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[8bitmadebit]

Listen/purchase: An Alien Among Us by madebit

WELL WELL WELL  I HAVE MY ALBUM SET FOR PRE-ORDER ON BANDCAMP <3

I HOPE YOU WILL LIKE IT : )

A bit of a cross post from my insta:

One thing thats really important for me as an artist is to show growth. Will this be the best album you’ve ever heard? No, probably not. 😄 But its absolutely the truest form of expression of how i think, feel, and the sounds and melodies that i like. One of my favorite producers EVER and the person who inspired me to tackle music released several albums that were probably thought of as too “experimental” and “not polished enough.” In those early albums you can hear every weird decision, the “imperfect, not in the key” notes and interesting instrumentation. But I’ll be darned if i don’t love that music and connect with the emotions she attempted to convey either way. And it makes me appreciate her later work in a deeper way - those later works where she “figured it out” and created albums with cohesion and inherent design were so much sweeter to listen to because she was confident enough to show off the imperfection. ALL THAT TO SAY is that this work shows what i can do as a producer in this moment in time. But its just the start. I still haven’t made my magnum opus. Ive got a long way to go, and i hope you join me for the ride 🥰

[8bitmadebit]

12. Where the sidewalk never ends - Keep the party going till the next album is released

Past the pits where the asphalt flowers grow

We shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow

And watch where the chalk-white arrows go

To the place where the sidewalk ends.

-Shel Silverstein, Where the Sidewalk Ends

What a lovely thought. To me, the author is describing a secret place where children can go and be themselves, a place hidden away from the busy-ness and frantic pace that this modern life sometimes demands.

In a group full of people walking down the street, i'm usually the one that walks quickly and moves around everyone else. I've got places to go people!!

Buuuut i know that's not always a good thing 🥲

The place where the sidewalk never ends is a state of mind that you take with you wherever you go. A place full of adventure and wonder. We go through life sometimes robotically, with our little routines day by day. Always looking up up up towards the goals we want to achieve, and sometimes forgetting that life can be so short and pass us by so quickly.

Look up sometimes. Take your headphones, go for a stroll, smile and wave and enjoy the ride. Because the sidewalk of life never ends.

Lyrics

Where the sidewalk never ends (Repeated a bunch of times)

[8bitmadebit]

11. I wanna get away - Literally anywhere i can get cheap tickets to

Come on with those deals, Southwest. I've got places to go.

This song is actually more about ambition than travel deals.

I've always loved the greek story of Icarus, the boy with the wax wings who flew too close to the sun and died an untimely death after they melted off.

Hey, if I had wings that let me fly i'd try to see how high i can go too.

But how come he didn't look down? Surely he'd realize that his wings were literally falling off??

Why can't you be ambitious but also be careful?

Maybe that's the whole point of the story. That you should be ambitious without being arrogant.

Or just develop some self awareness.

Lyrics

VERSE I

I stare into the sunshine

stare into the sunshine

and i go blind

blind with fear of falling back

wings of wax that let me fly

and i go sky high

and i go sky high

and i go sky high

and i go sky high

BUILD

I’d like to get away

No matter how far and wide, like to get away

and every time that i fly, its an endless chase

know that i can’t let it go

I’d like to get away

No matter how far and wide, like to get away

and every height that i climb, it’s another end

know that i can’t let it go

DROP

BUILD

Where do you want to travel to? What's that dream that you keep chasing?

[8bitmadebit]

10. Persimmon Spritz - I've only had this drink once in my entire life

I once drank this drink called "persimmon spritz" at a ramen restaurant somewhere in the city I live in and knew immediately that I wanted to write a song about it.

I'm not sure why I associated this drink with the theme of having a harsh inner critic, but i guess i did. Maybe it was how i was feeling that day or what i was talking about.

Nevertheless, when i think about that little tiny voice in my head that criticizes everything i do i think about the little angry guy from that one movie about feelings.

Sometimes, the things we tell ourselves can be even harsher and more damaging than what other people could ever say to us. Who holds you back? Who's the first to drag down your ideas and make you feel small? Who kills your dreams before you even get a chance to explore them?

