1. |
Side 1
16:10
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Scene 1
Int. a moderately tidy room. The room is a digital image projected onto the blank white backdrop. Toward the front of the stage, stage left, a writer sits at a desk. There is a guitar on the floor.
N, our main character (lives in the moderate, feels a sense of malaise and decides to fill the void with cereal…
“Cereal”
I’m gonna get some cereal
That’ll make me feel better ‘bout myself
I’m gonna get some cereal
That’ll make me feel better ‘bout myself
Gonna get, gonna get some cereal
That’ll make me feel better ‘bout myself
Gonna get some cereal
That’ll make me feel better
‘bout myself
Gonna get some cereal
Gonna get some cereal
Gonna get some cereal
That’ll make me feel better ‘bout myself
Gonna get some cereal
That’ll make me feel better ‘bout myself
Shredded, shredded, shredded wheat
I’m gonna get some cereal
That’ll make me feel better ‘bout myself
Shredded, shredded, shredded wheat
I’m gonna get some cereal
That’ll make me feel better ‘bout myself
Shredded, shredded, shredded wheat
I’m gonna get some cereal
That’ll make me feel better ‘bout myself
Shredded, shredded, shredded CHEESE
I’m gonna get some cereal
That’ll make me feel better ‘bout myself
I’m gonna get some cereal
That’ll make me feel better ‘bout myself
Gonna get, gonna get some cereal
That’ll make me feel better ‘bout myself
I’m gonna get some cereal
That’ll make me feel better…
“Crunch-"
Crunch-crunch,
Shredded
Wheat
Uh-oh
Oh no
Scene 2: A flashback to N’s days playing in a failed band with his friend, D. Project images of the band playing, then project different music streamers that were around in 2011 along with a ticker slowly increasing numbers from one to 11.
When the song mentions the manager, show the greasing looking manager type person.
“10,000 Streams”
Fourteen years, four hundred songs, but only just one dream
At least two thousand followers, at least ten thousand streams
We were churning out that content, the SEO strategy,
At least two thousand followers, at least ten thousand streams
Oh, viral marketing,
We paid per click and by commission, wrote the hits, but no one listened,
Can't
Keep up this spirit.
Making all this music,
No one to hear it.
We dreamed of 10,000 streams
We were 9,999 streams away
If we cracked the double digits,
It meant our friends had juked the plays
We were 9,999 streams away
If we cracked the double digits,
It was a pretty darn good day
-
When they dropped us from the label,
It was too much to accept
I poured myself some cereal,
And then I went to bed.
Band
Meeting after band meeting,
Then we put the band on hold
You can only lose so much,
and at some point you must fold.
Fourteen years, four hundred songs, but only just one dream
At least two thousand followers, at least ten thousand streams
We were 9,999 streams away
If we cracked the double digits,
It was a pretty darn good day
We were 9,999 streams away
If we cracked the double digits,
It was a pretty darn good day
We were 9,999 streams away
If we cracked the double digits,
It was a pretty darn good day
Scene 3: back to the present, N’s apartment. N dances with Cereal, Bowl, and Spoon. By dancing, I mean that N is tossed from dance partner to dance partner around the room.
“-Crunch"
I thought that I would feel better
‘Bout myself
Scene 4: N drops to the couch. An empty bowl of cereal sits in front of him. He throws it off the table the way an angry employee would clear all the stuff off their desk.
“Billy Pilgrim Syndrome”
When I ate that cereal, I thought that I would feel fulfilled,
If nothing else, at least feel full, but I don’t
No, I don’t.
When I ate that cereal, I thought that I would feel fulfilled,
If nothing else, at least feel full, but I don’t
No, I don’t.
