Alien Clock by Peter Hammill Lyrics

Fresh out of the starting gate
Bent on the shadows
Bent on a night of escapade

Out of the corner of his eye
Something once bright now dim:
An alien clock is locked onto him

So he keeps his attention close
Cloaked deep in silence
Knowing that any fear that he shows will quickly have him ripped apart

Could it be just a game? No
He keeps a measured tread up although
Right now they call his name, oh
How'd they ever know that? And so
Now they're blocking the path

And he's in trouble here, he already knows he's in trouble here

What's done has been done
Hung to dry in Kabuki-cho
Left for dead beside the Golden Gai
As his head explodes with treasure trove
No-one knows just what truth he has come here to hide
As he's spied in the red light zone
Legs are spread behind the neon signs
There were threads of gold, the stories told
But no-one knows if he's ever going to make it out alive
Was it just bad timing or some fundamental show of disrespect
That's brought him here?

Hung to dry in Kabuki-cho
He's made his bed beside the Golden Gai
As his head explodes the question's posed
No-one knows just what truth he has come here to buy
Wonder why he choked, he was in full flow
What he said denied his heartfelt cries
And instead he knows his cover's blown;
But no-one shows quite how useless the excuse is this time

If you step into somebody's house
Don't be too eager to assume you can keep on your shoes
Better take off those shoes