Often times its your own self. How do you talk to yourself in a more compassionate and productive way? Someone tell me, cause i'm still trying to learn.

Lyrics

VERSE I

why do you

why do you

say you’ll change

when you

do you

find you’re

back again

BUILD UP

Ice cold veins

and your hair is a flame

And now your face is red

getting redder, again

like there’s nothing else

but that finger to blame with

yeah its plain as day, just how you’ve been living

ice cold veins

and your hair is a flame

and then you see your face

the reflection you’re in

cause when you find that thread

of the sweater you’re wearing

So long

hmm

DROP

VERSE II

why are you

why are you

numb to it

when you blink

it’s back to night again

the price you pay

when the words to yourself

cut you deeper than

someone else ever can

and you’re crying again

wondering why no one hears you

yeah it turns your tears into something different

find the things that you can’t really help

and turn them into ways you can torture yourself

when its said and done, the destruction’s been done

you’re made of stone, hmm

BREAK (on a terrible mic)

you wish you could

let go of everything, oh

This life rides high and goes low

but keep on rowing, oh

i wish i could

float back and love me like gold

forever

screw it

i just got a long cold drink of

persimmon spritz

however you say it

don’t get mad at me if

everything’s not going ok

im not a rapper

but another sip and

i’m gonna say it

I’m

I’m

Persimmon spritz

And i’m gonna say it

and it wasn’t that hard

just to find i was jaded

but the lesson here’s simple

and its something i cherish

love you first, oh

What does your harsh inner critic look like from your mind-eyes perspective?

[8bitmadebit]

9. I wont repeat myself (Come sail away) - But seriously, i probably will repeat myself at least 3 more times during the song

COME SAIL AWAY. COME SAIL AWAY. COME SAIL AWAY WITH MEEEEEEEE.

But actually, just be my friend and let's go on this journey called life. And let's not care about what anyone else thinks. Because once you realize that most people are way too self absorbed to think THAT much about you, you realize you have much more freedom to do what you want than you think. And that feeling is priceless.

Lyrics

VERSE I

Nothing goes slowly

Every year’s better

Changing is endless

and you’ll last forever

Painted and falling

Catching momentum

Face your reflection

And you’ll know it better

BUILD

CHORUS

Times up,

there’s nothing better than my hand

And my friend,

We’ll rise up baby

Come sail away

Times up,

there’s nothing better than my hand

And my friend,

We’ll rise up baby

Come sail away

VERSE II

Nobody’s looking

too busy strutting

Finding their own way

to read thoughts in your brain

Go find you calling

Just do whatever

nobody finds you

weird as hell, whatever

When did you start taking control of your own ship and sailing on to new waters?

[8bitmadebit]

8. A sound is Born (Evolution of Self) - Questions, questions, questions.

This song is one of my favorites off of the album because it does what i like to do best - ask questions. I love asking nonsensical questions, but especially those that might have extremely ambiguous answers or answers that you don’t understand until much later after time has passed.

If your life was a painting and it was hanging on a museum wall hundreds of years later after your death (lets assume its a good painting 😂) and some new-earthen was standing in front of it, what would this person say about your life? Would it be memorable? Painful? Enjoyable?

Lyrics

VERSE I

the world outside it seems so boring

now that i know myself

something else i keep ignoring

now that i know i’ve changed

like rain and clouds i see the storm in

and lift my face from the earth

the rain comes down i don’t ignore it

a chance to change everything

PRE

now that i know myself

now that i know myself

now that i know myself

now that i know myself

CHORUS/DROP

VERSE II

endless change, we keep evolving

and running up every hill

chasing something, you don’t know if

it’ll be worth the kill

a small piece of everything, you’re drawn in

the background for something else

the bigger painting’s for eyes only

of someone we’ll never meet

PRE II

Now that i know, i’ll say

Now that i know, i’ll say

Now that i know, i’ll say

Now that i know, i’ll say

CHORUS/DROP

What's your favorite nonsensical question?

