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How Can I Say This

by Annie Capps

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  • Full Digital Discography

    Get all 9 Annie & Rod Capps releases available on Bandcamp and save 30%.

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Love and Rain, Not So Sure, How Can I Say This, When They Fall, Searching For Neverland, Take Me To The Fair, My Blue Garden, In This Town, and 1 more. , and , .

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1.
My Eden 03:43
Back on the corner of sin and sacrament little girls in plaid skirts on their knees spent begging for forgiveness, not one was innocent cause there was an apple and there was a serpent Down in the basement, the boys came and went I was playing Lois Lane to their Clark Kent and that man of steel was preparing for his grand ascent cause there was an apple and there was a serpent Oh my Eden, lead me not into temptation but deliver my soul, this heart was hell-bent on trying to make love not trying to prevent a future that would look so different cause there was an apple and there was a serpent
2.
Learning 02:59
I was taught to never waste a good drunk when there’s so much power of a sharp tongue Down the hatch, drop my guard, open to his thirst Learning sometimes hurts I was taught the way to win affection from a master of deception Now he’s trying not to wake me while he buttons up his shirt learning sometimes hurts OH, I learned to be a devil when the angel wasn’t looking I learned there are secrets you don’t tell I learned that folks like me are going straight to hell Why’d they teach us that Columbus was a hero Why do some boys hear “yes” when you say “no” then look at you with eyes that say we get what we deserve learning sometimes hurts I’ll build a shrine to all the lies I’ve learned strike a match step back and watch it burn I was taught a different kind of lesson using my mother’s favorite weapon she said forgiveness isn’t easy when they’re treating you like dirt but learning sometimes hurts I learned about forgiveness from someone who had it worse I was taught that learning sometimes hurts
3.
what he heard and what you said are two very different things bit your tongue and while it bled Danced a jig as he pulled on your strings there’s a jackknife in your pocket just out of reach the blade is duller than a politician’s speech the preacher does and the preacher says two very different things the prophet living in his head is not the one who’s got you kissing his rings take a peek behind the curtain see the puppeteer on a pedestal as shaky as a chandelier Your reality is better served by default with a chaser of suspicion and a grain of salt What they see and what they get are two very different things the coroner is dripping with sweat And the victim started sprouting his wings the truth is never ever simply black or white even when it’s hiding out in broad daylight now and then you’ll find it in the great hindsight
4.
I love you more than I ever can say but I need you to leave me alone it’s not you, it’s me, goes the dreaded cliche bending your will to my own how can I say this without breaking your heart? you are the voice I’ve been holding on to now I need you to leave me alone Losing myself in this longing for you my power has been overthrown how can I say this without breaking your heart x2 I need to know what it feels like I need to know what it feels like without you under my skin, indelibly attached to my trembling bones you are a part of my anatomy but I need you to leave me alone how can I say this without breaking your heart bloodshot from weeping my Polaroid eyes are fading into monochrome You are the dusk devoid of fireflies And I need you to leave me alone how can I say this without breaking your heart Please let me say this without breaking your heart How can I say this I love you more than I ever can say but I need you to leave me alone
5.
The Punch 02:43
I've got a good left hook and fragile right brain got a habit of dancing right into the pain tripping over my words, ending up on the ropes but i’m my own referee and that call was too close gonna stand my ground even when I know you found me out and it’s starting to show I come out swinging and beat you to the punch you were never gonna throw And now you're down for the (10, 9, 8) and I’m out the back (6, 5, 4) So will you or won’t you get up off the floor Cause I’m not waiting around. Trust me, I know that look And I can’t make you take back what you never took it’s my story and i’m sticking to it There ain't no way you can make me see through it Do you really think I don’t know how badly I blew it? Still I stand my ground even when I know you found me out and it’s starting to show I come out swinging I come out swinging I come out swinging and beat you to the punch you were never gonna throw
6.
The wrecking ball is scheduled to arrive today my father’s house is coming down 5 tons of steel can not destroy all my memories but I can watch them hit the ground wood and glass, brick and stone all the ghosts who lingered have long since flown I can still hear the garage door opening just enough time to run upstairs in my room i could be spared undue reckoning staying out of his cross hairs you start to pick up on the clues all the little things it would take to blow a fuse it’s over now seems so small as it tumbles earthbound I forage for forgiveness neath the shattered walls of madness scattered all around My Father’s house had eggshells across every floor that’s bad news for this clumsy child I learned to fear the smell of old spice and nicotine and the hint of vodka in his smile too many walls too many rooms a well-seasoned pot roast with just a dash of doom it’s over now seems so small as it tumbles earth-bound ‘neath the shattered walls of madness i forage for forgiveness scattered all around The wrecking ball is scheduled to arrive today my father’s house is coming down
7.
dirty little secret wherever I am there you are you’ll be riding shotgun I know how to drive this car we can keep the headlights low nobody will know it’s you and me under lock and key dirty little secret nothing that I feel can be unfelt never mind the jury they can’t see the hand we’re dealt we don’t have to play these cards give them our regards find a saint out there who can hear our prayer There’s no need to poke that bear no bridges need to burn no confessor needs to hear my, hear my, hear my dirty little secret carried all the way into the grave we don’t have to worry on our headstone they’ve written herein lies the loving daughter, wife, sister and friend who led a beautiful life
8.
The Silent 03:42
the walls here are the color of shame no one waiting has a name we carry someone else’s blame we are the silent sweet reluctance holds my hand no one stares they understand think I spy one gold band we are the silent unspeakable, unspeakable don’t speak plastic flowered windowsills 3 $100 dollar bills we’re nevers, maybes or untils we are the silent the scent of choices poorly made a room full of thoughts replayed resignation never fade we are the silent unthinkable, unthinkable don’t think unspeakable, unspeakable don’t speak the chance to ever see your face I have come here to erase without a sound, without a trace you are the silent
9.
Riverbound 03:08
When the part of me you think you know crashes into the part of me I never show wandering round in the debris you’ll find there a raw and ragged used to be there’s a hard rain river bound and the grand facade is coming down When the neon sign across my face starts to flicker at a ruthless pace and in a flash, the light goes dim now I walk in circles on this phantom limb there’s a hard rain, river bound the grand facade is coming down drifting with the current of this missing and enduring in a future as unsure as For bridge harmony: lo part sings: drifting with missing and enduring future unsure hi part sings: drifting with the current missing and enduring future unsure when the part of me that let her go wakes up with the part of me that loved her so aching arms lay down the weight of too long on the wrong side of sorrow’s gate there’s a hard rain river bound while the world keeps spinning round and round the grand facade is coming down
10.
Crowded 03:07
This place is getting crowded and someone in here shouted fire this place is getting crowded and someone in here shouted fire and now they’re climbing out the windows tripping over egos making lots of room for better thoughts to bloom this place is getting crowded my insides have been outed Think I might have sprouted wings my insides have been outed Think I might have sprouted wings like an oyster and her pearl wide open to the world gonna climb out of that shell and raise a little hell this place is getting crowded On a planet full of people who have different ways of seeing what they know What I know is when I’m sending up my flare, there’s always someone who’s been there (to say) “You’re not alone” this heart was impounded now the demons are surrounded by love this heart was impounded now the demons are surrounded by love the space between my ears holds the battle scars and fears of a little girl in pain who learned to love the rain this place is getting crowded
11.
Here’s my turn this is me, second driveway on the right just before the curve They don’t ever plow this road, might want to take it slow, welcome to my world Remember Monday’s little glimpse of spring? It woke the bees and now the hives are all covered up with snow February’s fickle that way, I am too, you know first-hand how long I take to let things go and you ask me if I ever miss the city and I tell you that I only sometimes do See that gravel pit across the road it used to be alive now those boys are out of work I feel bad for them, I do but I like the quiet until the neighbor’s shotgun fire takes me out of my comfort and you ask me if I ever miss the city and I tell you … … there’s no more neon lights to faint the stars, I swear the moon’s a million times bigger out here It’s where I untangle every knot I’m tied up in and the rest of the world disappears Soon will be the time for planting maybe this year I can finally grow a little garden Yes I know I know I know but just look at all the green, can you believe this is my backyard (so don’t) and you ask me if I ever miss the city (I will) and I tell you that I only sometimes do I still sometimes do
12.
Yesterday 03:43
I’ve been far too busy lately Filling up my plate with Things that leave a really nasty taste in my mouth Overly consumed with All the ways we’re doomed while Trying to make room for what I should be leaving out Yesterday I listened to my breath for the first time in ages Read a real book made out of paper, got through almost 7 pages I’ve come dangerously close to Picking up the phone to Boast about the way that all my anger has subsided Everywhere I look there’s Evidence of crooked and creative ways it took for me to try and hide it Yesterday a sunbeam hit the curtains for the first time in ages Still don’t understand why grief has to go through so damn many stages When the needle on the record Dances cross the same words Someone else who isn’t me might pick it up and move it Over to a new song The would feel so wrong With the solace I find when I’m stuck inside this groove Yesterday I chose to wear mascara for the first time in ages as the force field around my bleeding heart finally disengages Yesterday my inner songbird sang out for the first time in ages All the doors flew open on her tortured little cages

