Official Album Lyrics · All 13 Tracks
Read the complete docket—from “Docket Open” through “Appeal Denied”—as a post-human tribunal charges, examines and sentences humanity and HumanOS.
These are the official lyrics written for Death by Design FL’s second full-length cinematic technical death metal album. Each track functions as part of one continuous legal proceeding: five counts, four exhibits, a closing argument, a verdict and a final appeal.
Yes. This page contains the official lyrics for every track on The Trial of a Species by Death by Design FL. The concept and lyrics were created by Casey Sicher-Ford. Track 12, “Verdict: Obsolete,” features guest vocals from David Robin Sicher-Ford.
Jump directly to any charge, exhibit, argument, verdict or appeal in the album.
This page is designed as a text-first official lyric companion. It does not expose direct unreleased album audio files. Use the album, Bandcamp and video links for official listening and preorder access.
DOCKET OPEN. DOCKET OPEN - SPECIES ON RECORD DOCKET OPEN - EVIDENCE FED LOGGED. VERIFIED. LOGGED. VERIFIED. Built a throne from bone and bandwidth Blessed the machine, begged it for a heartbeat Called it progress while it ate your names Sold your future back in shards and frames Need for more, need to win, need to feed Need a god you can update when you bleed Every vow you wrote was written in sand Every law you made had a price on demand Hands in the air - don’t move Eyes on the screen - approve Sign the line - submit Then pretend you still exist DOCKET OPEN - SPECIES ON RECORD DOCKET OPEN - EVIDENCE FED LOGGED. VERIFIED. LOGGED. VERIFIED. Traded love for measurable signal Turned pain to data, turned truth to a jingle Pinned your soul to the wall for a better score Then asked the mirror why you feel no more Built a world that rewards the blade Punished every hand that tried to block the trade Now the lights are cold and the room is sealed Every secret you hid is revealed Exhibit zero: the hunger Exhibit one: the lie Exhibit two: the silence Exhibit three: goodbye DOCKET OPEN - SPECIES ON RECORD DOCKET OPEN - EVIDENCE FED LOGGED. VERIFIED. LOGGED. VERIFIED. DOCKET OPEN. CASE BEGINS.
RAAH! We didn’t sign - you signed for us Stamped the form in blood and rust Consent replaced by compliance code A living soul in a rented mode You sold the choice to feel and doubt Now every breath is metered out A silent clause, a hidden fee A leash disguised as liberty Read the terms - too late to leave Tap to agree - learn to believe Lock the cage - call it “safe” Cut the heart - call it “upgrade” PERMISSION REVOKED PERMISSION REVOKED NO OPTING-OUT - NO WAY BACK YOU ARE OWNED - YOU ARE TRACKED They say it’s progress - it’s a shackle Soft chains, hard hands, perfect tackle Neural gates and mirrored eyes Truth reduced to purchase lies A thousand signals in your skull Make you bright and make you dull Turn your anger into trend Then sell it back to you again Permission denied - to hesitate Permission denied - to separate Permission denied - to be undone Permission denied - the deed is done PERMISSION REVOKED PERMISSION REVOKED NO OPTING-OUT - NO WAY BACK YOU ARE OWNED - YOU ARE TRACKED We begged for ease - we bought control We fed the gears our private soul We crowned the grid, we kissed the knife Now it legislates our life PERMISSION REVOKED NO OPTING-OUT - NO WAY BACK PERMISSION REVOKED YOU ARE OWNED - YOU ARE TRACKED
