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Bittersweet

by The Accidentals

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1.
The Silence 03:42
We sat beneath the stars At a fire and played our new guitars And I wondered how long this was gonna last Because picture perfect memories Just come with all those tougher things And pain’s the best reminder of your past I watched the meteors fall On a world that hardly cared at all Leaving silver trails of dust across the sky Of indigo blue that matched my mood And with constellations for tattoos And I watched them fade away and quickly die So many theories wrong and soon disproved So many ideas lost among the feud So many conversations that are sadly misconstrued And lost among debate and needless violence We need the silence We walked in a haunted place With tattered walls and empty space And a musty smell that drenched the nighttime air Neither of us said a word And we waited till we heard the birds And realized not once had we ever been scared So many theories wrong and soon disproved So many ideas lost among the feud So many conversations that are sadly misconstrued And lost among debate and needless violence We need the silence I saw my grandpa’s mind Fly away and leave some bits behind That made him smile with each time that they appeared I wonder if he feels the pain But it seems he never will complain Whenever his whole family is near So many theories wrong and soon disproved So many ideas lost among the feud So many conversations that are sadly misconstrued And lost among debate and needless violence We need the silence
2.
Bittersweet 03:05
Felicity grew a garden She planted with her hands She reminisced in her myths A believer in romance Felicity grew a garden It turned to paradise But without rain she could not grow And without rain she would not know What would be the price The ground beneath her feet, it was bitter, it was sweet The ground beneath her feet, it was bitter Felicity grew a garden A haven safe from fate And the ground beneath her feet, it was bitter, it was sweet But the fruit from it she ate The ground beneath her feet, it was bitter, it was sweet The ground beneath her feet, it was bitter...
3.
I saw your ghost, he said good morning, I said I wished I was, I said I wished I was, Inside the house, I poured us tea, so we could talk respectably, but every time you looked at me, it made me feel like lemons in chamomile, I saw your ghost, I said how are you, he said I wished I was, he said I wished I was, outside the house, your feet grew cold, i said i liked your shoes and you didn't reply, i said I have a lot to say and that I try, but every time I just, I see your ghost... I said I wished I was, I said I wished I was, wished I was, you. I saw your ghost.
4.
I grew up in a sheltered home Residing in a fragile dome Made of bulletproof glass and last-second glances back We knew we were not alone At heart he was a conqueror Napoleon the punk rocker For to live ingloriously is to die each day A dark and profound thing to say Can anybody hear me now? I'm like a tree growing on infertile ground I stand tall but I can’t make a sound Look up to the ceiling’s stars We’ll try and find out what is ours To try and put a name on everything we see is almost blasphemy Can’t you just let it be Mumbles of self-conscious doubt They turned to marbles rolling in my mouth And now whenever I try to speak, you never hear me out Isn’t that what love’s about? Can anybody hear me now? I'm like a tree growing on infertile ground I stand tall but I can't make a sound Can anybody hear me now
5.
Brake 02:35
I feel I'm getting somewhere cause life is passing by but my mind is made of water and I can't help but sigh, And I know I shouldn't care, but sometimes I'm going under, and I know this isn't fair, but I don't want to steal your thunder, You told me I could drive but it was just another lie, now I'm trying to survive but I might just break down and die, I need a brake.. I know I'm prone to crash, I'll probably crash and burn, cause I'm going way too fast, but it's still my turn, And I know I shouldn't care, but sometimes I'm going under, and I know this isn't fair, but I don't want to steal your thunder, You told me I could drive but it was just another lie, now I'm trying to survive but I might just break down and die, I need a brake.
6.
