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String Ladder

by The Color Forty Nine

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about

“Yesterday, I climbed up a string ladder, hoping to find...” seems a fitting opening line for this record which carries themes of exploration, of relationships, of borders, of futures, pasts, and of self. The tenuous structure of an imaginary ladder made from string sets a tone for ambiguous searches and discoveries, and trying to find answers where there may not be any clarity. The song follows a character trying to understand someone else and why things went the way they did, all the while feeling vulnerable, like a clown on a stage exposed. “What could I say to get away from here?” We have all been there at some point.

The video for String Ladder comes from a collaboration between painter Christopher Wassell, vocalist Phil Beaumont, and animator, Lianne Mueller. Long a fan of Christopher’s abstract work, Phil asked if he would paint a portrait of the song. It led to the pair sitting in Christopher’s Tijuana studio with pencils, paint, a baritone ukulele and a bottle of mezcal. Thinking about each verse of the song, Christopher conjured an image and set about painting while Phil accompanied him and sang the song. By the end of the 5-minute song, Christopher finished up a panel and it was on to the next. 15 rounds later the canvas was ready for Lianne to explore and animate in a quirky realization of the artwork.

lyrics

Yesterday, i climbed up a string ladder
Was Hoping to find
You in your tower

But all that i found
Were some words written down
Carefully on folded paper

And Buried inside
Was an unsaid goodbye
That I had clearly forgotten
---

And all the light
Seemed to dance in your eyes
You were there
You were there
You were there

And all that you said
Had been given away
Though gone, it was not forgotten

And all the smiles
That you tethered to mine
they were there
they were there
they were there

------
And I would there
If you call me lover
Yes, I would be there
If you call me in
----

Walk through the night again
The camera will follow you
I’m playing the clown again
I hope I don’t bother you

What could I say…

In shadows I found you’d been thrown around
But you we were there, you were there, you were there

Yet, all the while I was wondering why
You were there, you were there, you were there
But I’ll be there, if you call me lover,
Yes, I’ll be there, because you’ve drawn me in

Step to the light again
The camera will follow you
I’m playing the clown again, I hope I don’t bother you
I’m playing that part again
I’m playing that part again

What could I say, to get away from here
What should I say, to get away from here

Yesterday, I climbed up a string ladder.

credits

released May 21, 2021
Phil Beaumont - Vocals, Baritone Ukulele
Jason Hooper - Bass, Backing Vocals
Scott Mercado - Drums, Piano, Keys & Synths
Matt Resovich - Violin

Mixed by Dave Parra

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about

The Color Forty Nine image

The Color Forty Nine San Diego, California

The band hails from San Diego, California, where pretty much everything is nice. For this first recording, they have mined a collection of seven musical stories from their surroundings, daily life, countries traveled, and the fortunate proximity of neighboring Tijuana, Mexico.
Collectively, they have been members of bands such as the Black Heart Procession, the Album Leaf, and Maquiladora. ... more

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