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starting today we don't have to pretend

by Okay Alright

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1.
poem for people who stay up late 01:29
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making sense of something lost Only after it is gone a self sometimes glimpsed but barely known and I know that it’s late but I think I’ll go for a walk and I know you don’t know me but do you wanna come the skyline from the porch swing with its colors so soft the glow is surrounding as we wind up the block does it all feel small like a dream already forgot look at you shoes dirty earth spinning i wanna be steady and I’m sorry I’m not starry echoes of shy eyes met and shaky hands withdrawn everything nameless that could one day be and all else that might otherwise remain the same we don’t have to pretend that we are big My hands shaking in the driveway like a little kid we don’t have to pretend starting today we don’t have to pretend
2.
tangerine 02:16
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Tangerine You can’t be anyone else I know you’re burnt out ya I wish I could help Tangerine somewhere down the line well be breathing in ya you’re gonna be fine came to my show you knew all the words Is the world getting small ya you’re giving me butterflies now Tangerine life is strange I know there’s a hundred things I wanna change and all of them I won’t Tangerine Have you forgot that you are loved So you’re never lost I hope you see the world is beautiful It might come knocking at your door But you’re gonna have to open it up
3.
magnesium 02:45
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I’ve been feeling numb Not close to anyone Can’t look you in the eye my loves not the easy kind I think I wanna be alone But I can’t trust my mind Keeps me up all night I think it tells me lies I wish that I was flying home But now that house is gone I’m the nostalgic type always dreaming of some better time I could be driving towards her house Cause I still know the way Every person is so complicated Every person is so many things Still learning how to feel okay about the damage that I create I usually just push it away I know that has gotta change I don’t wanna cause you pain Why the hell am I so afraid every time you speak my name feeling like I need to escape my body or maybe just my brain clear the fog and feel alive again I wish that i could tell my friends write a text that i will never send I been feeling numb feelings unperceived I guess I just don’t want you to see me
4.
even the little things 04:13
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feel safe in the moon light summer nights riding my bike gravel roads and fireflies consoling kind of spotlight look at the stars in wonder those days a river lasting forever and then sliding by like water Im thinking better when the world is sleeping And no one can hear me makes things feel important letting down my walls til morning time bittersweet in silent peace even the little things become poetry someday a sunroom that has a view stained glass the light shines through in my bedroom recording a passing summer evening tomorrow morning I’ll water my garden glad to have an obligation things are always getting better though my thoughts are contradicting I repeat it even if i don’t always believe it thinking better when the world is sleeping And no one can hear me makes things feel important let down my walls til morning time bittersweet in Silent peace even the little things become poetry I wanna be honest about the things I can’t control I have changed much No I haven’t changed at all I know I can’t be whole just by wishing I was i cant be whole no i haven’t changed at all our small backyard with a garden the clouds are rolling the sun it will be setting but I wanna pretend a little longer or maybe I just wanna go home
5.
nothingness 03:27
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I miss my dog and I miss old friends I miss loving as a lens my thoughts were prettier back then though I cannot be upset the colors mix when I squint a palette more wholly vibrant headlights on a distant wind call for light recovering mirrors mud puddles my upturned face inside a spoon I’ll learn to love me soon O that intangible truth the way that light disappears within light dissolve into a sunrise invisible so beautiful washed white pretty girl reading on the train who will never know my name that’s okay because it’s wonderful we ever shared the same space a warmly understood embrace even just for today or an hour or or 5 minutes of shyly looking away this tired plot line starts to Decline I’m in a Slow dive of sweeping moonlight but there’s one thread that keeps me grounded when I feel dead and that’s you isolation dissociation Its a messy combination I’ve been static in my stasis a depressing conversation but when my minds in a bad place you’re texting me a smiley face reminding me that it’s ok not to be ok Over share to the nice cashier who’s bagging lemon scones At Trader Joe’s and oddly for a second We both feel less alone why is it that we exist? is it to make this place better than it is? A memory’s lament for all the life you’ve lived In old books hear the Paris rain where everybody knows your name I hope you see that everything is just as beautiful as it seems This song is really about nothing at all Or I should say the nothingness of it all this tired plot line it needed new life opened the window to morning sunlight dust dancing Before my eyes you were a day dream you were a life line This song is really about nothing at all Or I should say the nothingness of it all The world is so small so small so small so small
