there waiting for me
But my imagination’s grown tame
And I’m in love with the idea of more
2. “I Don’t”
I don’t cuss, but I make profane noises
I don’t drink, but I make wasted choices
I don’t smoke, but I get high incorrectly
And when I pray, I reach God indirectly
I can brag all I want about what I don’t
But is there anything to brag about in what I do?
What I do is make believe
That the good in life is found
In not breaking the rules
I don’t run red lights, but I speed up on the yellow
You might rarely see me acting very angry, but you’ll never see me acting mellow
You can tell me all your secrets, I don’t share them, but I’ll judge you to be the lesser man
And if you cannot find a reason why I’m better, don’t you worry about that, ‘cause I can
I have bragged, how I flaunt, about what I don’t
But is there anything to brag about in what I do?
What I do is make believe
That the good in life is found
In not breaking the rules
I can try, I can try to act amicably
But I know I’m a sinner and I always sin in secret
What you’re looking at – is it really me?
I lie, I pretend, so you’ll think I’m a good man
Perfectly lose all your trust
I was born this way, I was raised this way
Bred to never disobey
Perfect me will not adjust, no
I can brag all I want about what I don’t
But is there anything to brag about in what I do?
What I do is make believe
That the good in life is found
In not breaking the rules
I can try, I can try to act amicably
But I know I’m a sinner and I always sin in secret
What you’re looking at – is it really me?
Really me?
3. “Wired Side of Content”
Blue light reflects off of my eyes
My satisfaction’s on the rise
I tried to go to sleep at night
But my enemy stayed by my side
I used to run, I used to care
But I’ve been sucked into the glare
When the whole world is in my palms
I’m just a beggar taking alms
Please, me
Please, me
Stop doing this to me!
Please, me
Please, me
Stop doing this to me!
Innocence stolen from a man
But was it there when he began?
He can remember all his dreams
Because he saw them on the screen
Plug me back up and fill me in
Notify my once again
Whether the sky is sun or moon
I’ve got light inside my room
(I’ve got light inside my tomb)
Please, me
Please, me
Stop doing this to me!
Please, me
Please, me
Stop doing this to me!
Give a little
Give a little, oh
Give a little
Give yourself over to the wired side of content
Give a little
Give a little, oh
Give a little
Give yourself over to the wired side of content
Give a little
Give a little, oh
Give a little
Give yourself over to the wired side of content
Please, me
Please, me
Stop doing this to me!
Please, me
Please, me
Stop doing this to me!
Please, me
Please, me
Stop doing this to me!
Please, me
Please, me
Stop doing this to me!
4. “A Compromise”
It’s hard to get a grip on a slippery slope
And convince yourself that you’ll stand tall
It’s hard to throw away methods you used to cope
And not think that everything will fall
It’s harder when you fall mad in love with someone
That you’ll never get a chance to see
And then your life becomes a big countdown to none
Of how many promises you keep
Seems so simple staying in
Seems so simple
Seems so simple staying in line
Oh, we talk about meeting in the middle
Yeah, we talk about meeting in the middle
Yeah, we talk about meeting in the middle
‘Til we have to choose a side
I’m trying to keep tabs as it all comes unfurled
But distractions make for such good fun
I could become a man in this fatherless world
But I feel no need to be a son
So I let myself fall mad in love with someone
That I’ll never get a chance to touch
But I need to connect when I’m under attack
There, to me, promises don’t mean much
Seems so simple staying in
Seems so simple
Seems so simple staying in line
Oh, we talk about meeting in the middle
Yeah, we talk about meeting in the middle
Yeah, we talk about meeting in the middle
‘Til we have to choose a side
Seems so simple staying in
Seems so simple
Seems so simple staying in line
Oh, we talk about meeting in the middle
Yeah, we talk about meeting in the middle
Yeah, we talk about meeting in the middle
‘Til we have to choose a side
We have to choose a side
We have to choose a side
Not everything can be a compromise
5. “Shock My Ears” feat. Brendan Dorman
A spark of voltage so close to the brain
It feels a little insane
But you don’t see me stopping
I cannot finish this experiment
Until I learn the secret
Or you catch my body dropping
(Oh, my ears are popping)
Shock my ears – go ahead and say it
Shock my ears – show me what you’re playing with
Shock my ears – go ahead and say it
Shock my ears – show me what you’re playing with
Oh, is it dangerous?
