I thought that I was hungry for love
Maybe I'm just hungry for blood
Tears from a woman on the shore
You prairie ghost on a cottage hall
Oh, the mermaids have sharp teeth
Razor blades all in your feet
England is only ever grey or green
The girls glitter striding glorious and coatless in the rain
I remember falling through these streets
Somewhat out of place, if not for the drunkenness
It makes my chest hurt to think of it
Not of regret but of missing that
Cheerful oblivion
Cheerful oblivion
It was not all pain and pavement slick with rain
And shining under lights from shitty clubs and doing shitty drugs
And hugging girls that smelled like Britney Spears and coconuts
And with your mermaid hair and your teeth so sharp
You crawled from the sea to break that sailor's heart
You only get one night up on the shore
So dance like you've never danced before
And the dance floor is filling up with blood
But, oh, Lord, you've never been so in love
Cheerful oblivion
Cheerful oblivion
Cheerful oblivion
And the mermaids, they come once a year
They climb the struts of Brighton Pier
They come to drink, they come to dance
To sacrifice a human heart
And the world is so much wilder than you think
You haven't seen nothin'
'Til you've seen an English girl drink
Cheerful oblivion
Cheerful oblivion
Cheerful oblivion
Cheerful oblivion
Cheerful oblivion