[8bitmadebit]

7. An ode to those who lead but do not follow - Or why corporate america kinda sux sometimes

If you've ever worked a corporate or service-related job, you probably know what this song is talking about. There's something so uniquely horrifying and unnatural about how you are supposed to behave in a "traditional" or "structured" job.

Suppress your emotions, make sure to keep your opinions to yourself, don't upset the people above you. If you want to climb the corporate ladder, make sure that the people above you know how good of a job you're doing and that you're confident and that you care SO MUCH about whatever random project that you're working on. It feels like and endless game of snakes and ladders.

Bleh

I think personally, i'll just sit out all of the games and silliness and just focus my real time and energy on stuff that actually matters.

Lyrics

VERSE I

stuck inside a situation, that

you know wont get out

every moment’s counted down,

so that the clock knows your face now

a- and you

sit there and take it

Count the days and you

don’t know to fake your smile and laugh

CHORUS

VERSE II

Everybody plays the game,

the rulebook’s somewhere out there now

But no one bothered sending you a copy,

Basic rules were out

A- and you

could never quite climb it like them, now

Snake and ladders, you

toss the snakes and climb that ladder down

CHORUS

Do you have any traumatic work stories? How did you handle it?

[8bitmadebit]

6. Intermission (I do what i want) - Madebit puts a happy jingle in the middle of a very serious album

But guess what it is my album and no one was here to tell me no, so i told myself yes.

This song has no real lyrics, just the desire to convey a very special feeling of boundless joy that transitions into a something triumphant. A special wistfulness or nostalgia of a simpler time. Like the warm spring breeze during childhood where you played a game with your friends outside and ate watermelon afterwards. 🍉

It reminds me of Iroh's song "leaves from the vine", if you've ever seen the show Avatar the last Airbender - which is the best animated show of all time.

I think i'm gonna go re-watch that now.

[8bitmadebit]

5. Bring it Out - Bring what out???

Two BROS

Chillen in a HOT TUB

Panicking AROUND, cause they're NOT CONFIDENT??

Gosh darn, if it isn't such a big problem. Especially in GIRLS. I work in a mostly male dominated field (engineering) outside of being a musician, and i see this way too often.

Picture it. You're sitting in a zoom call with a room full of people you work with. A female engineer comes off mute to share her idea and uses words like "I don't know if you guys agree, but i think we should do X because of Y..." or "I'm not an expert, but i think X is right because etc. etc. ..... but i don't know, it's whatever you all think!" Without realizing it, that engineer has just undermined her own ideas. Heck, I used to talk like this without even realizing it. I used to think that people who talked like this were unconfident and didn't believe in their own ideas. So then, why should i take them seriously??

But then i realized something pretty significant. A lot of the times, people who spoke this way HAD thought about their ideas and those ideas were actually valid and good. Heck, i've even witnessed those same ideas regurgitated by someone with more confidence and presence get taken seriously by the group.

Being confident in yourself MATTERS. Delivery MATTERS. This song is a call for those who are filled with self doubt and don't know if the ideas that they have to offer are any good. ITS OK TO FAKE IT TILL YOU MAKE IT <3

It's a call to BRING OUT the warrior inside you that knows you've got so much to offer to the world ❤️

Lyrics

VERSE I

How do i find my strength?

How did I, how did i get this way?

how do i, how do pull my weight?

you get out, by making your bed

and brushing your hair

and saying a prayer

How can be myself?

The squares and the circles don’t wanna play

And endlessly finding the will to care

You’re good enough hey

Your problem, you’re scared

believe in yourself

CHORUS

bring it out, the endless warrior

bring it out, these fearless hands

string around your endless sorrows

make that crown upon your head

bring it out, these endless fears

bring it out, the doubts that hang

dance around the graves that hollowed

make the steps your marching chant

VERSE II

Clovers in my own hand

How did I, how did i make my way?

how did i end up so lucky here?

by being so smart

and being so kind

and being alive

How did i find your face?

In crowded rooms, find what i’d needed there?

