Chain the Rising Sluice

[Кіріспе] [Куплет 1] Shift horn cuts through the rain Boots sink where the gravel drains One red cap in the black wet hole Wrong kind of quiet below Haul trucks idle, lamps held still Foreman says, “don’t clear the hill” I’ve got the wire, i’ve got the key And all that ground is staring at me [Қайырма] Do i touch that charge alone? Do i leave it buried, cold as stone? You won’t clear the bench, you won’t call it safe While the engines wait and the rain fills the place One wrong spark, one step too near Tell me whose hands are shaking here [Куплет 2] Shift change written on the board Old crew gone, new crew at the door Water runs down the chalk-marked seam The dead man’s switch stays bright and clean I ask again; he turns away Says, “no one moves till break of day” But dawn is hours down the track And that wet hole won’t give it back [Қайырма] Do i touch that charge alone? Do i leave it buried, cold as stone? You won’t clear the bench, you won’t call it safe While the engines wait and the rain fills the place One wrong spark, one step too near Tell me whose hands are shaking here [Guitar solo] [Көпір] I could cut the line and walk away Let the next shift meet what i found today Or lock the gate and make them hear No one goes down while that charge is here [Қайырма] Do i touch that charge alone? Do i leave it buried, cold as stone? You won’t clear the bench, you won’t call it safe While the engines wait and the rain fills the place One wrong spark, one step too near Tell me whose hands are shaking here [Аутро] Wet hole. red cap. No one moves.