Fibers in the light of a projector, catch fire Wolf in the front yard, look out from your door and admire Drink your tea with sympathy, while organized chaos awaits Because I’ve told you in the past, but it never seems to resonate When there’s a wolf at your door, don’t just try and ignore All the things outside your city of cardboard One day it’ll burn and the lesson you’ll learn Is your paper holds nothing but words and records The music is within his hands and his heart And in his mind, all of the planets are marbles in the stars But this game of Pretending is so apprehending these days And all of your time is spent comprehending this game When there’s a wolf at your door, don’t just try and ignore All of the things outside your city of cardboard One day it’ll burn and the lesson you’ll learn Is your paper holds nothing And so if your mundane existence withstands I look to put some truth inside your open hands So share in some telepathy, while organized chaos awaits Because I’ve told you in the past, but it doesn’t seem to resonate When there’s a wolf at your door, don’t just try and ignore All the things outside your city of cardboard One day it’ll burn and the lesson you’ll learn Is your paper holds nothing but words and records
7.
Grisly Bear 02:56
Bird on the road with the jellyfish brain Beetle brown eyes, stay in the right lane Dog at the end of the street laughs loud All the little critters lying on the ground Staring up at the placid blue of an October sky… My grizzly bear, I don’t care, I don’t care if you’re grisly Girl with a dress has a soft stuffed cub So does the man with a job at the pub Crocodile leather, I’ve won this game But picking bones is such a pain Staring up at the placid blue of an October sky… My grizzly bear, I don’t care, I don’t care if you’re grisly Now I’m caught between your deadly arms I don’t wanna start a fight With my glass eyeballs and my cleared out brain I still can’t see what’s right My grizzly bear, I don’t care, I don’t care if you’re grisly My grizzly bear, I don’t care, I don’t care if you’re grisly
8.
There’s an old house with a blue heart A TV lights up the choking dark And in a white room an old man sighs His friends a lamp and the ghost of a lie Once in a cold March my childhood friend Took my hand and dragged me to the driveway’s end Where in the front yard, a dog would creep The light in the darkness was his bared teeth Find my bones in the bottles of the oak tree My old ghosts never fail to catch up to me Little sister, thief of peace Let the crows of war cease their battle cries And let these memories die In a war-torn, damaged mind The young man that he was never took flight And I could see it in his broken eyes As he gazed from the window of his room of white Find my bones in the bottles of the oak tree My old ghosts never fail to catch up to me Little sister, thief of peace Let the crows of war cease their battle cries And let these memories die In the heart of a bitter hound There is an endless howl that never sounds So lay a kind hand upon his back For what is one lone wolf without a pack? Find my bones in the bottles of the oak tree My old ghosts never fail to catch up to me Little sister, thief of peace Let the crows of war cease their battle cries And let these memories die
9.
Golden lantern in the sky I passed time and watched you fly Burning holes into the night Before you choke and we lose sight First you rise and then you fall Oh you make me feel so small Graceful as a firefly Beautiful until you die Drowning far beneath the sea Tossed around by endless green Nothing but a paper bag Nothing but an ash-filled rag
10.
Miso Soup 02:47
It was one year ago when I felt my heart stop While in the aisle of the local food coop Amid the packs of miso soup you were standing transcendental Right there and then I knew our love would be coincidental And with a yelp those packs did fall You came to help you bought it all Oh what a happy accident I didn’t know what I was looking for Oh what a happy accident I didn’t know it was in store I said that I liked Kikkoman, and you replied, me too You said that you liked miso soup now baby I like you We bonded over miso soup so romantically Now the rest is history (You make miso happy) Oh what a happy accident I didn’t know what I was looking for Oh what a happy accident I didn’t know what was in store Now we tell all our friends our tale of serendipity Of staring in each others eyes alone in aisle 3 How fateful it was we were in the same store But I won’t tell you that I saw you there before And with a yelp those packs did fall You came to help, you bought it all Oh what a happy accident I didn’t know what I was looking for Oh what a happy accident I didn’t know what was in store
11.
