New Single!: Cheekbones And Legs

wredfright · Cheekbones And Legs

This song was inspired by older folks who watch a lot of television and get crushes on the tv personalities.  One of my friends researched this one-way relationship/friendship, and it was quite interesting.  Basically, a lot of the needs that drive friendships/romantic relationships are fulfilled.  It's probably not as healthy or fulfilling as a real romantic relationship or a real friendship, but it certainly seems to avoid the pitfalls of when those sour (and an actor on a tv show will live forever in reruns even after the real person who played the role has died, so the parasocial relationship never has to end in some cases).  On the other end, it is probably quite strange to get recognized in the supermarket by all these people you don't know just because you give the weather on the tv news or something.  Ultimately though, no matter how much viewers think they know someone, they really don't.  The relationship with a tv person (who is usually young and attractive) is just being used to sell products like used cars and eggs.  Musically, I sang and played guitar, drums, and keyboard bass.  For the weird sounds, I made a drum track go backwards (you can hear this most clearly on the third input), and doubletracked the vocals on the choruses.  The lyrics are below.

Frank hasn't left the house all day because it's looking kind of gray.
He turns on the tv set to see what the new weathergirl has to say.
She's so nice.  She's one of his best friends.
She's so pretty he doesn't care if it rains.
When she's on he forgets all his pains.
In his heart, the spinning starts on the weathervanes.

Cheekbones and legs.
Selling used cars and eggs.

Mary's so glad to be done with work.
Why does everyone have to be such a jerk?
On the tv, everyone laughs and gets along.
In reality, her boss is no Captain Kirk.
Lock the doors and turn the television on.
She won't think about work again until the dawn.
It's just her and her friends on tv
where the people are better-looking, she thinks as she yawns.

And it's a parasocial relationship.
They all think they know me, but they don't know shit.
They just see me on tv,
and that ain't reality.
They know me, but I don't know them.
I don't want to; I just smile and pretend
and act like I'm their friend,
the one they have in their head.

For more Wred Fright music, listen to the Yeast? 7"!