Colors and Shapes Lyrics

[Segue 1: Timothy Leary & Interviewer]
"Have I answered the question, 'Who am I'?"
"Mm-hmm"
"Well, I confront it all the time. We're teaching people how to use their head. The, uh... point is, that in order to use your head, you have to go out of your mind. You have to go out of all of the, uh, static symbolic ways in which you think."


[Verse 1]
If it was colors and shapes, the imaginary
'Stead of all of this weight that we have to carry
Would you be able to breathe?
And if you could just find where that comfort resides
No distraction or movement that fucks with your mind
Would you let them see?
While beneath the ocean, I met with the captain
Who sank to the floor on his ship
All of his passengers escaped to safety
But he was not done with his trip

He looked up and smiled, asked me, "How do you do?''
I told him, "I'm losin' my grip"
He told me, ''Son, if you want to hold onto yourself
Then let yourself slip''


[Chorus]
Fall, ooh-ooh-ooh
Fall, oh
Fall
Oh, it feels good to fall
Ooh-ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh-ooh

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About

Genius Annotation

This song is about LSD and the perception of life it gives to those who take it. The man in the introduction is Timothy Leary, who was one of the inspirations for the psychedelic movement of the 60’s

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

What has the music video director said about the song?
Genius Answer

The track felt very visual to me—like it had its own world. This atmospheric nighttime place that was sometimes dangerous, sometimes comforting, then I saw a picture of [Mac Miller’s dog] Ralph and a story emerged. To build it out I asked Malcolm’s family to send me bits and pieces from his childhood, scenes from the town where he grew up, objects, toys from his room—little pieces of his life that I extrapolated outwards and used to inspire the story. In the abstract, it’s meant to be a video about childhood—growing up as an artist and the highs and lows of that experience. It’s sort of a look at the emotional and difficult and perilous but noble path of an artist.

— Sam Mason via Pitchfork

Credits
Phonographic Copyright ℗
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Recorded At
The Sanctuary, Studio City, CA
Release Date
May 11, 2014
Songs That Interpolate Colors and Shapes
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