James K. Brown was an alcoholic man Drove his Ford into a white Sudan He never found what he was looking for A way to crash into a life full of open doors When they were closed before Beautiful itch in the kitchen chair Breathing in a sharp slice of air These tragic mishaps happen all the time Exceeding all the deaths by homicide To people in their prime Sarah Mae would die within the air Withered leaves dark on her yellow flower Her stories gathered up around her eyes The only things consistent in her life Bright like fireflies And when she fell down the concrete stairs The fabric of normality began to tear And Sarah Mae was forever changed But still the lamplike fireflies in her eyes remained A snapshot in my brain And though it’s hard for us to try and understand Maybe tragic mishaps were always in the plan And when we stumble and we trip into fatality Maybe we just open our eyes to reality Like waking from a dream
12.
Us 02:54
It’s difficult to say where it began That bitter feeling when I held your hand It’s been too long It’s been too long June came, a yellow wedding day The sun reflected off Lake Michigan spray But that day’s long gone That day’s long gone We said that we would always be friends But happy’s not the way most stories end And though this isn’t quite what I expected I stand corrected These apparitions of a happy past Like anything they cannot truly last They’re not lifelong Not lifelong But there will come a day I’ll understand I’ll look to you with an extended hand My grip will be strong I’ll be so strong We said that we would always be friends I’m writing out a new and better end And truly this is what I first expected We’re still connected
13.
I’m stuck in a state of severe confusion I’m stuck in a state of benign disillusion Because I feel that I just can’t refuse in Finding my way back to you You caught me off guard, with your highly trained words You’d absorbed the knowledge of the calls of the birds And I leaned in to hear what you were saying to her But your voice just wouldn’t come through And I couldn’t believe that you wouldn’t receive The hints that I was sending And I couldn’t quite tell if you knew it was hell To deal with your pretending So please make up your mind Be present or just be resigned I’m caught in a net of severe confusion, A bear trap well placed in a leafy illusion An ironic cage of iron seclusion That is locked and is missing it’s key I was wondering if you had known what you’ve done Or if all your cruel torment has only begun But you didn’t expect that you’d be outdone For I found a new man who loves me And I couldn’t believe that you wouldn’t receive The hints that I was sending And I couldn’t quite tell if you knew it was hell To deal with your pretending So please make up your mind Be present or just be resigned So please make up your mind Be present or just be resigned
14.
Mangrove 04:40
Dark woods, tall trees, reaching for me I think sunlight’s gone Metacognition, keys in ignition Trying to be strong Blue night, dry leaves, ignite finally There’s that fire in my heart My mind is lightning, tells me to not leave But leaving is just the start Of something new When beasts grow old where do they go? Time marks the journey into the mangrove And so must I look with my own eyes To search for the truth that lies in the unknown Bitter, strangled, my hair’s tangled But roots have always been a part of me Questions on changing, and we’re all still aging But I’m not scared to embark On something new When beasts grow old, where do they go? Time marks the journey into the mangrove And so must I look with my own eyes To search for the truth that lies in the unknown
15.
Blessed 04:55
That was the last time Beneath that scarlet sky When manmade comets made the earth vomit fire The air smelled of cigarettes And crackled like the static of old cassettes The houses had been sleeping just prior Dark and starless, new catharsis Sudden sharpness, where’s your conscience Tear my heart out from the hole in my chest Warped and twisted, they persisted And do we still believe they know what’s best… Does anyone feel blessed? Cold as glass, white as bone Pinpricks in the great unknown Are hidden behind charcoal clouds Bombs are weightless, Fatal, faceless And when they fall, they hardly make a sound Dark and starless, new catharsis Sudden sharpness, where’s your conscience Tear my heart out from the hole in my chest Warped and twisted, they persisted And do we still believe they know what’s best… Does anyone feel blessed? Radiation, illumination We hold on to that light, we are blessed ​

