"Everything In Gravity Grows"

'Everything in Gravity Grows'

Just what do those lyrics mean?

By Alison M. Rosen, OC Weekly
published: August 20, 1998

In the fast and exciting world of music fans, there are Lyrics People (LP), and there are Music People (MP). Then there's that rare beast, the Lyrics and Music Combo Person. LP are first attracted to songs based on the words, obviously, while MP often have no idea what their favorite songs are about because it was the beat or the groove that hooked them. I used to be an MP, but I've learned that that's dangerous because you can love a song and then get your hands on the liner notes and find out that your beloved song is about something stupid, like beer. And not even an elegant treatise on beer. (This is hypothetical; no offense to songs about beer.)If fact, I maintain that many Natural-Born Lyrics People are pushed into the MP camp because they can't make out the lyrics because their favorite singers model themselves after Kurt Cobain. I'm here to put an end to the madness. Armed with a phone, some phone numbers and a naturally winning personality, I embarked on a valiant quest to shake things up a bit by making local bands talk about their songs!

[...] 26-year-old Erik Hanson-guitarist/music writer/lyric co-writer from Long Beach's groovy, funky, whatever-y Ruby Diver [...] receives his life-altering call. There's something suspicious about bands from the LBC. Everything's "deep" and "groovy" and "beautiful" and full of "good vibes." I say, "Can the mystical mumbo-jumbo!" Hello. I've been to Long Beach! I don't get it! Make me understand! Song: "Superstar Black" from Superremote (Turftone Records) Erik Hanson: We wrote the song on an afternoon in Long Beach, and it's about positive summer vibes and a couple of shows we had been to, and it ended up evolving into a song about music and its effect on us. What are some of the lyrics? "Got an old car painted superstar black for the Sunday-afternoon drive/Got some Marvin giving me a soundtrack for the drift down to the East side." What is "superstar black"? It's literally the color of the car. It's painted a real shiny black, and it's an old Cadillac. Metaphorically, it was just that feeling that we had in Long Beach of going to gigs in classic cars and feeling like a star even if it is for that night only. Is there something star-ish about the color black? In a trashy limo, '80s way and in just a modern cool, refined way, yeah. What are some other lyrics? The chorus is: "And as the music plays/Oh, the groove gets so spiritual/Hours become days, and everything in gravity grows/The boys become amazed/To see the girls dance like angels/We're in the perfect place as everything in gravity grows." What does that mean, "everything in gravity grows"? It was something that grew out of the process of just feeling deeper and not necessarily partying, but having good times with good friends.

00 Soul plays a monthly gig at the Foothill called La Conga, and when it first started out, it'd be like 500 people, and everyone there was all about pulling up in their classic cars, coming and dancing. No bad vibes. Never any bad fights. People would toke up on the dance floor. It's just about the process of getting deeper through dancing and a community experience with friends and getting into the music. What do you mean by "getting deeper"? I think-for us, anyway-it's the process of growing up. It's a mid-20s kind of thing. You party in a different way, and you dance in a different way. When you're 18, you go get fucked-up and trashed at a party, and it's cool. But as you grow older, you look for different ways to celebrate. I guess the experience with the soul music and everyone feeling cleansed and just dancing your ass off like no one's watching, you feel like you're getting deeper and seeking out experiences that are more love-filled than just a crashing at a keg kind of thing. It's still a good vibe at the Foothill once a month. Describe how this song sounds? It's a groovy song, like most of our songs, but it's very single-y. It's our single on this album if there is one. Ruby Diver play an acoustic set at the Long Beach Art Museum, 2300 E. Ocean Blvd., Long Beach, (562) 426-7601. Aug. 23 (1998), 7 p.m. Free. All ages.

[So] are you a lyrics person or a music person? Well, I'm a melding of both. The music and the words have to match or else it doesn't work for me. It can't just be cool words and shitty music, and it can't just be cool music and crappy lyrics, you know? They've got to both be there.