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Rejects & Leftovers: 2009​-​2015

by Michael Burkinshaw

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1.
For the first time, my eyes are now open wide The first time I've felt this stable state of mind Yeah I don't mind, cause I'm still smiling For the first time I finally feel in control The first time the path ahead is an open road It turns and winds, but I'm still smiling Right behind my back, they'll try to clip my wings Cause I've got so much fucking potential And I just can't wait to see what the future brings Never one to hold my tongue So I guess I'll let these words speak for themselves For the last time, I'm putting my life back on track The last time I let anyone hold me back The odds are stacked, but I'm still trying It's the last time I let anyone get in my way The last time I don't follow through with the words I say It's not too late cause I'm still trying
2.
I can't do this anymore I'm letting my hopes get too high now When it only leaves me insecure And desperately needing a way out The color fades out from the skies And a darkness consumes all the daylight No rest for these tired eyes Up all night asking me "Why am I still trying?" It always ends up the same When it all goes up in flames I lose sight of better days Why's my heart so blind? So much that it hurts me every time And maybe I'm insane now for wanting more But hey, at least this time I tried You can't stand me anymore I wish I could say that I blame you We both have nothing left to show Our ending was long overdue I hate how much I seem to care There's worse things than dying alone You find that love is never fair Though you've always known it Why am I still trying? You're never gonna win the game Since it all went up in flames I lost sight of better days Why's my heart so blind? So much that it hurts me every time And maybe I'm insane now for wanting more But hey, at least this time I tried I'll never ask and you will never tell me How these looks can be so deceiving I'll never ask and you will never tell me Why these words are what I keep believing
3.
Well you're the talk of the town, your prospects spiralling down, Why can't you turn it around? Haven't seen your face in a while, your eyes are glued to the floor I know you're faking that smile Why don't you go kiss that bottle and see how it goes? Why don't you just drink your problems away? Nothing is gonna change She's found face down Left out there passed out on the lawn She'll come around When the life of the party has come and gone How will you make it to Monday morning When your "best life" has been killing you slowly? These times the pressure's overwhelming You're blacking out before the light of day In the story of the life, the writer killed off all of my dreams And he left me with nothing it seems Lost nights, a misled generation That can't picture a life better than this In the story of the life, the writer killed off all of my dreams And he left me with nothing it seems
4.
As I pass by all the church signs on my drive by I feel depleted I feel sick for all the deceived and sick for every con man that is preaching it "Man's way leads to hopeless end, and god's way leads to endless hope"? What kind of life are you living? Can't you read between the lines? People are giving up their dreams to please a non-existent being Is this a life that's worth having? I've seen homeless on the streets while your altars are built from gold They promise eternal salvation is waiting, as long as you do what you're told
5.
I'm finding there's never nothing left to do With the mess I constantly get myself into Independence and responsibility Walking back home alone in the rain Learning how to overcome my inner pain Seems like decades ago now to me The days, they never last Promise we won't lose sight of lives lived yesterday The future is speeding towards me, though it's still so far away I'll try to relax and think back to 2010 when my dreams still drove me restlessly My life I'm afraid is going too fast But I won't lose the best of me I'm living my life in overdrive The pressure keeps on building up inside Too many plans made for time that I don't have So when they try to tell you that you've still got your whole life in front of you Their words have never seemed so empty And if they're saying that you still have all the time left in the world They're starting up a countdown....
6.
I'm dancing for rain to wash it all away So I can get off work early for at least one day But the weather's still got a case of ADD While everyone's pissed we voted for NDP Oh no, oh no, oh no Party nights, everyone's doing great They're looking right past the blank stare on my face And I don't even wanna call them out on their shit The next morning no one's even gonna remember it Oh no, oh no, oh no I shouldn't be complaining, I've got it good And if I could enjoy it, oh I would Your drunken asses won't past classes Massive student debt left to all the masses And I can't say I blame you all for calling it off It's not like I know any better what I want Oh no, oh no, oh no Day after day, year after year I wonder what the fuck I'm even doing here Write a novel about all the things I don't know Two decades down still with nothing to show Oh no, oh no, oh no
