Capturing a full, dynamic spectrum of feeling, LOVE BY NUMB3RS’ latest single and music video “Colours” is a radiant, deeply emotional and cathartic release.
Stream: “Colours” – LOVE BY NUMB3RS
I quite literally could close my eyes and see the palest hues of blue… and the sadness was washed out by this storm of anger, and all I could see was red. In the aftermath, among all the emotional debris and self-reflection, there was a moment of calm that made me feel empty. And all I could see was the color gray.
Family isn’t easy – your loved ones can make your life exceptionally difficult, and it’s high time we talk about it openly and honestly. Capturing a full, dynamic spectrum of feeling, LOVE BY NUMB3RS’ latest single and music video “Colours” is a radiant, deeply emotional and cathartic release:
I been hearing you in color
Yeah, your words are taking shape
But a walking contradiction
Is the one thing I can’t take
The color of forgiveness
Is the shade of my amber eyes
What you say could make all the difference
If you’d only realize
Atwood Magazine is proud to be premiering the music and video for “Colours,” the lead single and title track off LOVE BY NUMB3RS’ forthcoming new EP of the same name (out November 19, 2021). The Portland, Maine-based trio of co-vocalists Dan Connor and Anna Lombard and multi-instrumentalist Jon Roods (joined here by Nigel Hall on piano and organ, with Zach Jones on electric guitar), LOVE BY NUMB3RS debuted at the tail-end of 2020 with their first full-length album Parachute – a multifaceted, record anchored by hauntingly beautiful and heartfelt lyricism, soulful singing, and raw passion through and through.
Following this past June’s cinematic standalone single “Red Sun,” the sweetly stunning “Colours” puts LOVE BY NUMB3RS’ exceptional lyrical, vocal, and instrumental talents on full display. A soulful, rootsy, and bluesy outpouring of heavy-hearted feeling comes to life in a song that reckons with a mother and daughter’s turbulent relationship. The band weave a rich tapestry of sound together with vulnerable, visceral lyrics that find Anna Lombard thriving, reeling, and excelling in a tough space. She rises to meet the moment in an intimate and impassioned chorus that – excuse the pun – showcases an inner fire and her many colors:
I keep tellin’ myself I’m fine
And whatever else just to ease my mind
I’m just a human
Mama, won’t you love me for who I am
Love me for who I am
It’s a simple song, yet one that soars high and true thanks to the sheer feeling injected into its sonic veins. Speaking with the band, we learn just how hard this confessional reckoning hit them.
“One afternoon Dan texted me a line that hit me kinda hard,” Anna Lombard tells Atwood Magazine. “The lyric Dan sent was, ‘I’ve been hearing you in colors,’ and it throttled us into this conversation (and my own nerdy research) about synesthesia (“synth” meaning “together” and “ethesia” meaning “perception). If you’re not familiar, it is a neurological phenomenon where the parts of your brain that control your senses are all intertwined. For example, a person with it can hear sound or music and their brain involuntarily associates those sounds with a specific color, pattern, or shape. And this condition can sometimes be a bit of sensory overload for those who have it (ahem, Jon.) But it also tends to inspire creativity. I became kind of obsessed with it. When you’re a kid, the first things you learn about are colors, the alphabet, numbers and shapes. So I started thinking about things like colors and shapes in a far less literal form. Humans tend to associate colors with emotions. Or a specific scent with an experience (good or bad). And how the environment in which a child is raised ultimately “shapes” them into the person they become…it is internal and we cannot control it….it just happens…much like the involuntary response someone with synesthesia has to music, sounds, colors, touch, patterns, taste, etc.”
“I stayed up til 4:30 in the morning with my notebook and a pencil and when I finished, I realized I wrote this song about my relationship with my mother,” she continues. “Family shit is hard, man. And I’ve got no illusions about the fact that I can be a pain in the ass. But it felt like this final plea, begging her to learn how to love me and to accept me for who I am….even if it wasn’t what she pictured. When I sang the line, ‘You made me so blue and then I’m seeing red,’ I quite literally could close my eyes and see the palest hues of blue… and the sadness was washed out by this storm of anger, and all I could see was red. In the aftermath, among all the emotional debris and self-reflection, there was a moment of calm that made me feel empty. And all I could see was the color gray. From the very moment I set my pencil down and finished writing, I felt this overwhelming sense of relief. The process and the creation of this song had released me. I was no longer immersed in a dense, emotional fog. And I came to the realization that what started as a song for her, became a song for me… Because our children cannot be our mirror images. So… you gotta learn how to let go of your ego – and I don’t mean ego as in self-importance – I mean the part of the ego acting as the voices in your head. The ones which stem from your inner child and your own fears. Because when you let go of that ego, you begin to learn how to be whole… to be seen… to be heard. To be accepted. And ultimately, capable of being loved and loving unconditionally… because deep down, isn’t that what all of us ever really want, anyway?”
I been living my life in colors
You made so me so blue then I’m seeing red
When the calm after the storm comes
And then gray is all that’s left
You’ve been living life in circles
Oh, with a whole lotta empty space
At least my emptiness is something
That’s more than you can say
A vivid visual accompaniment, the “Colours” music video sets the tone for the song’s immensely expressive overhaul. Adorned in dazzling outfits, the trio shine with popping hues and a striking backdrop as they pour their hearts and souls into a beautiful performance. “We focused a lot on the vibrance of colors, lighting, shapes – to tie into the meaning of the song,” the Lombard explains, speaking to the video. “I bought a silicone heart prop and Jon insisted I follow George Romero’s recipe for fake blood to depict the proverbial ripping out of my heart. We built a set in our kitchen out of sound foam panels. I bought fabric and cut them into shapes inspired by and as a way of paying homage to the stage backdrop from the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival after we checked out Quest Love-directed documentary “Summer of Soul” – that shit is bonkers if you haven’t checked it out. Grab some tissues while you’re at it. For our final set for the video, Jon and I turned our garage into what looked like a cross between one of the clear plastic encased murder scene from the show Dexter and a dope art studio in SOHO. I splattered buckets of paint and spray painted the plastic walls. No matter how many times we’ve showered since, we can’t get the paint off parts of our feet. But in all, Jon and I really just focused on creating a visual that would stimulate the viewers senses using colors, shapes, textures, angles, lighting, our vintage gear, etc. I should note that the pattern of multicolored foam sound panels as the mural against our dining room wall isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Adhesive spray is a thing, huh?”
I keep telling myself I’m fine
And whatever else just to ease my mind
I’m just human
Mama, love me for who I am
‘cause I’m on my knees
and I’m begging please
Please
Whether you can relate to your own familial issues, or have other pains close at heart, “Colours” brings out the full spectrum in each and every one of us. It’s a radiant song of turmoil spilling over; of honesty and confession; of pain becoming beauty. Stream LOVE BY NUMB3RS’ latest single exclusively on Atwood Magazine, and stay tuned for more from this stunning trio as they work their way up toward their forthcoming EP.
So I tell myself (You’re all I needed)
I’m still calling out (but you can’t hear me)
It’s so conditional (how you love me)
And even the thickest skins not enough
You’re so far away
Place your hand on my heart
So you feel how it breaks
(would it have killed you)
I’m just a human.
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Stream: “Colours” – LOVE BY NUMB3RS
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