a pulsing red beacon swaying on a hill
gathered unto itself the entire folden valley
and as it pulsed as it lit up
it sucked at the strength of the valley
and the lights in all the houses went off
momentarily
as this great red light pulled the energy into itsself
and sydney a veritable fuckin babylon
who you kidding lady
this place is sodom on the sea
deep into the night i hear the sudden cries and groans
i hear women whimper in fear or some terrible erotic disgrace
sounds tower up and find me in the dark
they choose me
they empty themselves into my ears
they blot out everything else
even my deafened ears tune in to conversations from a mile away
the parties have degenerated into drunken roman messes
people stagger and vomit
the heat of the night
can you imagine it the heat the terrible heat
the summer night making everyone go crazy
the sea and the doof doof doof
the rivers of beer that washed down stupid necks
they bellow out there in the madness
in that overcolourised superimposition
meanwhile natalie lies there i say
what year is this madam is this 1837?
and she cannot answer
shh shhh i say
youve been dreaming of a future
and i stroke her hair
and i soothe her brow
what year is this my queen i ask again
and what new year eve is this
and neither of us can truthfully say
and the floor in our red room undulated
and i disappeared into other centuries for oh centuries
but when i reappeared i said to my love
why she was looking like marie antoinette
with the tiny blonde curls round her fevered brow
just like scarlet
and i said my love the fireworks
as we sat in the darkness
as the children thankfully slept fitfully
marie antoinette and i
her humblest footman or fool
watched the explosions in a sky
unable to tell what was where
and i wondered where i was
and what year this would be
and all the time
i was the the amorous service of that white queen
i gulped vodka and guarana and it swirled into my trip
like a wicked tornado
unleashing a thousand more beasts
i looked down at my tanned arms and my slender wrists
turning into the panther
in the darkness i growled
and waited to be fed by the zookeepers
for whom i had a nasty delicious surprise
in my mirror
i was adonis
i was a skinny olde olde boney man on his last new years
suddenly the real me breaks through
my eyes bulging black birds ravenously devouring the night
my hair soaking wet plastered againt my burning skull
i sweat and i sweat as i glide through the heat
i see my true face
i see my red smooth angular face
i see my face which fascinates me
i see my true nature
the english cad
the villain
the marquis
licentious unrelenting
seizing upon things
dave mccombs portrait pushes out of the paper
check this out i say as we watch
him try to break out of his portrait
his undulating face
he turns his gaze and fixes us
ha ha ha we run away
but it wont all stop
oh baby i want it stop now
but it wont
it wont let me go
i cant tell what im doing
i dont know what im saying
if these spirits have offended….