7.
Let's try to hold ourselves to a higher standard here Cuz we've been causing harm for far too long, for far too many years There's a point in time when you realize that things have gotta change It all comes down to courtesy, it's not about the blame Let's try to set things straight and stop blurring the lines Cuz I've been so ashamed on my own gender far too many times Manipulate and intoxicate, take advantage on a Saturday night For fucks sake, I'm not "bitching out", it's called doing what's right They say that "boys will be boys" As if this kind of shit is not our choice I swear I'll do anything I can Not to fall into the toxic trap of what you think it takes to be a man So if you're hearing what I'm saying then I hope it's crystal clear Cuz I know victims of some fucked up crimes who live their lives in fear It's time to cut the bullshit and start giving our best It's time we took responsibility and learned to show respect
8.
It seems like we never get a break And I feel life's getting harder to take Do you feel the same? Then come with me It took me weeks to plan, but I put on this party You want everything to be alright Well come on in, and I'll show you how I see it Yeah I know there's times in life that we can't catch a break Well not tonight, not this time So come on, relax, there's only half a summer left to go We'd be stupid to waste it This time I've learned there's some things money can't buy Tonight kick back, don't even question why And maybe all this energy will last us all a good while Every time I look upon your face it makes me smile Now it's much better than "alright" Well come on in, and I'll show you how I see it I know these nights are worth every second that they're still here I'll never let it go, not this time So come on, it's time for you to take a big step back and see There's so much more to life
9.
Well you told me yesterday that we could never be I instantly blamed myself There's something wrong with me But don't pretend I never cared It's just been a while I since I said so unimpaired Ahh, it's more than I could take But I never wanna go away Ahh, it's more than I could be But I hope you can see it in me I swear I really tried with a problematic personality I guess I'm not the type who learns to accept reality I'll cover my ears and close my eyes I'll never accept that these feelings have almost died
10.
Don't you believe? I can see it too It's better when I am far away from you Still you deceive, and I wonder why can't you just say it to my face Why do you lie? Never alone as I see you there You smile and wave but I know that you don't care You're still so laid back, it's driving me insane How could I hope you won't do this to me again Why do you feel the need to spare my pride? Nothing is real, all feelings for me died At this point I wish you'd spit it out Go on ahead, please destroy all second chances and doubt
11.
Now I regret everything Everything I never dared to say to your face I've always just tried to escape I lost my nerve, you know it Every hint you ever gave to me was a waste I always hesitate Still my thoughts focus on you And I haven't got a clue of what to do My heart won't stop beating when you're beside me Apart, regret for everything will haunt me I'm dying to make a move but I never do So I stay as close as I can and I hope I don't lose you Well now the summer's here and there's only one last day to say to your face The things that I've tried to escape Procrastination takes me It seems it always comes down to the last day And then I'm not thinking straight Please just say something to vindicate me We both know how long it will be My heart won't stop beating when you're beside me Apart, regret for everything won't haunt me So I gotta make my move I'm not going to miss my last chance I don't want it to end like this
12.
Not one day goes by that I don't think about it Just yesterday it was all so fine yet I'm standing there snoring while life keeps passing me by And all I believed in might just end up being a lie Do you remember what we had? We were so close but then you left me here for dead So I'll forget everything that you said I'll forget you too Cause I know that you forgot me Do you remember what we said? We were so close but then you left me here for dead It won't be long before I see you again I know you'll hide from me until then I won't have a clue on what to do I think of my soulmate I wonder if it's you
13.
I know myself, I just won't do I feel I owe this much to you I need to get myself in shape Before I go and throw it all away I'll work my ass off every day It really wastes my time away But I know it's what you expect of me So I will go do as you please I see you look into his eyes Now I must be what I despise Still I know that you would not take me for who I am, I must be insane Until I have a heart attack I'll keep on trying to win you back After all, just think how good it could be Just you and me Up with you, on a summer night On the rooftop Enjoying the light display as the sun recedes Now you're mine, just like I'd always dreamed And now time has stopped, with your arms around me And I know that you'll never leave
14.
15.