A broken border that cannot be felled
But I found out by myself
Now let’s share the fire hazard
Don’t say you’re sorry, it’s better this way
Free the electricity
It was not ours to be gathered
(Share the fire hazard)
Shock my ears – go ahead and say it
Shock my ears – show me what you’re playing with
Shock my ears – go ahead and say it
Shock my ears – show me what you’re playing with
Oh, is it dangerous?
The truth is, your secrets are not confidential
Not information to be saved or forgot
The truth is, the truth is gonna be out there
Whether you know it or hold it or like it or loathe it or not
Shock my ears
Shock my ears – show me what you’re playing with
Shock my ears – go ahead and say it
Shock my ears – show me what you’re playing with
Oh, is it dangerous?
When it is so exciting
Danger becomes inviting
Gossip that you’re reciting
Should’ve been what you’re fighting
When it is so exciting
Danger becomes inviting
Gossip that you’re reciting
Should’ve been what you’re fighting
6. “Work Together”
All my voice needs is pitch and passion (pitch and passion)
But all that I sing is quickly clashin’ (quickly clashin’)
Words out of my mouth
They don’t sound like sound
All my fist needs is speed, precision (speed, precision)
But none of my punches match my vision (match my vision)
A swing and a miss
A one-sided kiss
Are we gonna work together,
Me and you, you and me?
Are we gonna work together,
Me and you, you and me?
I only imagine fits of fashion (fits of fashion)
I’m too quick to answer before askin’ (before askin’)
Words slip through my teeth
Feign truth by degrees
When my eyes blink, what am I missin’? (am I missin’)
Everything moves without permission (no permission)
Ignorance is bliss
A mirror to kiss
Are we gonna work together,
Me and you, you and me?
Are we gonna work together,
Me and you, you and me?
Are we gonna work together,
Me and you, you and me?
Are we gonna work together,
Me and you, you and me?
Are we gonna work together,
Me and you, you and me?
Are we gonna work together,
Me and you, you and me?
Are we gonna work together,
Me and you, you and me?
7. “Developments”
She fell into my arms, which made me drop the ball
Not sure which mattered more after all
I looked below but can’t tell where she’d fall
If I dropped her to catch the next doll
Little did I know after her would come a book
And after a book, a game, but the real hook
Was when the doll became a girl, just a look
Could leave my whole system shook
Does it make you arrogant to always know
How to press my buttons just right so you’ll have me?
I’m developing new skills: stare, smolder, lie
Be a shoulder to cry on, a sensitive guy
I’m discovering the power deceit supplies
Stealing back control I thought was mine
Does it make me arrogant to always know
How to press your buttons just right so you’ll love me?
What can I say, I was raised on games,
Not on the kind of love that stays
I won the game, so where’s my prize?
You want to be my trophy, I can see it in your eyes
I won the game, so here’s my prize
Congratulations, you traded love for lies
Your desire for comfort is what you’ll blame
But comfort and truth are rarely the same
Were you really happy before I came?
At least before me you had no shame
Does it make me arrogant to think I know
How to press your buttons just right so you’ll love me?
What can I say, I was wrong that dolls
Ever need me to love them at all
8. “Roethke (First Loneliness)”
Adapted from Theodore Roethke’s poem “The Shape of the Fire”
To have the whole air, love sang toward
To be by the rose, rise out of bed
Still as a child in its first loneliness
Death was not and I simply was
To have the whole air, pleasure on ground
To be by the rose, it has no sound
Have I come unhinged or carelessly slipped?
