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What I Become

by Michael LaBella

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Largely the Truth, with Brennan Storr
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1.
To See What I Become 02:15
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Here I start another chapter Here I rest and wait for dawn Here I settle into summer To see what I become Here I set aside my sorrows Here I rectify my wrongs Here I carry forth my lessons To see what I become I'm not as old as I've been feeling I'm not as old as I am young Twenty-three has got a plan for me To see what I become So here I start another chapter Here I rest and wait for dawn Here I settle into summer To see what I become
2.
Faces 02:58
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I wear many faces, one for each cage The office, the church, the family, the stage And you must believe that you see me true But I'm sorry to say there's a face here for you Yes I'm sorry to say there's a face for you too We make believe But nobody knows where we're going And nobody knows where we've been Nobody knows where we're going But one day I'll pack up these faces for good And I'll throw all my faces in a creek in the woods And if you found me right then you might see who I am 'Cause I want to be happy as the smile that you see And I want to be the man you believe me to be Believe in me 'Cause I finally know where I'm going And I'm writing down where I've been Yes I finally know where I'm going I finally found me
3.
End of the World 02:29
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I shed my shirt though it feels strange to be bathing in sunshine It's far too warm for wintertime This time last year we were braving the cold alone This doesn't feel like the end of the world Doesn't feel like the end of the world Waters rising, fires raging at the edge of the world We're in the sunshine, it doesn't feel like the end of the world I play you a private show on the balcony You tell me your plans for summertime This state I'm in, I don't want it to ever end This doesn't feel like the end of the world Doesn't feel like the end of the world Bombs are flying, nations taunting at the edge of a war We're drinking red wine, it doesn't feel like the end of the world Waters rising, fires raging at the edge of the world We're in the sunshine, it doesn't feel like the end of the world
4.
What to Say 02:37
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What to say when nothing you say will change a thing To feel when the feeling is not yours to claim To do when you're right on the line between a stranger and a friend A hope and an end I'm so sorry that grief is a lonely thing And sympathy can't quite play empathy's game But if you'd have a beer or a coffee We can sit for a while, you can tell me his story Tell me your story What to say when you know just enough to care To feel when you hurt just enough to be there To do when Death comes shaking his fist at the living To keep on giving And I'm aware that Death waits for us all I care knowing we've got to leave this But while we're here there is only one question Alone or together? Alone or together?
5.
Become (Reprise) 01:08
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Here I close another chapter Here I know my day is done Here I ramble into autumn To see what I've become Here I rest with my companions Here I sink into your arms Here I count each of my blessings To see what I've become For all the living gone behind me For all the dreams that did succumb I will return because I still do yearn To see what I become

about

I recently watched a James Taylor interview during which he said, “I am myself for a living … it’s pretty much what you see is what you get.” I’ve spent the majority of my musical life performing in various groups, occupying different roles, and collaborating with other artists. It’s only been the past couple of years that I’ve set off to figure out how to present myself the most simply and the most honestly with my songwriting.

With 'What I Become,' I believe I’ve met that goal as best I can. I recorded this EP in a single night in front of a single microphone with my one guitar. When I’m alone in my room working out songs about my own feelings and experiences—that’s about as close to sincerity as I’ll ever get.

Though this record barely breaks the ten-minute mark on time, it shares thoughts on change, on identity, on grief, and on navigating the gulf between one’s own experiences and the reality of the wider world.

While this album is admittedly self-indulgent, the striving to know oneself would be worthless without the desire to share that self beneficially with the other valued people in one’s little universe. That spirit is also present in 'What I Become'—the yearning that my true self will be enough to make the lives of a few others just a bit better. The ethos of this project is found in the lyric, “I want to be the man you believe me to be.”

Though I owe the debt of my own self to many, for this project I must specifically thank Kevin Folk for teaching me the production skills needed to execute these recordings in a way somewhat proficient, Tim Poole for his advisement and infallible musical ear (“I don’t think you’re going for a dominant seventh note there”), and my dearest Madison, who was the first to notice the theme of this collection of tunes and encouraged me to share my most introspective material.

If you hear it, I hope this record might help you take pause and take time to find yourself in the happenings all around you and in the love of those you hold dear.

credits

released October 2, 2021

All music performed and produced by Michael LaBella

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Michael LaBella Skippack, Pennsylvania

Michael LaBella is an independent folk songwriter from Pennsylvania who has performed extensively in the northeast US since 2018.
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Michael writes about his own experiences of love, sorrow, friendship, nature, spirituality, and growing older. Above all else, he values sincerity and hopefulness in his songwriting, and compassion and community in his performances. ... more

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