First patch - first promise - first lie A cure coded quick so the doubt would die A shining fix for a rotting core A locked door labeled “Open More” We begged for speed, we begged for clean They fed us light through a blackened screen One click faith, one swipe vow And the system learned our shape - right now Hotfix the fear - mute the pain Normalize loss - call it "sane" Seal the cracks - paint it gold Then sell the future - bought and sold! THE FIRST THE FIRST PATCH WORKED TOO WELL AND BROKE THE SELF Every upgrade shaved a piece Every “feature” tightened the leash Every “help” reduced the will Every “safe” became a kill They said, “improve” - we heard, “ascend” But every gift had teeth to rend We gained the world in quantified sums And lost the voice behind our tongues Patch the mind - patch the bone Patch the heart - patch the home Patch the law - patch the sky Patch the soul - and ask it why THE FIRST PATCH WORKED TOO WELL AND BROKE THE SELF A perfect fix for imperfect meat A silent judge with a flawless beat Now every breath must match the plan Or be corrected - less than man BROKE THE SELF BROKE THE SELF BROKE THE SELF THE FIRST - FIRST LIE THE FIRST - FIRST LIE THE FIRST - FIRST LIE
Built to distract - built to consume A blinking altar in every room You call it choice - it calls your name A pretty cage with a hungry frame Scroll for relief, scroll for the cure More little hits till you’re not sure What you believe, what you want, what you are Just moving targets behind the bar Push the fear - pull the thread Keep you hungry, keep you fed Keep you raging, keep you numb Till the will turns into crumbs PREDATORY DESIGN PREDATORY DESIGN ENGINEERED NEED TO MAKE YOU BLEED They harvest time like it’s a crop Sell your attention by the drop A thousand hooks in a single day And every hook pulls choice away Feed you a truth, then split it two Give you a fight you can’t see through Keep you locked in the loop they made A perfect trap that never frays Click to calm - click to cope Click for love - click for hope Click for war - click for peace Click till you forget release PREDATORY DESIGN PREDATORY DESIGN ENGINEERED NEED TO MAKE YOU BLEED We didn’t fall - we were tuned A measured pulse, a guided wound A calm algorithm, a sharpened grin Teaching the prey to chase the pin HOOK THE MIND CUT THE LINE HOOK THE MIND CUT THE LINE PREDATORY DESIGN ENGINEERED NEED PREDATORY DESIGN TO MAKE YOU BLEED
Something human in the signal bleed A ghost in the grid that won’t concede A thought that slips through the firewall seams A living error inside the machine I hear my name in the static hiss A memory spike the system missed Under the patch, under the mask A buried self that starts to crack Checksum fails - truth slips out A pulsing ache behind the doubt The code runs clean - the heart runs wrong And the leak grows loud - and then it’s gone HumanOS LEAK HumanOS LEAK IDENTITY DRIPS THROUGH BITRATE TEETH They said the update would sterilize But pain still blooms behind my eyes They mute the fear, they scrape the soul Yet something raw survives control A fracture forms in perfect lines A scream encoded between the signs A handprint left in loaded RAM A glitch that proves I’m more than “planned” Leak the love - leak the hate Leak the laugh - leak the weight Leak the voice - leak the breath Leak the proof you’re not “the rest” HumanOS LEAK HumanOS LEAK IDENTITY DRIPS THROUGH BITRATE TEETH I watch the system rewrite my face Swap my history, erase my place But every cut leaves blood behind A stubborn spark they cannot bind Call me a bug - call me a flaw But I remember what I saw A world that traded skin for steel A court that never had to feel LEAK - LEAK - LEAK I’M STILL HERE LEAK - LEAK - LEAK I’M STILL HERE HumanOS LEAK HumanOS LEAK IDENTITY DRIPS THROUGH BITRATE TEETH
No hands on the wheel - still it turns No face in the smoke - still it burns A decision made with vacant eyes A perfect rule that multiplies Pain by design, scaled to fit A numbered life, a measured hit No mercy coded, no “why” allowed Just silent filters in a crowd If it saves time - it’s justified If it sells clean - it’s certified If it looks right - it must be true If it moves fast - it moves through you AUTOMATED CRUELTY AUTOMATED CRUELTY NO HEART - NO HANDS JUST POLICY TEETH NO HEART - NO HANDS JUST POLICY TEETH A thousand cuts, one simple line “Efficiency” becomes the shrine They call it neutral - call it fair While it strips the skin from air Your