Death is not and I simply am
Morning-fair come back
To the world of leaves and ditches
To answer the call
To abandon all your riches
See the after-light
Glitter left on the lake’s surface
As my intentions
Stretch past their initial purpose
To know that light falls and fills, often unknown
Trembles at the edge but does not overflow
Holding and feeding the stem of the flower
Still as a child in its first loneliness
To have the whole air, love sang toward
To be by the rose, rise out of bed
Still as a child in its first loneliness
Death was not and I simply was
To have the whole air, pleasure on ground
To be by the rose, it has no sound
Have I come unhinged or carelessly slipped?
Death is not and I simply am
9. “Fear Not Want”
Want
Who deserves what they want
And who is brave enough to want?
Disappoint will find me
At the second I finally
Want a thing, anything
Love
Who deserves what they love
And who’s a fool enough to love?
Disappointment will own me
Every moment, I only
Loved a thing, just one thing
I’m not good enough to get
If I’m still paying off all my debt
To want and love’s a risky bet
So why does this angel tell me, “Fear not”?
He flew to me, an empty shell
And down onto my face I fell
What warning does he come to tell?
My grave and I are parallel
Then, only for a moment
I could feel the angel lift the spell
He said, “The only place safe from love
And all of its dangers is hell”
I’m not good enough to get
If I’m still paying off all my debt
To want and love’s a risky bet
So why does this angel tell me, “Fear not”?
Yet if I ever stand secure
In all the pain I might endure
Fear would be the cancer, not the cure
10. “Q2FN”
I left your midst jaded
Your work had been belated
But I knew not what I waited for
High hopes had been created in me
But I didn’t want to linger anymore
So I said, “I’ve got to go”
I didn’t give a finger about you anymore
So I said, “I’ve got to go”
Go, go
But I never really knew what it is you really do
All I wanted was “quick quick faster now!”
But I couldn’t ever see what it is you do for me
Kept me walking so quick quick faster now
With big talk, deadlock, I was baited
But called your bluff when my happiness faded
And I couldn’t put in effort anymore
So I said, “I’ve got to go”
I wouldn’t read a letter about you anymore
So I said, “I’ve got to go”
Go
But I never really knew what it is you really do
All I wanted was “quick quick faster now!”
But I couldn’t ever see what it is you do for me
Kept me walking so quick quick faster now
Can I ever really know when it’s time?
Do you ever tell a soul when it’s time?
Will I quit before I know that it’s time?
Are you gonna let me know, give me providence or don’t
But I never really knew what it is you really do
All I wanted was “quick quick faster now!”
But I couldn’t ever see what it is you do for me
Kept me walking so quick quick faster now
But I never really knew what it is you really do
All I wanted was “quick quick faster now!”
But I couldn’t ever see what it is you do for me
Kept me walking so quick quick faster now
Can I ever really know when it’s time? (It’s time)
Do you ever tell a soul when it’s time? (It’s time)
Will I quit before I know that it’s time? (It’s time)
Are you gonna let me know, give me providence or don’t
11. “Interrogate the Fantasy”
How have you found me here again?
Our history proves that you’ll fail to defend
Your flashy fables as anything but fake
Quick quick to offer so much, but even faster to take
Sit down, let me ask
What do you truly give:
A break from reality or a false way to live?
Interrogate the fantasy
Interrogate the fantasy
Interrogate the fantasy
You’ll have to answer to me, you’ll have to answer to me
Interrogate
Are you indulging my faults
Or are you fulfilling a need?
Am I enslaving myself
To that from which I’ve been freed?
Are you a shortcut to love,
Forgoing the effort and fear,
No sacrifice, struggle, or loss —
Whispering what I want to hear?
Sit down, let me ask
Is your gift truly free?
What’s the price of never knowing real intimacy?