6.
ride my bike 2 the ocean 03:19
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I don’t think I’m better than anyone else In fact I struggle With loving myself But I have seen that it all Comes together love And if you’re working on yourself It just takes time So come on Forgive and don’t let go And don’t block out the Pain cause it helps you grow Its been a long night and I'm tired and I wanna go home Its been a long night in the city And I wanna go home Cause Self love isn’t selfish I thought that you had learned this By now When you feel like life is pointless I hope you know you can get through it Cause I know I’ve been hiding in this room And I’ve gotta get out Don’t wanna spend anymore time Judging myself I’ll ride my bike to the ocean Tryna calm down Its not so easy to come home without you around So come on darling Forgive and don’t let go I promise there’s a high After the low It’s been a long night im tired And I wanna go home Its been a long night in New York City And I wanna go home Cause life can get so scary But the fear is temporary right now I know you will find your purpose I promise you deserve it My love
7.
hotel keys 03:35
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Hotel keys And one way streets Twilight rain unspoken gleam When the morning light comes Will you still need my love can we feel at home some place still unknown Two kids in the park, reading poems Where did they go? There’s no way to know What will be tomorrow used to keep me up Believing in ghosts make this moment slow You’ re everything I had hoped The person I used to be is gone What a strange familiar feeling Cause if you’re not happy alone You won’t be happy apart Hotel keys Just memories A box full of things I can’t throw away I guess in the end You only think about the start
8.
in the faint light from the lamppost in the garden 05:56
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9.
starting today 04:17
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Overalls and striped sweaters Cooking pasta in rainy weather night vision playgrounds we’re too old to be at Reading poems we don’t understand Playing DDR at DNB not caring who sees us dance Wander round the city like holden caulfield Riding Ferris wheels And making plans There’s a lot of things I wish I could change And theres a lot I wish could stay the same There’s a lot of things I wish I could change And theres a lot I wish could stay the same Being awake so late Sometimes it feels so strange We watched the planes come in illuminated in the rain and we camped at the dunes scared of hungry raccoons I miss brushing my teeth with you We slow danced in parking lots And named a hundred Beatles songs Holding hands in blanket forts We lost track of time night drives for apple pie sunrise and Flying kites Sometimes we’re a little bit cliche And thats alright There’s a lot of things I wish I could change about me There’s a lot of things I wish I could change about me There’s a lot of things I wish I could change about me There’s a lot of things I wish I could change about me I’m gonna start reading books I’m gonna travel more gonna stop hiding my hairline gonna get a dog wake up before noon be more present And tell the people I love that I love them im gonna accept and turn towards my problems though I’m still learning how to see them I want a full emo band so my songs sound less quiet and sad i want to believe that the world isn’t that bad i think im gonna trust it instead even when i think i’d rather be dead you can’t grow without sometimes letting go of some things that you love but starting today i think having loved them was enough
10.
long exposures 04:20
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It doesn’t hurt anymore I just smile when I see your pictures long exposures and the places we never went So many could-have-beens and “what if’s” that I can’t forget now I know these tired hearts might break in their bending But bloom in their mending I still dream about the laundry room a love song made you cry and we each became exactly who we needed to at that point in time we stayed up speaking softly About the things that make us worry for the future til the sky was turning blue we cried for wasted days and clung to conversations on the floor of dark rooms morning light through the cracks of shades Walking to class in the rain Quiet gestures we could never explain laying in the wildflowers we whiled away all our hours Confiding in the only person Who could understand and I think you really did And even if the film fades that light is burned into my life and there’s a little echo of you in every song I write morning light through the cracks of shades Walking to class in the rain Quiet gestures we could never explain I’m glad we changed I think things are how they’re meant to be wonder if you ever think of me I hope 21 is your best year yet, happy birthday