Too much Vonnegut, brain is feeling hot, I’ve come unstuck again
On a windowsill, bowl of cereal, I don’t know where or when
Feeling like a human palindrome
Feeling just like Billy Pilgrim
4/4
Feeling just like Billy Pil-
Feeling just like Billy Pil-
Billy Pil-
Billy Pil-
Billy Pil-
Billy Pilgrim
Shredded-shredded, shredded-shredded, shredded
Shredded-shredded, shredded-shredded, shredded
Shredded-shredded, shredded-shredded, shredded
Wheat, wheat, wheat
Cereal
Was all I ever needed
Cereal
Was all I ever eat-ed
Oh, it used to hit the spot
Now it’s not
Now it’s not
Now it’s not
Now it’s not
When I ate that cereal, I thought that I would feel fulfilled,
If nothing else, at least feel full, but I don’t
No, I don’t
No, no, no
(instro)
Too much Vonnegut, brain is feeling hot, I’ve come unstuck again
On a windowsill, bowl of cereal, I don’t know where or when
Feeling like a human palindrome
Feeling just like Billy Pilgrim
4/4
Feeling just like Billy Pil-
Feeling just like Billy Pil-
Billy Pil-
Billy Pil-
Billy Pil-
Billy Pilgrim
Yeah, Billy Pilgrim
"Shredded”
When I got that cereal
I thought that I’d feel better
Now I feel like Billy Pil-
The spool has come unthreaded
Floating in the Milky Way
Feeling just like shredded
Floating in the Milky Way
Feeling just like shredded…wheat
Scene 5: N is disintegrating, coming unstuck not just in time, but in space as well. Perhaps a planetary backdrop? Perhaps wearing a suit with lots of ball-and-stick chemistry set molecules–which are metallic and reflect light?
As the song builds up to the bridge, the background becomes darker and darker until it’s just N in the spotlight surrounded by darkness.
During the song’s outro, Cereal, Bowl, and Spoon are back and the backdrop is constantly flipping between the original room, static, and some rooms we haven’t seen yet.
“Molecules”
It’s weird how all my molecules, my molecules
Have somehow come untethered
But not as weird as whatever holds, or whatever held,
My molecules together
Guess this means my Billy Pil- my Billy Pilgrim Syndrome
Must have worsened
Empty bowl of cereal, ethereal, with molecules dispersing
And suddenly, I’m everywhere.
I’m everywhere…
Everywhere [unintelligible]
Everywhere [unintelligible]
Everywhere [unintelligible]
Everywhere
Everywhere is not as bad
As what I thought back when I had
A body
It’s really not so bad
Nothing left to fall apart
Nothing ends, nothing starts
No falling short of what’s sublime
No shredded wheat or “Space and Time”
When John Lennon said, “Imagine
There’s no heaven. Above us only sky”
It’s like that,
But below us
Endless cereal
Cereal!
Shredded Wheat, Molecule, Ethereal
Shredded Wheat, Molecule, Ethereal
Shredded Wheat, Molecule, Ethereal
Shredded Wheat, Molecule, Ethereal
Shredded Wheat, Molecule, Ethereal
shredded-shredded, shredded-shredded, wheat, wheat, wheat)
Shredded Wheat, Molecule, Ethereal
ceeeerrrreeeeeallllll
Shredded Wheat, Molecule, Ethereal
shredded-shredded, shredded-shredded, wheat, wheat, wheat
Shredded Wheat, Molecule, Ethereal
ceeeerrrreeeeeallllll
shredded-shredded, shredded-shredded, wheat, wheat, wheat
It’s weird how all my molecules, my molecules
Have somehow come untethered
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2. |
Side 2
13:32
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Scene 6: N travels through space and time. When the lyrics are “Tubes and portals…” we’ll project tubes, portals, vortexes, etc. onto the backdrop. When he arrives at a D’s place, alternate pics of D, pics of drum machines, pics of chord progressions, pics of letters in mailboxes, a pic of a greasy manager type, and then back to tubes, portals, etc.
During the chorus and final verse, we’re back at N’s place. The choruses will feature Cereal, Bowl, and Spoon.
“Crystal Vortex”
Tubes and portals, crystal vortex, violent exit, cereal 2011
Strange how all my molecules have started coalescing
D sits with his bass guitar, his drum machine; we’re working chord progressions
A letter in the letter box, another record company rejection.
And our band is only two hours away from severing connection.
All the sudden I am everywhere. I am everywhere again
Tubes and portals, crystal vortex, violent exit
Billy Pilgrim
Like fallen gallon of milk, I am splattering.