about

Multi-instrumentalists, Katie Larson and Savannah Buist are creating quite a name for
themselves among music lovers of all genre’s. Described as, “A duo giving an edge to folk with unique
instrumentation”, Z93 FM DJ, Matt Mansfield writes: “Combine musicality, originality and melodic beauty with a welcome and unexpected bite to clever lyrics and you’ve got Accidentals music. Songwriters, look no farther to find a new pairing to be jealous of, especially with such a bright future ahead of them.”

They met in 2011 at their public high school. Katie (15) was a freshman cello player,
“playing up” in the Philharmonic Orchestra and Savannah (16) was Concert Master, violinist. They volunteered for a class assignment that threw them together for their first rehearsal and The Accidentals were born.

Growing up in musical families with professional pianists for fathers and vocalist for mothers, their
Influences bounced between classical, jazz, bluegrass, country, alt-rock, and the obscure. Their collective playlist you won’t find on mainstream radio. They are “explorers and admirers” of indie music greats like Andrew Bird, St. Vincent, Sufjan Stephens, Arcade Fire, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Black Keys, White Stripes, Sarah Jaffe (and the Beatles). Their original tunes reflect their exposure to a wide variety of instruments while staying true to their orchestral roots. In addition to playing guitar, bass, glockenspiel, mandolin, banjo, piano, organ, accordion, and kazoo...you can’t miss the edgy violin and cello that defines this duo.

In 2012 these two ladies auditioned for and snagged a coveted spot in the first ever singer-songwriter
major at the renowned Interlochen Center for the Arts High School -around the time they released their first self-produced album, Tangled Red and Blue. In early reviews of Tangled Red and Blue, Kristi Kates of The Northern Express, was the first to say what everyone was thinking, “It’s difficult to believe that music this accomplished is being crafted by two talents who are still in high school - but that’s The Accidentals’ story.”

In two short years (2011-2013) they would write and record two albums, play as guest artists on seven others, score three films, and land song placements in several commercials, documentaries, independent films, and music compilations, in addition to playing over five hundred live shows while maintaining their studies.

In 2013 The Accidentals opened for some of their favorite artists, Andrew Bird, Sixto Rodriguez
(Sugar Man), Aunt Martha, Rosco Bandana, and Lauren Mann. They hopped an RV to tour their home state of Michigan for a consecutive seven weeks while finishing and releasing their second album Bittersweet. The GR
Press called their stage show “stunning, an unforgettable experience watching these two girls play a sea of
instruments (twelve to be exact), moving effortlessly from one to the other, while entertaining the masses with their wit, haunting harmonies, and catchy melodies, they are truly unforgettable.”

Fifteen track album Bittersweet was recorded with award winning producers in Nashville and Indiana in March 2013. According to UK Magazine, Leicester Bangs: “The lyrical flow is intriguing and absorbing – and so complex as to draw comparison to Joanna Newsom in full poetic flight.” DW Magazine, UK adds; “heady folk and sweet melodies embellish an accomplished set of songs - Larson and Buist have found their trademark sound but they’re not going to let it get in the way of a little diversity.”

The Accidentals recently won Traverse Magazine’s “Red Hot Best” of Northern Michigan Music for the second year in a row, were featured in Regional Musician Magazine and NPR’s Stateside. Reviews of their song “The Silence” landed them a featured artist spot on Reverbnation’s home page and put their new album in rotation on CBS Radio. It also garnered the attention of songwriting legend, Marshall Crenshaw and Grammy award winning producer and engineer, Stewart Lerman. The Accidentals left for New York in Feb. 2014 to record a brand new EP with these gentlemen and recently signed a production/label deal with Crenshaw and Lerman.
So far in 2014, The Accidentals have scored an original tune for a 72 piece orchestra, arranged music for an Operatic Dance Project with musical genius, Son Lux, opened for Brandi Carlile, and played over 200 shows including Frederik Meijer Gardens, Wheatland, Blissfest, and Earthwork Harvest Gathering.

You can check out two brand new music videos on their YouTube channel along with festival recaps, and live shows at youtube.com/moreaccidentals Hear an exclusive song at www.cancerbenefit.org written for the compilation CD, Firework.

At eighteen years of age, The Accidentals journey is just beginning and they can’t wait for you to join them at moreaccidentals.com.

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released June 17, 2013

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The Accidentals Traverse City, Michigan

Genre-bending multi-instrumentalists from Traverse City, MI.

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