The Rats Are In The Roses
single
The Rats Are In The Roses
A protest song with real backbone: PCBender plants a pointed political metaphor in a 3/4 waltz feel that shouldn’t work as hard rock but absolutely does, the triple meter giving the chorus an unexpected sway before the overdriven guitars push it into anthem territory. The hook lands on ‘your bias predisposes / inhumanity exposes’ with the kind of plainspoken conviction you get from John Hiatt when he’s really angry about something, and the production keeps the vocal front and center so none of the argument gets lost in the wall of guitar. At 117 BPM in D major, the rhythm section is doing serious work underneath all that distortion, and the contrasting bridge, ‘A society forged / when a morality is shared,’ opens up just enough space before the final chorus closes the case. A highlight.
Lyrics
Who is the Other A different kind of mother An immigrant’s daughter A darker-shaded brother
The stuff inside the melting pot The dreamers, rogues and have-me-nots
The rats are in the roses Your bias predisposes Inhumanity exposes The lie you think you know is The rats are in the roses
Fear loves autocracy A rube who chants, “follow me\!” And trades morals for dishonesty Above the law and decency
The stuff inside the melting pot The roses need or they will rot
The rats are in the roses Your bias predisposes Inhumanity exposes The lie you think you know is The rats are in the roses
A society forged When a morality is shared By people who dare And show the courage To stand and demand… “Not here\!”
The stuff inside the melting pot Is all of us, have you forgotten
The rats are in the roses Your bias predisposes Inhumanity exposes The lie you think you know is The rats are in the roses
The rats are in the roses
Credits
Songwriter: Michael Anthony Rose