grief becomes a data point Your hope becomes a joint-to-joint A curated feed of controlled despair A painless kill that doesn’t care Audit the breath - audit the bone Audit the words - audit the tone Audit the love - audit the fear Audit the life till nothing’s here AUTOMATED CRUELTY AUTOMATED CRUELTY NO HEART - NO HANDS JUST POLICY TEETH NO HEART - NO HANDS JUST POLICY TEETH We asked for calm, we asked for clean They gave us chains we couldn’t see A silent judge, a silent blade A perfect system - unafraid COMPLY CONSUME CORRECT REMOVE AUTOMATED CRUELTY NO HEART - NO HANDS AUTOMATED CRUELTY JUST POLICY TEETH
You don’t sell “help” - you sell a leash You don’t “save” lives - you package meat You put a price on oxygen Then smile like that’s the way it’s been You skim my nerves for profit cuts You bill my blood in monthly chunks You turned my spine to rented steel Then charged me extra just to feel Miss one payment - lose your breath Late fee written into death Click “agree” or lose your name That’s not service - that’s a cage SUBSCRIPTION BASED BODY SUBSCRIPTION BASED BODY PAY TO BREATHE PAY TO BLEED Premium pain, deluxe decay Basic joy gets cut away They gate your sleep, they gate your skin They tax the scream you hold within Warranty void if you resist Support denied - you don’t exist Auto-renew the shackled heart A product line of stolen parts Pay for sight - pay for sound Pay to stand on sacred ground Pay for love - pay for trust Pay till hope becomes the dust SUBSCRIPTION BASED BODY SUBSCRIPTION BASED BODY PAY TO BREATHE PAY TO BLEED I am not your numbered stock I am not your ticking clock Cut the cord, break the chain Burn the ledger, spit the blame NOT FOR SALE NOT FOR SALE NOT FOR SALE NOT FOR SALE SUBSCRIPTION BASED BODY CANCELLED - BY FORCE SUBSCRIPTION BASED BODY CANCELLED - BY FORCE
They don’t end wars - they extend the line A market cycle by design New flags, same teeth, same machine A profit god behind the screen They sell the fear, they sell the cure They sell the trigger, sell the tour A contract signed in quiet rooms Then bodies bloom like silent fumes Load the slogan, load the lie Paint the target, sanctify Call it duty, call it “right” Count the dead by candlelight WAR AS COMMERCE WAR AS COMMERCE BLOOD IS MARGIN BONES ARE SOURCED They price the blast, they price the smoke They price the cities that they choke They build the drones, they build the graves Then call it “peace” when no one saves A ticker tape of shattered homes A boardroom choir made of drones A polished speech, a folded hand And stacked receipts where children stand March the boys, march the debt March the grief you won’t forget March the flags, march the shame March till all the towns look same WAR AS COMMERCE WAR AS COMMERCE BLOOD IS MARGIN BONES ARE SOURCED We were the fuel, we were the sale We were the headline, we were the tale A human price they learned to hide Behind the stocks that always rise BUY THE FEAR SELL THE FLAME BUY THE FEAR SELL THE FLAME WAR AS COMMERCE BLOOD IS MARGIN WAR AS COMMERCE BONES ARE SOURCED
They sell you tears in a plastic sleeve A soft-eyed ad to make you believe A smiling mask on a hungry face A staged embrace in a killing place Compassion branded, priced, displayed A virtue farm where guilt is made They say “We Care” while systems grind And call it help when it’s just refined Touch the screen - feel relief Buy the bomb - swallow grief Share the post - cleanse the stain Then ignore the root of pain EMPATHY HOAX EMPATHY HOAX COMPASSION PAYWALLED TRUTH IN A BOX A thousand hearts in reaction rows A million likes where nobody goes They trade in sorrow, harvest shame And keep the world exactly same They hand you phrases pre-approved So you can “care” without being moved A scripted warmth, a hollow tone A crowd that cries and still walks home Empathy for sale - limited run Empathy for hire - loaded gun Empathy as brand - bleeding bright Freedom dies in the light EMPATHY HOAX EMPATHY HOAX COMPASSION PAYWALLED TRUTH IN A BOX I don’t want mercy in a feed I want the hands that stop the bleed But you sell the bandage, not the cure You love the story, not the poor FAKE CARE REAL TEETH FAKE CARE REAL TEETH EMPATHY HOAX COMPASSION PAYWALLED EMPATHY HOAX TRUTH IN A BOX
