Matt Shadows their lead singer says the song was written as per request from the developers of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4. Watching the initial trailers for the game & looking at production sketches reminded him of the 'S-Town' podcast & its main protagonist, John B. McLemore. Matt also comments specifically on the lyrics: "I decided that the lyrics would shadow McLemore's life." In 2012, antiquarian horologist John B. McLemore sent an email to the staff of the show 'This American Life' asking them to investigate an alleged murder in his hometown of Woodstock, Alabama, a place McLemore claimed to despise. After a year of exchanging emails & several months of conversation with McLemore, producer Brian Reed traveled to Woodstock to investigate. Reed investigated the crime & eventually found that no such murder took place, though he struck up a friendship with the depressed but colorful character of McLemore. He recorded conversations with McLemore & other people in Woodstock. McLemore killed himself by drinking potassium cyanide on June 22, 2015 while the podcast was still in production. In the narrative of the podcast, this occurs at the end of the second episode; subsequent episodes deal with the fallout from McLemore's death while exploring more of McLemore's life & character.
The subway rumbles as I stumble through the ash of cities charred
Take the kids to the shelter that I built in the back yard
I can't sleep with all these sirens, I ain't lyin', death abounds
I was grounded in this town until the courthouse walls came down
It's a war, it's a war (It's a war, it's a war)
It's a war, it's a war (It's a war, it's a war)
My head ain't right
Now every night
They come to see
What will become of me
What will become of me
I was a stunning runner, son, before my legs were crushed
No chance of reconciliation, fella, it's just them or us
Don't you let that doctor in, he's a sinner, he's a foe
I've stockpiled enough food to get us where we need to go
It's a war, it's a war (It's a war, it's a war)
It's a war, it's a war (It's a war, it's a war)
My head ain't right
Now every night
They come to see
What will become of me
My head ain't right
Now every night
They come to see
What will become of me
What will become of me
Take the kids to the shelter that I built in the back yard
I can't sleep with all these sirens, I ain't lyin', death abounds
I was grounded in this town until the courthouse walls came down
It's a war, it's a war (It's a war, it's a war)
It's a war, it's a war (It's a war, it's a war)
My head ain't right
Now every night
They come to see
What will become of me
What will become of me
I was a stunning runner, son, before my legs were crushed
No chance of reconciliation, fella, it's just them or us
Don't you let that doctor in, he's a sinner, he's a foe
I've stockpiled enough food to get us where we need to go
It's a war, it's a war (It's a war, it's a war)
It's a war, it's a war (It's a war, it's a war)
My head ain't right
Now every night
They come to see
What will become of me
My head ain't right
Now every night
They come to see
What will become of me
What will become of me
Lyrics submitted by uublog
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