Band members:
Current
Robert Richards — Vocals (2007-Present)
Marc Lambert — Guitar (2008-Present)
Eddie DeCesare — Drums & Percussion (2007-Present)
Alan Hankers - Piano & Keyboards (2011-Present)
Ivan Chopik - Guitar (2011 - Present)
Former
Connor Larkin — Bass (2010)
Vincent Romanelli - Bass (2008-2010)
James Murphy — Guitar (2007-2010)
William Murphy - Keyboard (2007-2010)
Zak Avanzato - Bass (2007-2008)
Marcus Becker - Guitar (2007-2008)
From the band: "Revitalized Shirts and CD's are available at this location! www.paintedinexile.bigcartel.com
By purchasing from this website you are directly supporting the band! : Most illegal torrent rips have terrible quality of revitalized that include skipping, squeaking and idle mic sounds. The CD quality does not contain any of this and sounds much much better! It's under $4 and you'd be helping us out greatly! Thank you!"
House of Cards
Painted In Exile Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Corrupt, was the cause of the wicked
They will be put to death for their treason in the name of mankind
Down falls the hammer
You can't but your way out of this one
You can't buy your way
You can't buy your way
You cannot buy your way!
Damned to meet the mask
The guillotine descends as we all stand behind the glass
Our tears of anguish have run dry
Let go of the life you thought you knew
And let the hate run through your veins
This is the last time they let us down
Breaking the chains that once had our hands shackled and bound
At last, the heroes of the overturn will now be immortalized
Tears of anguish have run dry
Blackened skies
Open eyes
Time to rise to our feet again!
Let go of the life you thought you knew
And let the hate run through your veins
This is the last time they let us down
Breaking the chains that once had our hands shackled and bound
Black flags by the will of the masses and now will turn to ash
Ironically, what have we become? We tore our world into pieces
Unjust was the cause of the wicked
But our greed has destroyed us and crippled all of mankind
Down falls the hammer
We can't buy our way out of this one
We can't buy our way
We can't buy our way
We can't buy our way out!
Falling easily, knocking down your house of cards
Simple, it is to turn on your brother
We defile ourselves with greed
We defile ourselves with greed
The lyrics to Painted In Exile's song "House of Cards" speak strongly against corruption and greed in society. The opening lines imply that the world has been destroyed by corruption, and those responsible for it will be brought to justice. The lyrics "Down falls the hammer" and "You cannot buy your way" suggest that their efforts to buy their way out of punishment will be met with failure.
The second verse discusses the aftermath of the downfall of the corrupt. The term "Damned to meet the mask" most likely refers to those who must face execution by the guillotine, as the onlookers watch from behind glass. The phrase "Our tears of anguish have run dry" suggests that society has no more sadness or mourning left to give, as justice is finally being served. The chorus is repeated once more, encouraging the listener to leave behind what they believed, and to let their hate for corruption run through them, fueling their desire for change.
The final verse takes an unexpected turn, as the lyrics suggest that those who overthrew the corrupt may have become corrupt themselves. The closing lines "We defile ourselves with greed" reinforces this idea, making a powerful statement about the cyclical nature of corruption and the importance of staying vigilant in the face of injustice. "House of Cards" is a powerful commentary on the dangers of corruption and greed in society, with thought-provoking lyrics that encourage listeners to think for themselves and strive for a better world.
Line by Line Meaning
Corrupt, what have we let them do? They tore our world into pieces
The corruption that was allowed has destroyed our world.
Corrupt, was the cause of the wicked
The cause for the corruption was due to wickedness.
They will be put to death for their treason in the name of mankind
Those guilty of corruption will be punished for their crimes against humanity.
Down falls the hammer
Justice will be served and the corrupt will be punished.
You can't but your way out of this one
Money can't save the corrupt from punishment this time.
You can't buy your way
Money can't be used to escape punishment.
You cannot buy your way!
No amount of money can be used to avoid punishment.
Damned to meet the mask
Those guilty of corruption will be unmasked and punished as a result.
The guillotine descends as we all stand behind the glass
We watch as the corrupt are punished for their crimes from a safe distance.
Our tears of anguish have run dry
We are no longer surprised or saddened by the corruption and punishment.
Let go of the life you thought you knew
We must accept the reality of the corruption and punishment.
And let the hate run through your veins
We must channel our emotions towards the corrupt and use it to take action.
This is the last time they let us down
We can no longer tolerate the corruption and must take action.
Breaking the chains that once had our hands shackled and bound
We must break free from the corrupt systems that have held us back.
At last, the heroes of the overturn will now be immortalized
Those who fought against corruption will be remembered as heroes.
Blackened skies
The world has become dark as a result of corruption.
Open eyes
We must open our eyes to the corruption and take action.
Time to rise to our feet again!
It is time to stand up against corruption once more.
Black flags by the will of the masses and now will turn to ash
The rebellion against corruption will succeed and bring down those who oppose it.
Ironically, what have we become? We tore our world into pieces
It is ironic that we ourselves have played a role in destroying our world due to corruption.
Unjust was the cause of the wicked
Corruption was caused by unjust and wicked actions.
But our greed has destroyed us and crippled all of mankind
Our own greed has led to our destruction and has negatively impacted all of humanity.
We can't buy our way out of this one
We cannot use our wealth to escape the repercussions of our corrupt actions.
We can't buy our way
We cannot use money to avoid punishment for our corruption.
We can't buy our way out!
No amount of money can save us from the consequences of our corruption.
Falling easily, knocking down your house of cards
The corrupt systems will easily fall and crumble.
Simple, it is to turn on your brother
People will easily betray each other for the sake of corruption.
We defile ourselves with greed
Our own greed has led to our corruption and downfall.
We defile ourselves with greed
Our own greed has led to our corruption and downfall.
Contributed by Madison F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Thought Revolution
This deserves way more views.
You guys are killing it!
Joe Johnson
that jazz break is so great
Halamax
it's gets better with second listen, great song with great dynamics. cant wait for the album! stoked
Nicole Dunn
Oh my days, this song... that's all I can say!! Unbelievable , such a good sounding track, mixed beautifully too.
Davide Zonca
The best way to come back after your demos, loved those and I loved this track. Beautiful harmonies and passages, hope you make it BIG.
frenzy
these guys need more exposure thats for sure
dkid21tt
So hyped to see you guys tonight in cbus. Now I can sing along! Great tune, can't wait for the new album.
josh mcgaughey
love the new song guys! I've been a fan since back in the day, can't wait to hear the full album! love the dillinger and btbam vibes :)
Jame Numberss
I had been waiting for this to come out since you guys set up the fund to do this, I had just been watching the live version... that piano tho, blending so masterfully.. great job guys.
Duran Jerome
Hell yeah this is fucking amazing, I remember when you guys released the video of you playing this live at practice without the vocals. The breakdown sounded so much more epic in that video