"I Remember Now" and "Anarchy-X" -- the frame narrative at work

The Song (spoken) "I Remember Now"

the album starts with a set of hospital sound cips i've heard everywhere from Scrubs to a host of movies.  back then, though, it sounded like a real hospital.

"Dr. Blair, Dr Blair.... Dr. J Hamilton, Dr. J Hamilton..."

a nurse walks into a ward.  cheerful.

"Why are you still up?" she trills with a slight british accent.

(indistinct sounds.  she turns off the tv.  more sounds.)

"That should do it.  Sweet dreams....

(with loathing) you bastard"

the music rises from nothing to a low undercurrent.  Geoff Tate, singer, voice of Mickey, mutters low:

I remember now
I remember how it started
I can't remember yesterday
I just remember doing what they told me [echo].

The Plot

instant curiosity.  Who is he?  where?  why is she filled with such hatred?

and what exactly did *they* (who?) tell him to do?  he's sedated, he's effectively a prisoner.  is she overreacting, or is he dangerous?

this would read differently today.  in a post-columbine world, we treat potential dangers with more rigidity.  especially in the era it most matches, the Bush early 00s, when the nation was riding a streak of all the worst effects of blind nationalism and fear -- he would probably have been "shot while fleeing" by the cops.  

it erupts into music at the end, segueing into the next track.  it leaves a sense of interest while letting the audience knew two vital things: that our main character has done something unforgiveable, and that he was perhaps not the real source of fault.  

it will also allow us to view his rise and fall, and the reason behind his effective imprisonment.

Effect

mostly, as mentioned above, this is a setup for the frame narrative

Questions

too many to ask right now.  mostly, we are curious about what he did, and who *they* are.

Questions answered (none yet)

Track 2 -- instrumental: "Anarchy-X"

the music rises into a strident snare-beat  

a low guitar melody follows the whole track

sounds of a speaker declaring indistinct excitement to an audience, who join him in cheers

a high guitar melody that rises above, leads us over a lull in the rest of the music, and becomes a strummed series of chords before the action picks up again and leads us to the major theme... and transitions into the first full track.

Effect

crowds have passion, but good causes and hate groups sound the same when you can;t make out the words.  a speaker could rally people to solve injustices, or to perpetuate them.  the guitar sounds like the voice of the narrator, trying to leave a mark against the noisy backdrop.  the use of prevalent rhythm sounds like a clock ticking too fast, like time and events getting away from you while the crowds chant slogans and you can;t change the direction of the masses.  

it's an instrumental, but it's vital to establishing the main character.  confused, buffeted by undercurrents in society, unclear of his own footing.  even before we hear from him in the nextr track, we already have expectations that this journey of his will involve politics, isolation, a need to be heard, and dissatisfaction with his position.

... more to come as the next track begins