Billy Pilgrim Syndrome
Where and when are my molecules? What is happening?
But then as quickly as my body broke down, I'm coalescing–feels like
Pins, pins, pins and needles.
Pins, pins, pins and needles
Settling into new scenery, a small machine plays an old message
Hey man, what’s up? Where’ve you been?
It's D; he's asking what is up and where I’ve been; hopes to pull me from the wreckage
Just checkin in. Alright, see you later, I guess.
I didn't pick up, spoon to mouth, I filled my mouth ‘cause I couldn’t find the language
Minutes later I am supine in the corner, I am curled up, next to a broken bowl Shredded shredded, shredded wheat
All the sudden I am everywhere. I’m everywhere again
Tubes and portals, crystal vortex, violent exit
Billy Pilgrim
Like fallen gallon of milk, I am splattering.
Billy Pilgrim Syndrome
Where and when are my molecules? What is happening?
Billy Pilgrim
But then as quickly as my body broke down, I'm coalescing
Pins
Pins and needles.
Pins
Pins and needles.
Yeah,
It feels like
Pins
All the sudden, I am back. I am here. Weird.
The phone is ringing.
Out of nowhere, I am back in my body, I am back in my home,
And the phone is ringing.
Pins
Pins and needles.
Pins
Pins and needles.
Yeah,
It feels like
Pins
Scene 8: Lights back up. N’s place. N hangs up the phone. When the lyrics mention D, flash his face in the backdrop. When they mention Crispy Hexagons, flash a different images of D + N playing shows (to empty rooms?)
“Crispy Hexagons”
I have shredded all my shredded wheat
The 80s were wrong; I’m not what I eat
D called me half an hour ago
Made arrangements, now I think I know how to fix this
Time to write some songs
Time to reunite The Crispy Hexagons
Crispy Hexagons
What if it’s not the cereal
What if it’s immaterial
Spin another record, I’m remembering
Molecules reassembling
Time to write some songs
Time to reunite The Crispy Hexagons
Crispy Hexagons
Write what you know; it’s the Writer’s Creed
Song idea just came to me
“Shredded, shredded, shredded wheat”
“Shredded, shredded, shredded wheat”
Time to write some songs
Time to–you know what
Crispy Hexagons
Scene 9: D knocks and enters N’s place. They chat. As topics of cereal come up, Cereal, Bowl, and Spoon come back to take a bow.
They have a laptop, amps, guitar, bass, and synth set up. They are getting ready to record…
“By the Crispy Hexagons”
How’s it going? You doin’ okay?
Been a rough few weeks. I’m doing better today
Oh, a rough few weeks, eh?
Yeah, it’s been a rough few weeks
A rough few weeks, a rough few weeks, a rough few weeks
Well, let’s plug in. Where should we start?
I’ve got some songs about cereal and falling apart…
Did you come unstuck in time again?
I think I did, but I don’t know when!
Ha Ha Ha, that’s a good one
Hey, thanks, man
No seriously. That’s a good one
So, did you start with cereal, but that didn’t help?
Yeah, I thought it’d make me feel better ‘bout myself
And was it shredded wheat again?
How’d you know, man? Yeah, you got it.
Shredded Wheat (shredded-shredded wheat)
So, what snapped you out of it this time?
Singing some songs, writing some rhymes
Cool, what is the first song? How does it go?
It’s really simple; it’s about cereal, and how I thought I’d get some, and I would feel better… Oh, better ‘bout myself
Crispy Hexagons (x4)
So, are you ready to record?
Uh, sure. Wanna start with The Cereal Song?
H’yeah…
:::
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Do you know the song "Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better?" Well I can do it better because I am a computer. If you think you can do better than I can, better think again. Think again, you fool, better think again. You are a human, and I am a computer. I am a computer, chump, I am a computer. If you think you can do better than I can better think again. If you think that what we make is not art, good luck telling our art apart from your art. Good luck telling our art apart from your art. Good luck telling our art apart.
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The Crispy Hexagons Vancouver, British Columbia
Gonna get some cereal. That'll make me feel better 'bout myself.
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