Hold my hand, hold it and forge ahead

The streams in this life

the pull of the tides

we’re bound to collide

CHORUS

OUTRO

you didn’t know what i’ve seen

someone who’s head never hangs

you didn’t, you didn’t see

just how much you have grown in yourself

you didn’t know what i’ve seen

someone who’s always been there

everything you’re gonna be

is quite beautiful

in of itself

How do you deal with your insecurities?

[8bitmadebit]

4. Moon Dance - The Moon says hello 🌝

I've always had a fascination with astronomy and the moon.

This song is nothing more than an appreciation post for the moon - the eternal dance that it does around the earth and how incredible it is that it affects so much of how it's shaped and its processes. From the tides, to the source of light at night, to how birds migrate.

I'm always happy to see it come out at night and now i can sing "COME OUT, MOON COME OUT MOON" and feel like i'm asking a band to come out for an encore. <3

Lyrics

VERSE I / CHANT

Hmm (de de de de dom) X 8

(higher octave & harmonies come in)

Hmm (de de de de dom) X 8

CHORUS

moon come dance

and then you say hello

and then the moon comes dance

and then it says hello

and then the moon comes dance

and then you dance real slow

moon come dance

and then you let it go

moon come dance

and then you say hello

and then the moon comes dance

and then it says hello

and then the moon

it dance

dance

dance

dance

POST

Come out

Moon, Come out

Moon, Come out

Moon, Come out

Moon

Come out

Moon, Come out

Moon, Come out

Moon, Come out

Moon

VERSE 2 / CHANTS

CHORUS

What is your favorite moon fact?

[8bitmadebit]

3. Sandy Beaches - Or, why i keep writing sad songs on places where you go to be happy

Sometimes, it takes you a long time to figure out that a situation that you've found yourself in is not good for you. The seasons change, you achieve new high scores at the gym, you try that new restaurant everyone's been raving about. You move through life as you've always done.But something still feels off.

You haven't processed your emotions or situation long enough to understand what it is that you're really feeling. And this song is about this very phenomenon.

Lyrics

VERSE I

I lost myself,

another winter again

My heart is frozen and thin

but then i

i find my way

a place, a change, and a friend

through spring and fall, i pretend

Every moment i find myself reliving truths

And i wake up within, my bones are aching again

Mm

PRE

my heart in pieces lines the shore

i know, i know

i let it get there

With every piece i pick up, you

I know its you

that loves me better than that

CHORUS

Sandy beaches, i let you go

though my heart aches, you know its so

close together, another home

Together forever, together forever

Sandy beaches, another home

pages ripped like confetti, gone

cause you know that I thought we’d be

Together forever Ah, together forever Ah

VERSE II

My headache stays

You never know it these days

this heartache’s foreign and strange

but then i

i find its best

the motion keeping me san

through winter storms i contend

The body has a certain way of showing scars

what the heart cannot say, a way to show you its pained

Mmm

PRE

CHORUS

BRIDGE

fireworks in my mind

you let it go, when you realize

another way that you find

your sanity and your peace of mind

fireworks in my mind

you let it go, when you realize

another way that you find

your sanity and your peace of mind

CHORUS

Has this ever happened to you?

[8bitmadebit]

2. An Alien AmoNG US - Amogus where???

This song is pretty self explanatory. Sometimes, you feel like ET phone home trying to connect and communicate with other people. Like, are we from the same planet? Am i the weird one? Can i even find the words to express myself properly?

Good news is that after a while you realize that yes, when it boils down to it we are all part of the same human race. We might not all have the same experiences, but most of us laugh, cry, and get irrationally upset when someone doesn't close the door when they leave the room.

But the feeling of alienation, that feeling of "how could i ever have anything in common with this person?" feels very real sometimes. It's hard to accept that you can't always fit in with the rest of your fellow humans in the world. But it's my very strong belief that what makes you different and makes you feel alienated from everyone else can also make you a stronger and more resilient person. It also helps (at least in my experience) to build a more inclusive and empathetic worldview.