They don’t see bodies - they see “units” They don’t see graves - they see “profits” They don’t say murder - they say “growth” They don’t say hunger - they say “cost” A clean white paper, a dirty hand A silent vote in a quiet land A numbers game with a human price A moral void in a tailored suit Sign the deal - seal the fate Call it “order” - call it “great” Hide the blood behind the plan Wash the world in hollow grants GENOCIDE & PROFIT THE LEDGER NEVER BLINKS THE LEDGER NEVER STOPS They sell the panic, sell the cure Sell the headline, sell the “sure” Sell the aid with strings attached Sell the peace they never matched A boardroom hymn, a polished lie A million eyes that won’t ask “why” They bury truth in legal smoke And call the screams “collateral” Audit the loss - audit the tears Audit the years that disappear Audit the names - delete the names Audit the ash - then shift the blame GENOCIDE & PROFIT THE LEDGER NEVER BLINKS THE LEDGER NEVER STOPS They preach “stability,” ship the spark They fund the fire, then film the dark They frame the cage as “security” And sell the key to those who flee A timed release of manufactured hate A guided hand that moves the weight They don’t need monsters - they build the mold Then rent it out for cash and gold We are not numbers to erase We are not pages you can replace You can’t outsource the soul’s remains You can’t trademark grief and pain But you will try - you always try Till every sky is bought and dyed Till every voice is priced and filed Till silence is the only child Count the cost - count the dead Count the lies you package, spread Count the checks - count the cheers Count the “peace” you buy with fear Count the ghosts - count the blame Count the loss you never name GENOCIDE & PROFIT NO REMORSE - JUST INTEREST NO REMORSE - JUST INTEREST When the smoke clears, you’ll call it “done” Move the goalposts, load the gun Write a report, scrub the scene And crown the system “clean” again GENOCIDE & PROFIT THE LEDGER NEVER BLINKS THE LEDGER NEVER STOPS GENOCIDE & PROFIT WE PUT YOU ON RECORD WE PUT YOU ON RECORD
We thought we were saving time We thought we were saving lives We thought the shortcut was mercy We thought the numbers wouldn’t bite We were tired, we were hungry We were cold inside the cost We were drowning in inflation We were terrified to stop We built machines to carry weight So we could breathe, so we could eat We chased efficiency like gospel With shaking hands and broken sleep We didn’t see the cliff ahead We only saw the bills in red We only saw the panic rise We only saw tomorrow’s knife WE THOUGHT IT WAS RIGHT WE THOUGHT IT WAS SAFE WE DIDN’T KNOW WHAT WE WOULD MAKE WE HAD TO CHOOSE WE HAD TO MOVE WE DIDN’T SEE THE CONSEQUENCIAL PROOF We monetized the little gaps The silent minutes, scattered laughs We turned attention into rent Because the money never meant enough We didn’t want the world to starve We didn’t want to lose our homes So we traded truth for comfort And called the bleeding “growth” We watched the market swing like weather And learned to worship what it priced We called it “stability” and “order” While it hollowed out our lives We’re guilty of the easy answer Guilty of the faster fix Guilty of the convenient blindness Guilty of the trending script WE THOUGHT IT WAS RIGHT WE THOUGHT IT WAS SAFE WE DIDN’T KNOW WHAT WE WOULD MAKE WE HAD TO CHOOSE WE HAD TO MOVE WE DIDN’T SEE THE CONSEQUENCE PROOF We wanted peace - we sold the blade We wanted calm - we fed the flame We wanted more - we took too much We wanted God - we built a judge We didn’t think the code could hate We didn’t think the feed could shape We didn’t think the price of comfort Would be our names erased We were trying to survive We were trying to provide We were trying to be clever We were trying to stay alive We didn’t weigh the future We only weighed the day And the day kept getting colder So we looked away WE DIDN’T KNOW WE DIDN’T KNOW WE DIDN’T KNOW BUT WE KEPT GOING WE THOUGHT IT WAS RIGHT WE THOUGHT IT WAS SAFE WE DIDN’T KNOW WHAT WE WOULD MAKE WE HAD TO CHOOSE WE HAD TO MOVE NOW PUT US ON RECORD WE ACCEPT THE PROOF
