The Fire Escape

[Intrumental interlude- dissonant guitar twangs and squeals]

​[Verse 1- A moody, atmospheric synth pad and a rapid, clicking trap hi-hat. The vocals are smooth, fast, and very rhythmic—classic Rain City Drive R&B cadence.]
Speak.
Speak the words aloud.
Tell me only one of us is crashing down.
Pause.
Can we just hit pause?
Stay inside the wreckage till the spark is gone.

​[Chorus- the track bursts open. Huge, arena-rock power chords, crashing cymbals, and a soaring clean vocal hook. It's catchy but heavy.]
I see the escape route you're trying to find
You want a clean break, leave the damage behind!
You're wearing a mask that I can't recognize
A stranger concealing the guilt in your eyes.

​[Verse 2- The guitars drop out instantly. Replaced by a thick, grooving 808 sub-bass. The vocals are slick but have a frustrated edge to them.]
Delusional.
If you think you can just overwrite the past.
I should've seen that the fever was fading too fast.
The weight of it.
Look what you made of it.
I've had enough!

​[Pre-Chorus- the clean guitars swell in, playing a dissonant, tension-building chord. The snare drum rolls build to a boiling point.]
[Vocals: Shifting from a smooth belt into an aggressive, gritty yell.]
God, I hope that you swallow the glass
From the mirrors you shattered!
I'm keeping my distance before I relapse.
You used to pull me close,
Now you just act like a ghost.
Don't leave me to bleed out alone!

​[Chorus- Return to the massive, anthemic metalcore wall of sound. Cymbals crashing on every beat.]
I see the escape route you're trying to find
You want a clean break, leave the damage behind!
You're wearing a mask that I can't recognize
A stranger concealing the guilt in your eyes.

​[Breakdown- The music cuts entirely. A single electronic bass drop hits. Then, a filthy, syncopated djent guitar riff comes in, locking perfectly with the kick drum. It completely shifts the song from pop-rock to brutal metalcore, guitar squeals]
Searching for the fire escape in the dark!
Addicted to the ruin, tearing us apart!
[Heavy, start-stop guitar chugs]
What broke the design?
When you're dreaming at night...
Do you picture the crash
In the smoke and the flashing lights?!
[Guttural, tearing fry scream]
WHAT broke THE design?!
WHEN YOU'RE DREAMING AT NIGHT!
DO YOU PICTURE YOUR GUILT
IN THE SMOKE AND THE FLASHING LIGHTS?!

​[Chorus- The breakdown seamlessly morphs back into the catchy, soaring chorus, but the double-kick drums from the breakdown keep playing underneath it, giving it maximum energy.]
I see the escape route you're trying to find
You want a clean break, leave the damage behind!
You're wearing a mask that I can't recognize
A stranger concealing the guilt in your eyes!

​[Outro- Instrumentation: The heavy guitars ring out and decay. The trap hi-hat from the first verse returns for four bars, slowly fading into silence.]

Explosive heavy metalcore, distorted, brutal drop,  C# djent breakdown, harsh screams, emotional male vocals, Smooth