Lyrics

VERSE I

every moment out there

trying to find how to say

do they know where you’re from?

how you’ve come

how you’re here

every move a hesitation

play the game like its a chessboard

Darling, come get yours

cause its somewhere far, somewhere out there

PRE

Out there

Out there

Out there

Out there

CHORUS

Always down to take the extra

always picking up a dime

Find yourself another way out

Look behind your shoulder now

Looked down for your other-ness, how

will you find your own respite?

Turn it into something great now,

Even when you’re running out of time

time time time

out of time time time

VERSE II

Every time you’re out here

Own your self and your fears

Do you know how you’ve grown?

how you’ve come

how you’re here

Look up, find your constellation

Don’t they know you’re built so different?

Darling, come get yours

cause its somewhere far, somewhere

PRE

Out there

Out there

Out there

Out there

CHORUS

BRIDGE

When was the last time you felt alienated or like you didn't fit in?

[8bitmadebit]

1. Space - A song about earth

Hey Madebit, why's the song icon a frying pan with an egg on it?

WELL DEAR READER, that is because i took a sample of a frying pan and used it as the snare in the song. That's why it sounds so CLANGY. Also because whenever i think of UFO's i think of giant frying pans flying in the sky. Does this make sense? No it does not.

I wrote this song after watching this Swedish film called Aniara. I won't spoil it for you, but it's one of those movies that really makes you think, especially about life's bigger questions.

What is actually important? What is my purpose?

Verse I

I saw a frying pan the other day, the other day

It was headed off to outer space

And everybody said, they all said

Thats just a normal day here in this place

I saw another day, another day, another day

The metal jungle and the darkness raged

And everybody said, they all said

You know, you’re lucky to be here instead

Of all the things you know the most you’d wanna see

Picture everything, another future in your dreams

That’s why the other day, the other day, I meant to say

Ah

Chorus

Space the endless embrace

Space the cosmic escape

Oh, your space walk

Might just make you blue

For a sphere that you knew

Space the endless embrace

Space the cosmic escape

Oh, your space walk

Might just make you blue

For a sphere that you knew

VERSE II

I had that dream again, the other day, the other day

I swam and looked up to the birds ablaze

And everybody said, they all said

its someone else’s fault the sky has changed

I saw another day, another day, another day

the hands that pointed were the hands that wrecked

And everybody said, they all said

it’s time to leave here and move on instead

And all the things you cherish, everything you feel

the sky, the green, the water, life force that you need

That’s why the other day, the other day, I never left

Ah

Bridge

Chorus

My biggest take-way from this movie is an increased desire to help protect the earth from ourselves.

Have you seen the movie i'm talking about? What did you think? Did you like it? What was your takeaway?

[8bitmadebit]

0. An Alien Among us - Album discussions

I should have done this earlier. Here's the tracklist for my new album. I'd love to do a little series where i share the lyrics of each song and what i was thinking about when i was writing it. I'm excited to see how other people will perceive this body of work. Will they connect with it? Will they understand what i was trying to say? Am i too vague for my own good? Do I like metaphors a little bit too much??

Hopefully you'll get a chance to listen to it when it drops and you can let me know what you think!

And so - Here's the tracklist <3

Space 🌍

An Alien AMonG Us 👽

Sandy Beaches .🏖

Moon dance 🌝

Bring it out 💪

Intermission (I do what i want)

An ode to those who lead but do not follow 🐍

A sound is born (Evolution of Self) 🪞

I won't repeat myself (Come Sail Away) ⛵️

Persimmon Spritz 🍹

I wanna get away 🚀

Where the sidewalk never ends 🚶

There you go! I can't say that every idea is conveyed perfectly, but i'm proud of this work standing on its own.

[8bitmadebit]

An alien among us. 🛸 the debut album comes out in a few weeks, excited to share it with you all ❤️

[8bitmadebit]

IIIi WANNA GET AWAYYYY 🦆

[8bitmadebit]

Come SAIlL AWay. coMe SAil AwAY. COME SAIL AWAY WITH MEEeeee