The Famine of the Mist The thing about living in a distillery town Is all we ever get up to is drinking too much booze And if we might be giving thought to robbing folks at gunpoint We will target under-30s 'cause they've got something to lose In this crater of a homeland we've got cans and cans of rations And we're used to breathing poison, we'll be safe if we can get Into the steel cavern where they manufacture blackouts Yeah, they manufacture blackouts when there's nothing to forget At least until the sun disappears Yeah, until the winter lasts for years We've got time to kill some bottles and wonder why we even exist We're waiting for the famine of the mist Oooh we're waiting for the famine of the mist The thing about living in a railyard town Is all we ever sing about is leaving on a train Though hardly no one does 'cause only freight can ride And it's easier to stick around and wallow in the pain But I knew you'd make it out now you're a nurse or whatever In the suburbs north of Denver just a few counties away You're all wherewithal and beauty, I'll love you forever Yeah I'll love you forever or at least a few more days Yes I will 'till the sun disappears Yes I will 'till the winter lasts for years (In my) dreams I'm standing in a field of flowing rock Strangling every man you kissed They won't survive the famine of the mist Oooh they won't survive the famine of the mist The thing about living in a volcanic field Is you never really know when the lava's gonna run Four thousand years adds up to a lot of nothing When you're trying to predict when the next eruption comes The one they had in Iceland in 17-something Killed half of all the livestock and a quarter of the men And destroyed the crops of Europe, well I'm thinking we'll deserve it Yeah I'm thinking we'll deserve it when Dotsero blows again Yes we will, when the sun disappears, yes we will, when the winter lasts for years I'm not sad that the future is ash since the past is just the clenching of a fist I'm ready for the famine of the mist Oooh I'm ready for the famine of the mist ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ From Nadalands - The Last Days LP (October 2016) distillery town creative license. Fort Collins, Colorado, is known for its beer industry rather than distilled spirits. robbing folks at gunpoint "Outlaw songs" covered at breweries romanticize crime, but Fort Collins has a low crime rate. crater The town is a cultural wasteland akin to a volcanic crater. All landforms are produced by tectonic processes. cans and cans cans of food or cans of beer breathing poison smoking cigarettes as well as inhaling toxic industrial chemicals; A toxic cloud from the Laki eruption was the mostly deadly natural disaster in British history. steel cavern the large plant, including stainless steel equipment manufacture blackouts The factory makes alcohol, which can impair memory; the factory can also cause electricity blackouts by drawing power from the grid. the sun disappears Ash from volcanic eruptions can block the sun. the winter lasts for years Aeresol clouds from volcanic eruptions can block sunlight, creating extended winters. The "year without a summer" of 1816 was caused by the 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora in Indonesia. We can thank this drop in global temperatures for Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, vampire novels, Lord Byron's very metal poem "Darkness," and lots of goth stuff. kill some bottles finishing bottles of alcohol or shooting the bottles as target practice famine of the mist The mist hardships in Iceland were caused by the Laki eruption in 1783-4. 1/5 of Iceland's population died from starvation. railyard town Three freight train lines pass through Fort Collins, causing much noise. leaving on a train Train songs are particularly popular at the aforementioned breweries, particularly "Folsom Prison Blues", but sadly not "Harrisburg" by Josh Ritter. only freight can ride Fort Collins still does not have passenger rail. suburbs north of Denver the cluster of medical offices in Broomfield and Westminster, Colorado field of flowing rock a lava field, as found in Iceland and the Western U.S. volcanic field Millions of years ago, much of Colorado was a volcanic field (cluster of volcanoes). you never really know when the lava's gonna run Dotsero's threat level is currently moderate. It is difficult to predict volcanic eruptions more than a few days in advance. Four thousand years The most recent volcanic eruption in Colorado was 4,150 years ago. in Iceland in 17-something Though the mist hardships were in 1780s, Iceland has experienced many volcanic eruptions since, most recently in 2024. Killed half of all the livestock and a quarter of the men More accurate figures are 60% of livestock and 22% of the human population. destroyed the crops of Europe Even further away, the Laki eruption has been linked to famines in Japan and Egypt. Dotsero blows again It would not be a tragedy for the narrator if a highly unlikely volcanic eruption destroyed Fort Collins. the past is just the clenching of a fist Western history is violent and undeserving of mythologizing worship.