It's only a thought, it's merely a dream That's what they say when life unravels by the seams You just wanna leave, but you have to stay Tied down by a single thread that won't fray They all hate you, everyone ignores you You close your eyes and don't wanna wake up It's only a thought, it's merely a dream It's all they have to say when you're drowning in a sea of jagged insults piercing your skin You're trapped and can't escape It's only a thought, it's merely a dream The battle for your freedom was lost You fought it all until your dying breath But you're still trapped all alone
16.
I'm losing it, I'm suffering I'm digging up an empty grave These feelings and illusions bring me deeper to a darkened state of fear, of loneliness, of eternity I'm lost, I'm afraid It's so cold I can see my breath These days leave me confused Coming to terms with the sudden death of my mind, of my life, of my heart I've all but lost control Now my body carries a burdened soul In another timeline I was normal, until I came here
17.
I used to be the stereotype of the guy that you'd pass by Not even worth a passing glance All I need is another chance To tell you how you make me feel When I'm with you it's so unreal We're together in my dreams I'm scared that's all we'll ever be If you could hear me now I'll try to find my nerve somehow I used to be so insecure Never quite exactly sure, it was so sad I couldn't decide But now I've made up my mind It's you that I want by my side But still I sit here on the side Waiting for that day to come I hope that I can get the courage to ask you out some day I don't know why it is so hard to say these 6 simple words Will you go out with me I need you now more than ever All I need is you
18.
I'm afraid of disappearing in the routines set for every day I can't remember the last time I felt alive Broke up with lady luck, I'm mowing down the four leaf clovers in my path This has led me to decide That I'm in need of inspiration Someone told me In life there's room for two There's death in solitude Loneliness cuts like a knife Companionship builds something new Overflowing with potential Larger than life
19.
Now it seems I'm not the same person that I used to be So many things left unfinished and I wonder what it all says about me Now I'm feeling scared that I have changed I can't remember how I came up with a plan back then All I know is that I have none now Woah It's all coming too soon, where will I end up? Will I be okay? I am begging for more time If I could, I would never waste a single day Now you see me, now you don't You'll make it through this, I know I won't Now you see me, next I'm gone I should have known this all along If I could go back in time I'd teach myself to see the flaws and shortcomings in my vacant personality Where did all the time go? Seems not long ago I was a kid Now I'm filled up with regrets of all the things I never did
20.
21.
I hope you'll give me some time to think about this This kind of choice can change your life And I really will miss you and your honesty Do you think it's really worth it? Don't bore me with your thoughts cuz I don't give a shit Well I learned they moved away the day I got back Another friend has gone away More time left to attack the things that are really supposed to count Like my future and school You gotta learn to deal with it There's nothing else that you can do Well the more I think about it The more I realize that we're all the same You'll never know where dumb luck takes you next And in time, you realize that life's just not a game The distance grows here day by day, and it's just so sad I might be stuck in here forever, boy that'd be bad What if I end up all alone, in a town so hollow? Or would I be better off if only I could follow? Take a look inside I know it's not your time Please don't leave me You have to believe me Well the more I think about it The more I realize that we're all the same What if I can't live without you? And In time you realize it's never going to be the same

about

Rejects & Leftovers is a collection of previously unfinished/unreleased songs that were either left off of previous albums, or were never finished in the first place. The intention behind this project was to give these ideas a second chance, since I was still drawn back to them years & years later. This is certainly more of a compilation album than a focused piece of work. Every song here is marked with the year it was originally written, some originating as far back as 2009. Overall, I wanted these songs finished so I could move forward with a clean slate and only focus on brand new ideas in the future!
(The album art is a combination of old artwork from some projects some of the songs are from)

credits

released March 29, 2024

All songs written by Michael Burkinshaw, EXCEPT:

-Danny's Song, written by Kenny Loggins, originally performed by Loggins and Messina
-Hear Me Now, written by Michael Burkinshaw & Aaron Boyd
-Untitled, written by Michael Burkinshaw & Taylor Elliott

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Michael Burkinshaw Alberta

Michael Burkinshaw is the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist for the punk rock band Intense Reality. This account showcases his solo projects, all available for free download. The majority of Michael's solo material is pop punk.

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