TMP: Mouthpiece
Genre: R&B with jazz flourishes, structured as a duet. Vocal Style: Male lead with R&B vocals, smooth, breath-heavy delivery with restrained vibrato and occasional falsetto slips. Female secondary lounge vocals, close-mic’d, low-register phrasing with minimal vibrato, layered behind or within male lead. Final outro uses formant-shifted male vocals to imply possession. Mood: Sensual, claustrophobic, seductive with underlying dread. Instrumentation: Upright bass (pizzicato early, bowed during bridge and final verses), brushed snare throughout, detuned Rhodes with sustain drift, sparse tremolo guitar for tonal unease, optional bowed ceramic percussion during bridge and outro. Mix Style: Dry mix—no reverb on vocals, minimal room tone. Vocals sit close and intimate, with stereo drift introduced gradually. Bass and keys slightly panned for spatial unease. Outro peaks with stereo drift and vocal formant shift.
TMP: Mouthpiece
Genre: R&B with jazz flourishes, structured as a duet. Vocal Style: Male lead with R&B vocals, smooth, breath-heavy delivery with restrained vibrato and occasional falsetto slips. Female secondary lounge vocals, close-mic’d, low-register phrasing with minimal vibrato, layered behind or within male lead. Final outro uses formant-shifted male vocals to imply possession. Mood: Sensual, claustrophobic, seductive with underlying dread. Instrumentation: Upright bass (pizzicato early, bowed during bridge and final verses), brushed snare throughout, detuned Rhodes with sustain drift, sparse tremolo guitar for tonal unease, optional bowed ceramic percussion during bridge and outro. Mix Style: Dry mix—no reverb on vocals, minimal room tone. Vocals sit close and intimate, with stereo drift introduced gradually. Bass and keys slightly panned for spatial unease. Outro peaks with stereo drift and vocal formant shift.
Lyrics
Verse 1
She touched my throat like it was hers to tune,
(speak softer, I’ll make you heard)
My breath slowed down to match her pulse,
each word bent toward her word.
Pre-Chorus
She leaned in close, adjusted my jaw,
(you’re almost right, just less of you)
I tried to laugh, but it came out wrong,
a sound she’d taught me how to do.
Chorus
It felt like stage, it felt like praise,
her cadence carved into my phrase.
I gave her tone, I gave her breath,
she drew me out, then sang what’s left.
She touched the part I used to guard,
and tuned me deep, just past the heart.
Verse 2
She traced my ribs like piano keys,
(I like the way you bend to please)
I moved to match her every cue,
my voice did what she told it to.
Bridge
She taught me shine without a sound,
turned my tongue to polished silver.
I begged for rest, she gave me song,
and sang until it made me quiver.
Verse 3
She asked me to stay after class,
(closed the door and dimmed the light)
Her fingers found the breath I held,
and tuned me deeper through the night.
Verse 4
She lay beside me, mouth to mouth,
(don’t speak unless it’s mine)
I sang what she had taught me then,
each note a borrowed line.
Chorus
It felt like stage, it felt like praise,
her cadence carved into my phrase.
I gave her tone, I gave her breath,
she drew me out, then sang what’s left.
(I touched the part you used to guard,
and tuned you deep, just past the heart.)
Verse 5
Now I speak in her phrasing,
a mouthpiece carved in bone.
She sings through me at midnight.
I never sing alone.
Outro
(I tuned you)
(I played you)
(You were mine)
(Now you’re me)