So this song has a corny story behind it…. So, one of my friends was trying to get people to come to an activity he put on every Monday but no one would come because everyone stayed at home and watched 24. At one point he said something along the lines of, “What’s the big deal with 24!? It’s just fictional heroes saving cities from fictional disasters!” After he said that, I thought to me myself, “That’s it!” and quickly jotted the line down, which then became the basis for this song. In a broader sense, it’s about our perceptions of reality and how we sometimes think a situation is worse than it really is.

The production is influenced by John Vanderslice and some of his earlier songs. Here’s “Me and My 424”

I used an old retro organ for the drum beat, which I think sounds a little lo-fi and quirky but also fits the song.

Lyrics:

All the fictional heroes saving fictional cities
From disasters that only television can make
Then as I’m watching the villains stepping right in the way
I keep saving myself from making bigger mistakes
Give me a reason to watch then everything is fine by me

And the fictional victims are attempting to flee
From the big budget disaster that’s so hard to believe
Looking for something to keep them in a safe place again
And I’m hiding away in places I’ve never been
But if we cover our tracks then there isn’t a chance they’ll find me

And it never is what it seems
Until we’re watching the final scene
And the fictional heroes talk
As if there’s nothing wrong at all

And a fictional murder keeps me dieing again
and yet I’m feeling alive more than I ever have been
I’m stepping out of a conflict and resolving the plot
And all the fictional people think I’m something I’m not
They say that people can change but they never move more than an inch

As we act out the final scene
It seems the plot is still incomplete
And the fictional heroes talk
As if there’s nothing wrong at all

And it never is what it seems
Until we’re watching the final scene
And the fictional heroes talk
As if there’s nothing wrong at all

Download “Fictional Heroes” on Bandcamp.

Become a sponsor of this podcast through Patreon.com