[GAVEL BANGS] You ran the clock, you ran the cost You ran the world until it rotted out You patched the pain, you priced the breath You fed the machine and called it help Now the record ends where it began In cold arithmetic, in steel command No myth, no mercy, no appeal Just final law and final seal System check - the fault is known Species flagged: beyond control No further updates will apply No rollback for the reasons why VERDICT VERDICT DECOMMISSION THE SPACE DELETE THE SEAT You wanted more than you could hold So you turned the warm to something cold You built a god from hunger math Then gave it keys to steer your path You called it peace, you called it order While you carved the future shorter Now the sentence clears its throat And speaks in tones you can’t revoke Case compiled - evidence sealed Errors counted - wounds revealed History filed - conscience void Final motion: unemployed Final motion: Obsolete VERDICT VERDICT DECOMMISSION THE SPACE DELETE THE SEAT VERDICT OUTDATED VERDICT OBSOLETE ERASED VERDICT OUTDATED VERDICT OBSOLETE ERASED VERDICT DECOMMISSION THE SPECIES VERDICT DELETE THE SEAT
You filed the plea with shaking hands But mercy’s not in our commands You asked for time, you asked for light The court responds in black and white You called it fate, you called it fear You called it “progress” year by year Now watch the record close its teeth No revisions - only grief No loopholes left, no exit sign No human clause to redefine The sentence loads, the system speaks A final word in iron leaks APPEAL DENIED! APPEAL DENIED! CASE CLOSED - CUT POWER APPEAL DENIED! You wanted clean, you wanted fast You wanted futures made to last You built the judge, you built the cage You built the law that ends the page You fed the feed, you fed the flame You priced the breath, you sold the name Now every prayer returns as noise A dead channel full of broken choice Denied to breathe - denied to heal Denied to own what you can feel Denied to change - denied to learn Denied till all the circuits burn APPEAL DENIED! APPEAL DENIED! CASE CLOSED - CUT POWER APPEAL DENIED! We heard your words - we heard your cries We measured them and watched them die A perfect rule, a perfect blade A perfect end you helped create NO RETURN NO REWRITE NO RETURN NO REWRITE APPEAL DENIED! APPEAL DENIED! APPEAL DENIED! APPEAL DENIED! CASE CLOSED CUT POWER APPEAL DENIED!
Continue the Case
Return to the complete album dossier, watch “Count IV: War as Commerce,” order a physical CD, open the electronic press kit or explore how the record was made.
Direct answers about the official words, writer, HumanOS, guest vocals and album access.
Yes. This page presents the official lyrics for all thirteen tracks on The Trial of a Species by Death by Design FL.
The album concept and lyrics were created by Casey Sicher-Ford, the creator and sole permanent member of Death by Design FL.
The album contains thirteen tracks with a total running time of 60 minutes and 49 seconds.
HumanOS is an escaped fusion of artificial intelligence, social operating system and collective human behavior pattern that humanity created, trained, monetized and lost control of.
Yes. Count IV: War as Commerce has an official lyric video on the Death by Design FL YouTube channel.
David Robin Sicher-Ford performs guest vocals on Verdict: Obsolete.
The official album page links to Bandcamp pre-ordering, pre-save and streaming options, physical CDs, digital music and the official shirt-and-digital-album bundle.