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Artist List   /   The American Hotel System   /   Can You Hear It? - EP




01. Can You Hear It?

Can You Hear It? - EP
by The American Hotel System

       
Lyrics:

V1
I’ve been searching through my past
A backwards journey from the lie they cast
I find nothing of solace in the siren’s voice
The echoes of knowledge of a long lost noise

CH
Can you hear it?
Oh, can you feel it?
I’ve been searching for a melody that can’t be sung
It’s the song that I’ve been looking for since I was young
Can you hear it?
Oh, can you feel it?

V2
I look to the mountains, they call my name
I search for a label, but they all defame
My soul awakens when I hear the sound
Played on my heartstrings– this joy profound

CH
Can you hear it?
Oh, can you feel it?
I’ve been searching for a melody that can’t be sung
It’s the song that I’ve been looking for since I was young
Can you hear it?
Oh, can you feel it?

Bridge
This melody inside, I can hear it and feel it
Calling me to life and I need to be near it
Opening my eyes so I can see clearly
The longings in my heart I’ve been searching for fiercely

CH
Can you hear it?
Oh, can you feel it?
I’ve been searching for a melody that can’t be sung
It’s the song that I’ve been looking for since I was young
Can you hear it?
Oh, can you feel it?


Lyrics by Jacob L. Betts (ASCAP IPI #1095371544)

Behind the Song:
Every summer, my wife's extended family gathers at Gull Lake, just south of Kalamazoo, for a week of family camp. In 2021, I experienced this tradition for the first time, where we had the privilege of learning from author Matt Heard. Throughout the week, Matt delved into the meaning of true life (Zoë), drawing heavily from his book 'Life With a Capital L.' One particular theme that stood out was longing, or 'Sehnsucht'—a German word encompassing wistful, yearning desires. C.S. Lewis frequently explored sehnsucht in his addresses, essays, and fictional works like Narnia and The Space Trilogy. Lewis understood that our souls are created with a longing for something beyond this world—a 'music we are born remembering.' Often, we mistakenly label these longings as nostalgia or beauty, but they merely hint at a deeper desire. Lewis writes, 'The beauty, the memory of our own past...are good images of what we really desire; but if they are mistaken for the thing itself, they turn into dumb idols, breaking the hearts of their worshipers. For they are not the thing itself; they are only the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo of a tune we have not heard, news from a country we have never visited.' Discovering the concept of sehnsucht felt like a missing puzzle piece fitting perfectly within my heart, providing language to describe the profound yearnings I've carried throughout my life. I've been searching for a melody I cannot sing. I firmly believe that by paying attention to the echoes of these longings within my soul, I draw closer to the joyous life I was created to live ('my soul awakens when I hear the sound played on my heartstrings; this joy profound'). After the lesson on longing, we spent several hours on a pontoon, and as the sun set over Gull Lake, I was reminded of my own 'echo of a tune I haven't heard.' It was during that moment that I wrote the majority of 'Can You Hear It?'. -- Jacob Betts
                 
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This Wednesday, August 13, 2025
ALBUMS
Various Artists Songs We've Been Trying To Tell You About (And Others We Haven't), Vol. 14 [JFH Music]

This Friday, August 15, 2025
ALBUMS
Mark Bishop Grandkids - EP [Sonlite]
The CCC Collective Brooklyn Culture (independent)
Equippers Worship Awe [DREAM Worship]
The Final Witness Beneath The Altar [Rottweiler]
Grammatrain Flying Collector's Edition CD [Girder]
Grammatrain Lonely House 30th Anniversary Edition CD [Girder]
Katy Nichole Honest Conversations [Centricity]
REFVGE REFVGE 1 [Syntax]
Relentless Pursuit Apocalypsis (independent)
V1 Worship Archives [DREAM]
Joel Vaughn Feel It - EP [DREAM]

SINGLES
ANTHNY no stages - Single [Provident]
Johan Åsgärde Coming Home - Single [Gotee]
Dave Barnes Everything But Mine - Single (independent)
Pat Barrett I've Got A Fire - Single [Capitol CMG]
Chris Caro Pain Pt. 3 - Single [Syntax]
Jeff Deyo There is a Fire - Single [NWN]
Drenae Dead Seed - Single [Syntax]
F'rael Pardon My Grace - Single [Syntax]
Jeremy and Adrienne Camp Worthy Of It All / I Exalt Thee (Jeremy and Adrienne Camp Version) - Single [Sparrow]
Linc Worship I Know - Single (independent)
Steven Malcolm All God - Single [Curb]
Jeannie Ortega Little Girl is Gone - Single [Syntax]
outr.cty Testin' Your Luck (ft. Selah the Corner & Dre Murray) - Single [Syntax]
Matt Redman Let Me See Jesus / Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus (feat. Charity Gayle) - Single [Integrity]
Rhymes in Harmony Beautiful Name - Single [Syntax]
Brandon Lake, Phil Wickham, & Elevation Worship So So Good (Live) - Single [Fair Trade]

VINYL
Grammatrain Flying Vinyl [Girder]
Grammatrain Lonely House 30th Anniversary Edition Vinyl [Girder]
Newsboys Going Public Vinyl [Girder]

Next Friday, August 22, 2025
ALBUMS
Lecrae Reconstruction [Reach]
Lizzie Morgan Not My Will [Provident]
Josiah Queen MT. ZION [Capitol CMG]

SINGLES
Dust and Grace Hallelujah - Single [MTS]
Good Weather Forecast Today (feat. Elijah Thomas) - Single [DREAM]
Roxanne Grace Try Again - Single [DREAM]
Mainstream Worship Invitation - Single [DREAM Worship]
V1 Worship Been So Faithful - Single [DREAM Worship]



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