[Intro][Male Lead Vocal over offbeat guitar chops that imitate badge taps]

Tap. Red.
Tap. Red.
Tap it like you mean it.
Still red.

[Verse 1][Male Lead Vocal]

Quarter past eight, the sidewalk starts to fill,
A hundred cups held hot and still.
The reader chirps and throws a crimson glow,
The glass door plants its feet and answers no.
Martin rubs his badge against his sleeve,
As if static and his necktie might make it believe.

[Pre-Chorus][Alternating Male and Female Vocals]

[Male Lead]
Security calls I-T. I-T checks the line.

[Female Lead: GREH-ta]
"The power feed is dipping out of time."

[Duet]
One more chirp, one flash, one corporate groan:
The morning shift is stuck in stone.

[Chorus][Male Lead with Gang Vocals]

Access denied at the front door,
Tap it once, then tap it four.
Red light says you work no more,
Access denied at the front door.
Staff on the street, suits on floor four:
Access denied at the front door.

[Verse 2][Male Lead Vocal]

An intern holds the glass; the alarm begins to yell,
The lobby packs with bodies and scorched coffee smell.
A courier brings cold crates stamped "Rush,"
Building B refuses to recognize the day.
The turnstile hugs a manager around the waist,
His dignity escapes with admirable haste.

[Chorus][Male Lead with Gang Vocals]

Access denied at the front door,
Tap it once, then tap it four.
Red light says you work no more,
Access denied at the front door.
Staff on the street, suits on floor four:
Access denied at the front door.

[Instrumental Break][Baritone sax repeats the buzzer motif while drums punch out imaginary badge taps]

[Verse 3][Female Lead Vocal]

GREH-ta parts the crowd with one raised key,
Then checks the relay box in Security.
The cooling fan wears thick gray grime,
The cabinet has baked since closing time.
She clears the vent; the relay clicks awake,
Then dies again before her hand can leave the plate.

[Bridge][Female Lead Vocal]

A badge is plastic. A profile is a file.
Copper needs current; gears need grease.
Buy all the smart permission in the store,
A tired relay gets the final vote at the door.

[Breakdown][Gang Vocals]

One for the reader! Two for the gate!
Three for the meeting we're already late!
Four for the policy filed away!
Six hundred badges shouting, "Not today!"

[Final Chorus][Female and Male Duet with Gang Vocals]

Access denied at the front door,
GREH-ta turns the key once more.
The crowd gets through; the relays roar,
But one red light demands repair.
Tomorrow it may vote once more:
Access denied at the front door.

[Outro][Female Lead Vocal over key-ring hits and one sustained guitar note]

The clock moves on. The crowd is gone.
The lobby claims the fault moved on.
GREH-ta hears that relay roar:
Access denied at the front door.