about

Like many performing artists, the forced isolation of the pandemic provided the opportunity for reflection and a bit of soul-searching. I am blessed with a mighty batch of songwriting angels who encourage and inspire me to write in a more deliberate way rather than waiting for the muse, who was often very coy with me.

The songs that started bubbling up found me excavating in the way back times of my life. They represent a reckoning of sorts, a closer look into painful memories that didn’t feel safe to explore.

I am constantly reminded that vulnerability is a super-power. Vulnerability is the dominant theme running through the album. The songs explore topics of shame, learning, forgiveness, grief, self-discovery, and strength. Collectively, they represent a love letter to my younger self. And maybe yours too? I truly hope with all my heart that you’ll hear yourself in one or many of these songs.

These songs showed up right when they were supposed to and I couldn’t be more proud of the way they’ve come to life, thanks to an extraordinary community of nearly 40 women who joined me on this journey.

credits

released December 30, 2022

Engineering + mixing: Maggie Heeron, with additional engineering + mixing by Cynthea Kelley @ La Luna Recording & Sound, Kalamazoo, MI lalunarecording.com
Mastering: Anna Frick, Ally Sound @ allysound.com
Front + Back cover illustrations: Abigail Westhoff abigailwesthoff.com
CD Duplication: World Class Tapes, Saline, MI worldclasstapes.com
Radio Promotion: Kari Estrin Artist Mgmt/Radio Promo kariestrin.com
Executive Producer: JuliP

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Annie & Rod Capps Chelsea, Michigan

Annie & Rod Capps’ sound meets at the intersection of Americana & Folk. Citing rock, jazz and bluegrass influences, they create a fresh and unique amalgamation with “songs about broken things and poignant little ponderings delivered with a rootsy vibe, a touch of twang and soulful groove”.

The Capps have three albums topping the Folk-DJ charts and they are 2-time Kerrville New Folk Finalists.
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