The Hands that Thieve
Streetlight Manifesto Lyrics

I felt no guilt till I was caught
I had no remorse until I was found out

And I was told that I was guilty
And I was informed that I was at fault

And even then I wasn't really sure (yeah yeah)
And still I was uncertain of the truth (yes, yes)

The thing I felt was guilt itself
The emotion I experienced was simply guilt

Or maybe it was something else
Or perhaps it was another sensation

Frustration at the fact that I was ever caught at all
I was annoyed that I was exposed in the first place

I told a lie I multiplied it
I uttered a falsehood and continued to fabricate it

By the time I realized it
When I finally recognized it

I’d given up everything I ever loved (yeah yeah)
I had abandoned all I had cherished (yes, yes)

Cause the thing you left
For the thing that you lost

When you're looking back
When reflecting on the past

Is the pressure the feel that you have to act
Is the compulsion to behave a certain way

Yeah everything is clearer when
Yes, everything becomes more intelligible when

You’re looking at the past (oh no)
You are analyzing the past (oh no)

[Chorus]

And I don’t care if I lose
I am indifferent to defeat

Because my heroes did too
For my idols likewise have suffered loss

They shouted court should be adjourned
They exclaimed the trial should be suspended

Because the jury are fools
For the jurors are unintelligent

And the judge can’t decipher his left from his right
And the judge cannot distinguish his left from his right

Or his right from his wrong
Or his correct from his incorrect

And we will bite the hand that thieves
And we will attack the thief

We will not turn the other cheek
We will not choose to ignore the offense

This is no threat
This is not a warning

It is a promise we will keep
It is an assurance we will uphold

So what's the point pretending
So why feign

When we sit behind the curtain
When we are concealed behind the veil

And there's nothing much to see
And there is not much to observe

Oh yeah
Oh yes

I felt no pain till I was found
I sensed no discomfort until I was discovered

And I was told that I was bleeding
And I was notified that I was wounded

And even then I knew I wasn’t done (yeah yeah)
And even so, I understood I had not finished (yes, yes)

Cause the wounds I get
For the lesions I acquire

They will just collect
They will only accumulate

Insuring that I won’t forget
Ensuring that I will remember

Reminders of the battles
Recollections of the conflicts

That I've lost and that I’ve won
That I have forfeited and that I have been victorious

And I will fight until I have died
And I will keep fighting until I perished

Or until all my enemies are allies
Or until my opponents become my comrades

And even then I will sleep with an open eye (yeah yeah)
And even then, I will rest with one eye open (yes, yes)

Cause the night is long and our hooves are strong
For the night is lengthy and our feet are resolute

And I know the road we travel on
And I am aware of the path we embark on

It always seems so dark
It forever appears so bleak

Because we've almost reached the dawn
For we are on the brink of daybreak

[Chorus]

And everyone will claim
And everyone will assert

That they knew from the beginning
That they understood it from the start

That what they did was wrong
That their actions were incorrect

They still just went on sinning
But they continued to err

The sudden rush you feel
The unexpected surge of sensation you experience

When realizing everything you know
When recognizing that everything you comprehend

Will fade away
Will gradually vanish

It haunts you deep
It deeply troubles you

But you won’t want to let it go
But you will not want to relinquish it

Someday we'll lose the war
At some point, we will be defeated in the war

But till then we will dream of winning
But until then, we will dream of succeeding

I won’t forget
I will not forget

The things you said
The words you spoke

When I was down and I was tired of it
When I was disheartened and exhausted by it

The words you spoke
The words you uttered

They brought me hope
They gave me hope

When it was time to fight
When it was necessary to combat

We chose a side
We took a stance

But everyone knew that something didn't feel right
But everyone knew that something felt amiss

So we stood our ground
So we held our position

And waited for a sign
And waited for a signal

When it was time to fight

We chose a side
We took a stance

But everyone knew that something didn't feel right
But everyone knew that something felt amiss

So we stood our ground
So we held our position

And waited for a sign
And waited for a signal

You said don't look back
You said not to look behind

(No, no, no, no...)

Don’t look back
Do not look behind

(Don’t look back
(Do not look behind

We won't go back
We will not retreat

We’ve come too far
We have progressed too much

We’re too high off the ground
We are elevated from the surface

The wheels have turned
The situation has changed

The lessons learned)
The lessons have been comprehended