Here’s another song I’m considering including in my 2018 Fringe festival show, “International Man of Mystery.” I wrote this in August of 2017, and much like Derek (which I wrote in July 2017), I didn’t get around to recording it until now. Please let me know if you like it, because I’m still not sure whether or not to include it in the show.
I’m a little on the fence about this one because it isn’t hilariously funny. There’s like…one funny moment in it if you bother to watch until around 2 minutes…but it’s mostly just me being morose about the stupid International Man’s cold, brutal rejection of me. I also don’t like my voice…especially in this video, since I recorded “Derek” right beforehand and was probably a little tired. Why can’t I have a big, beautiful voice instead of my miserable little pipsqueak vocal chords? I always worry that I’m misleading people when I tell them my music is Adele meets Frank Zappa because my voice is nothing like hers; I use that analogy because I write a lot about heartbreak like she does. I would honestly prefer to say “Rachel Bloom meets Zappa,” but not everyone watches Crazy Ex-Girlfriend…which is a damn shame!
I’m also on the fence about how funny I need to be and when. Somebody told me once they thought that funny songs have a harder time being recognized by the songwriting community as “good” or “quality.” On the other hand, I believe this makes my music stand out from all the other millions of singer-songwriters out there vying for your attention. But having said that – do I need to be Stephen Lynch? Should I build my brand on being funny all the time? Should I avoid writing sad songs like this one? I honestly don’t know…
So now for what I like about this song: first of all, I finally wrote something with a key change! And then I changed back to the original key using a ii-V-I progression! I’m putting all that jazz theory I learned from Derek at Grossmont College to good use. I also like the ending where I go backwards through each of the choruses as though it were a time machine. And finally, I think this tune is a thought experiment. Could things be different from the way they are now? Is everything predetermined? Might there be alternate realities based on things happening differently? I really love the His Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman because it plays with that idea…and also, everyone’s soul is an animal that follows them around…but that’s another story for another time.
Apropos of nothing, did you know that they call ATM’s “time machines” in Wisconsin? The only reason I know that is because I went to college in the Midwest.
Let me know if you like the song!