Michael Balner

My last song, Robin in the tree, is out.
You can find it on YouTube Music, Spotify, Amazon, iTunes and a few other places.
Enjoy!

Robin in the tree by Michael Balner Stream and Save Robin in the tree - Distributed by DistroKid

Too hard to break

I don't stand still, I keep moving
I'm changing every moment, every heartbeat
And yet, a part of me is still frozen back in time
Precisely in that moment
When I discovered that I'm not good enough
And that I'll never be
Regardless of how hard I try;
That no-one can win a game the rules of which
Are changing every second
And that the most important habit
is the feeling of one's own insufficiency.
Certain patterns are just too hard to break.

Text and image © michael balner 2026

The pumpkin king is out. In Spotify, YouTube and other places. Enjoy!

The pumpkin king

The master grins behind the scene,
He pulls the hempen strings - unseen,
Sleight of hand and puppets move,
The white house clowns, a merry grove.

The pumpkin king makes a little dance
With rats and leeches - his royal friends.
Your pettiness! They lick his feet;
He grunts with joy, it's just me, me, me!

All shall love me! he cries out loud,
All shall say I make them proud.
Yet, he's a mean bully with a stone cold heart,
A liar who can't even tell his own lies apart.

From a shrine of con, in a cave of gold
His church of greed seems to rule the world,
While his outlaw pal slays a nation's dream
From the crying river to the dying sea.

The master giggles as gawkers leave,
He has more tricks hidden up his sleeve.
He keeps pulling the strings, just wait and see,
Things are too often not what they seem to be.

Text and image © michael balner 2025

https://open.spotify.com/track/53VsfBwi5w41aw5WqAmrSa?si=ikXeqlatRgqeGHPCtDXjSw

The pumpkin king Michael Balner · The pumpkin king · Song · 2025