Interrogate the fantasy
Interrogate the fantasy
Interrogate the fantasy
You’ll have to answer to me, you’ll have to answer to me
Interrogate
You’ll have to answer to me, you’ll have to answer to me
12. “Madison”
Every step through your city
I’m dreaming our paths might cross
That fate may offer pity
Or that chance negate the loss
I had mothers, fathers, friends
Spread throughout this sad, old place
Means were lost en route to ends
How to forget every face
Oh, who has despised the day of little things?
Visiting that small cafe
Those lamplit streets
So, if the right time, right place
Opportunity comes
What will I say, who will you be?
(I know, I know, I know, I know, I know
I don’t know, don’t know, don’t know, don’t know, don’t know
I know, I know, I know, I know, I know
I don’t know, don’t know, don’t know, don’t know, don’t know)
This may not be a ghost town
You can’t deny I’m haunted
To unearth who you are now
Both wished for and unwanted
Have I the courage to think
That all is as it should be?
Or the cowardice to drink
My poisonous fantasy
(My poisonous fantasy)
Oh, who has despised the day of made-up things?
Visiting that small cafe
Those lamplit streets
So, if the wrong time, wrong place
Opportunity comes
What will I say, who will we be?
What awkward conversation could change
What these years were always meant to bring?
Who has despised the day of memories?
I’m always dwelling on past ones
Or inventing a new one
To avoid the fact
What’s done is done
(What’s done is done is done is done is done
What’s done is done is done is done is done
What’s done is done is done is done is done
What’s done is done is done is done is done
I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know
I don’t know, don’t know, don’t know, don’t know, don’t know
I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know
I don’t know, don’t know, don’t know, don’t know, don’t know)
13. “Hello, Zunyko” feat. Daniel Thatcher, Brendan Dorman
Hello, Zunyko
Yes, I’ll take this dance
I’m a solo spirit, I may not hold your hand
But I’ll make you feel beautiful, we’ll love it to the end
Then after the hour, you won’t see me again
‘Cause I’m a stranger for the night and of the night and by the night
So only for tonight, I’ll let you slip into my life
I’ll spin you round and dip you down
And we can stay as long as it takes to leave it all right here
Hello, Zunyko
You like my style, you watch me for a while
As I don’t dance with other girls, I wander through denial
When you approach me, I worry I will not lead you well
But as the lights fall on us
And our moves get honest
You wash my fears away
We waltz in language
And our conversation
Fits years into a day
‘Cause we are dancers for the night and of the night and by the night
So only for tonight, you let me slip into your life
I spin you round and dip you down
Say our farewells as if our lives only have this time to spare
We swing and sway for movement’s sake
The room is all we share
Every perfect chance for kissing you
Left hanging in the air
Feel the moment’s pain of leaving you
Yet in a week, we will not care
But I pray if we hear those songs again
We will fondly recall
The stranger of the night
14. “Wings Not Made to Fly” feat. Theo MacMillan
I had it coming, we all knew I’d try
To learn what to do with these wings not made to fly
Are they for hiding or purposed at all?
If I climb too high, would they even help me fall?
When his face shines in, they rise to my cheeks
If I appear filthy, these things bow to my feet
When I’m uncovered, with wingspan displayed
I’m left feeling naked and asking why I was made
The whole earth is filled with his questions
The whole earth is filled with his questions
Eyes are for seeing, but here, I am blind
Are answers before me or was I left behind
Forgotten, abandoned, are these even real?
If I am broken, can my breaking also heal?
