Get all 5 Isaac Balson releases available on Bandcamp and save 35%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Flying Lessons, Mad Mango Film (OST), A Totally Real and Normal Podcast (the album), B-Sides & Takeouts, and Mild Card.
1. |
What Were You Thinking?
00:44
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Host: “Hello and Welcome! You’re listening to ‘A Totally Real and normal Podcast’. It’s an album?, it’s a podcast? What’s a movie? I’m here with Isaac Balson, Isaac- What were you thinking? But first, Flying lessons.
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2. |
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I don’t know about flying a jet plane
and if I did you would know by the flames
how I can crash a burn through the sound of a radio controller
screaming don’t go, don’t go yet
not quite yet
I’ve crashed a car going twelve and a half K fast
that’s all I need to wreck a moment that should last
and watch her walk away seven paces, yes
to turn a corner away with a pirouette
oh my my, this time I’ll be fine
just not quite yet
If I’m at work then I’ll have to wait to watch you leave
without a clue of which airport your flight would be
but as it happens I’ve been counting ships floating by
I saw written in the rust of one -Ike, Goodbye
Oh my my, this time I’ll be fine
just not quite yet
If I didn’t know, if I didn’t know better,
I should be waiting on the driveway for a letter
addressed to me and where nothing else resides
an empty envelope with a nod and a wink inside
Oh my my,
this time I’ll be fine
just not quite yet
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3. |
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Host: …and welcome back to a totally real and normal podcast, I’m your host Brock Lee, and this is the show with the latest and greatest in local music. Today we have [papers shuffle] Isaac….. Balson….. in the studio with us. Say hi. Ivan does our interstitial music and I’m told we’re contractually obligated to shill for your new… “album?” EP? Why are there cameras? [OFF MIC] No one told me there would be cameras. Is this a movie now? … Anyway. Here’s [PAPER SHUFFLE] Delilah uh with an Asterisk.
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4. |
Delilah*
04:06
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he sits down on a mission for the first time today
but not the last time
because he owes a debt to the water left pooled there in his brain
that she left there
and he won't call you delilah without an asterisk
outlining all he's willing to risk now
so the moon hangs low
he'd try and work through the ache and put it straight to a tape
for you alone
but the delivery truck by some stroke of luck
leaves him waiting like a schmuck
for you alone
he never lacked for a lack of works at all
I guess he's mostly quiet
but he has tried so many times for her
here's to hoping she knows it
and he could write her sonatas
to make her heart all his
but she'd have to just ask for it back if she wants it
if the words come soon you're gonna know about it
if they come by train or car
or strapped to his handlebars
you're gonna know
you're gonna know
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5. |
Podcasts Aren't Live
01:27
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Announcer: This episode is brought to you by viewers like you. Viewers LIKE you, but not you. Get it together folks.
Host: So Ivan, tell me, off the record, what’s with the little guitar? There are most definitely bigger ones out there. I’ve seen em’. You think the Boz-man got where he is cheaping out on the Guitar last minute? Are we not paying you enough to buy a full guitar so you have to squander our viewers money on little, tiny, insignificant chopsticks to jam away on?
Producer: We’re live.
Host: Mike, how many times do I have to tell you, Podcasts aren’t live. Just edit it out!
Producer: I can never find the tapes.
Host: What? Just play another one. God dammit…. What’s this one? Luxury a Squeeze? What the hell does that mean?
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6. |
Luxury a Squeeze
03:22
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Do you ever think that a seal has envy,
that the water's bluer on the right side of the levee?
A godly place where the fish jump straight to your mouth
but even if water had a price tag,
a camel wouldn't pack up and move to Iceland,
never dream of crunching ice from the bottom of his glass
Sometimes I tend to dream so far
but of course we all know moon-men holiday on mars
just to revel that they're heavier here than back home
but the craters and caves here are still red
and feeling heavy on a martian-made bed
never cease to make a travel-worn moonie come home
sometimes it happens so, sometimes it screeches so loud
and the sun goes down on
your life and you're living so proud
but if you don't ever notice nothing at all
the world has never been so small
to cast you aside or tear you apart
credits
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7. |
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Host: It is often said, that the bell of the ball is the best ball in show and if the clock strikes mellow at the hour of twenty, you gotta hit the road Joe. Do you know who said that? Me. Just now. And that made more sense than all of that claptrap you been yacking back since Sunday last. And all of the Mr. Noods in the best moods couldn’t spin this opinion around, Ivan. Play us another one! MIKE! Another Tune! He left so I’ll go hit it myself….. [walking and grumbling] Here’s The Heckler.
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8. |
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Hey
you know I've heard this one before
I could recognize this song from across the barroom floor
except he's messing up the words
but earlier he said something about that guy from way back when
the one who played songs in his basement
the one who did that catchy one I know
whaddayamean hush?
have I been saying this all out loud?
have I been dampening the mood for all of you
hopeful enough to have paid cover
yeah sure I may have had a bit to drink
but that wouldn't change the way I think I swear
it just helps to remember
why it is I came
to see another thing like this
why I listen, why I stand here only to reminisce
and I'll listen to his drivel each song a near miss
this place is empty, safe for all the kids.
So what do you think of this?
excuse me, miss. Yeah. You know this guy?
Why that look every time?
Hey buddy, this guy's laying it on pretty thick don't you think?
don't you need another drink?
you don't have to leave, I get it.
If I clap along loud enough
maybe I'll just change the world and the room
will come together
in a domino effect just like that movie Pay it Forward (remember pay it forward?)
we'll all walk home and think all is fine
with everything we've seen tonight
and everything we'll see tonight
every little thing tonight
every little thing tonight
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9. |
Laziness
01:21
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Host: I just don’t get it. I really don’t. Why would you come to us to release your record? I mean, the songs sound like they just popped into your head right before you recorded them. You sound like you recorded in your moms attic while she was out having dinner with her new boyfriend Todd. Why wouldn’t you wait to make a proper album, with proper musicians in a studio? Laziness. That’s all that is.
Host: However, our time here at “A Totally Real and Normal Podcast” is coming to a close and as always, [Sigh], I noticed you have your little guitar with you today. Will you please [sigh] Please, play us one?
Isaac: I suppose so.
Host: This is Ivan Paulson LIVE in the “Totally real” Studio. Take it away.
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10. |
Paper Cups
04:28
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they're only paper cups leaving behind paper cuts
so if you spill a little any odd day
don't despair, and know it's all just paper anyway
they're only paper cups leaving behind paper cuts
so if you spill a little on your way
don't despair, and know it's all just paper anyway
they're only blue balloons pumped to the nines
so full of pomp and pressure to be set loose anytime
but when you let go of the end it won't go with a bang
it'll spit and sputter in a zigzag and dance around overhead
they're only matches in the wind in the cold winter air
you can snap them on the pavement and block the wind with your hands
but after four or five honest tries just one will be enough to light
helpful for a lantern but a gift to be tossed aside
it's like a fortune from a snack on a long distance drive
you give a little "huh" and a head tilt then you push it out of your mind
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Isaac Balson Kelowna, British Columbia
Bedroom acoustic experimenter
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