11.
do u wanna dance 02:45
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It doesn’t make much sense The way I live my life Spend all my time dreaming of The love I left behind Staring at old pictures I’ve still got taped up on my wall I know you took yours down And I know you took your red ring off Lizzie I wanna feel Like I can do this on my own But lately I’ve just been feeling so alone I stay up late most nights I am just checking my phone But do I wanna know Do I make you laugh Do you wanna dance Love you stole my heart But Did I miss my chance I wanna hear you sing I wanna lift you up I hope you still believe in love Did you even read my letter I’m not sure I wanna know I wouldn’t feel better Not sure if wondering is worse But the truth is Either way it is gonna hurt Does he make you laugh Does he make you dance Did he steal your heart Do you love him back I hope he makes you sing I hope he lifts you up I hope it’s that special kind of love Lizzie I wanna feel Like I can do this on my own But lately I’ve just been feeling so alone I stay up late Most nights I am just checking my phone But do I wanna know
12.
the world isn't always trying to cause you harm 03:42
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Are you avoiding or taking care of yourself Its a fine line And Sometimes I can’t tell But we don’t have to talk about your problems We don’t have to talk about your fears Lets just lay here And see how it feels I’m a drink behind you you’re too busy to talk Make yourself some new friends Compare me to what i am not pick out a record Stay up in my bedroom all night Cant let my mind wander Convince myself that im feeling alright I wanna hold your hand I wanna give you peace I wanna take the hurt away from you So that you can get some sleep I wanna hold your hand I wanna kiss your cheek I wanna keep it this way for just a few more weeks I get that I am a fixer Right now its not what you need I rely too much on you to validate me But we don’t have to talk about our problems Right now feels okay to me It was so easy to love you And forget everything else But that just made it harder To be by myself I wanna hold your hand I wanna give you peace I wanna take the hurt away from you So that you can get some sleep I wanna hold your hand I wanna kiss your cheek I wanna keep it this way for just a few more weeks But most days I’m glad it worked out this way because if we survive this change We can take on anything The world isn’t always trying to cause you harm but I don’t blame you for worrying
13.
picture of a flower 05:09
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Divine is not the light or the dark You said as we sat on a porch At midnight in the summer The chairs were wet from the rain and we didn’t care You held my hand You cried and You told me that you were scared Of losing me Or growing apart But I said id rather have a part of you than nothing at all And that’ll always be true so even when youre broken You can think of me Thinking of you But if youre happier without me Then I guess its what you have to do I just hope that When you look back You realize You were wrong Tim said Heres A picture of a flower to remind you that all that you can do is try and grow from where the world leaves you Cause love is something you fight for Love is something you fight for Tim said Heres A picture of a flower to remind you that all that you can do is try and grow from where the world leaves you Love is something you fight for Love is something you fight for Love is something you fight for Love is something you fight for I wanna believe in some sort of karma So that if I am no longer your anchor I can still hold myself up And become something much stronger And in passing I told you I was scared That the right thing might not always be the best thing And that one day I could be your world And the next day be nothing My voice was shaking like I couldn’t tell that’s exactly what you were thinking

credits

released May 12, 2022

written, recorded, produced: Bryce Waitkus
additional mixing/tape: Rick Spataro
additional production: Noah Weinman
mastering: Philip Shaw Bova
Album cover picture: Natasha Sill
Album paint splatter: Alex Mcdonnell

magnesium pedal steel: Max subar
Tangerine pedal steel: Zena Kay
hotel keys, nothingness, ride my bike vox: Julian Russo
nothingness vox: Kevin Dilon, Ash Waitkus, Cameron Young
hotel keys additional guitar: Holden Miller
even the little things trumpet, do u wanna dance drone: Noah Weinman

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Okay Alright Chicago, Illinois

I make quiet and honest music. Hope you have a nice day :)

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