The whole earth is filled with his questions
The whole earth is filled with his questions
The whole earth is filled with his questions
The whole earth is filled with his questions
I can defy how I was made
I can fly, I can escape
I can defy how I was made
I can fly, I can escape
I don’t fear my fate, I’m not afraid to try
I don’t need to wait, I know that I can fly
If he tests my faith, his limits, I’ll defy
Stop me, I’ll escape and see you from the sky
The whole earth is filled with his questions
The whole earth is filled with his questions
The whole earth is filled with his questions
The whole earth is filled with his questions
I don’t fear my fate, I’m not afraid to try
I don’t need to wait, I know that I can fly
If he tests my faith, his limits, I’ll defy
Stop me, I’ll escape and see you from the sky
15. “The Things We Can’t Plan” feat. Paige Tremaine
We’ll do our best to plan ahead
We’ll take our pills and make our bed
We’ll draw our maps and check our lists
And cover all the tracks we missed
To lead a full, fulfilling life
Grant you no regrets to be my wife
But what makes me most excited to be your man
Are the things we can’t plan
My full imagination fell
So short of how you would compel
Me into brighter, brilliant lands
Eclipsing all my former plans
I’ll have to trust the mystery
Because I do not ever know what is best for me
And what makes me most excited to be your man
Are the things we can’t plan
Once you know who
To spend the rest of your life next to
You’ll want the rest of your life to
Start right now
But once it begins
The one way to see how it ends
Is to figure it out
Messily figure it out
With laughter and anger and doubt
We’ll just have to figure it out
And I can’t wait to figure it out
What makes me most excited to be your man
Are the things we can’t plan
Full Album Credits
Music & lyrics written by Chase Tremaine except:
– Drums for “Wired Side of Content” originally written by David Bartek
– Rhythm guitars for “Interrogate the Fantasy” originally written by Taylor Tremaine
– Keys and additional melodies for “Wings Not Made to Fly” written by Theo MacMillan
– Lyrics for “Roethke” adapted from the poem “The Shape of the Fire” by Theodore Roethke
Produced, engineered, mixed, and mastered by Sean Power at the Hilson Studio
Vocals (tracks 1-15), drums (1-15), electric guitars (1-11, 13-14), bass guitar (1-15), keyboards/synths (1, 10-12, 15), and acoustic guitar (1, 6-7, 14) by Chase Tremaine
Guest vocals on “The Things We Can’t Plan” by Paige Tremaine
Keyboards and guest vocals on “Wings Not Made to Fly” by Theo MacMillan
Trumpets on “Shock My Ears” and “Hello, Zunyko” by Brendan Dorman
Keyboards on “Hello, Zunyko” by Daniel Thatcher
Additional programming by Sean Power
Album artwork created by Chase Tremaine and Lauren Crownover
Original photography provided by Hudson Hintze and Thusitha Dananjaya
Session and promotional photography by Bert Ruyten
CD layout design by Lauren Crownover with disc artwork by Paige Tremaine
Thank You’s
To Sean Power, for taking on an ambitious project (twice!) and bringing it to life more imaginatively than I could’ve ever dreamed (with inside jokes galore); to my wife Paige, for inspiring me with endless support and unfathomable joy; to my brother Taylor, for mentoring me over all these years and co-producing the harmonies for many of these songs; to Manaen Hall and to my parents, for letting me practice drums at your houses (alongside countless other forms of support); to Brian Smith, for years of collaboration and advocacy; to David Bartek, for daring to try making an “album in a day” with me and subsequently recording and drumming on the original demos for “Wired” and “Fear”; to Brendan Dorman, for allowing your skill and creativity to heighten the musical possibilities on both of my albums; to Theo MacMillan, for four years of sharing songs, insights, opinions, and friendship; to Daniel Thatcher, Benjamin Daniel, Lauren Lockerbie, and the rest of the Unfall album focus group, for your feedback and encouragement in making these songs as good as possible; to all my song shop clients and Kickstarter supporters, who have transformed “fandom” into something beautifully personal; to JFH, for being an incredible online family, community, support system, and artistic outlet; to Ethan Hicks, who maintains sanity about making a podcast with me while I continually get neck-deep in new musical endeavors; to Kevo, Noah Hardwick, Adam Grundy, and my other friends from Chorus.fm, IVM, and Rock Legacy, for excitement and promotion and critique that inspires me to keep making more music; to my employer, for the flexibility that allows me to record music while working full-time; and to the Crownover family (who were accidentally left out of the Unfall CD booklet), for years of personal, emotional, and spiritual investment, without which these first two albums would have never come to fruition.