Before recording any full length albums, Radiohead found their demo tape and invited them to be part of the US tour for The Bends. After that, they moved from Birmingham, Alabama to Los Angeles, California to record their first album. Several band mates suffered from substance abuse and homelessness after moving from Alabama.
Their first album, self-titled, drew from these experiences and unfortunately received little recognition or sales. The subsequent album Villa Elaine caused them to be praised as "the next big thing". Villa Elaine was recorded when the band was living in an apartment of the same name in Hollywood. Remy Zero's third album The Golden Hum was also received well. A 30 second clip of the song "Save Me" from The Golden Hum was used as the theme song for WB's Smallville. Remy Zero's music has also been on KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic radio show. Most recently Remy Zero's song "Fair" from Villa Elaine was used in the film Garden State, and "Prophecy", also from Villa Ellaine was used in The Last Kiss. In 2003 Jeffrey Cain, Cedric Lemoyne, and Gregory Slay formed The Engine Room and wrote the theme song to the television show Nip/Tuck titled "A Perfect Lie" which was nominated for an Emmy Award.
Remy Zero broke up after making The Golden Hum and many of its members have joined new bands. Shelby and Cinjun Tate have created Spartan Fidelity, Jeffrey Cain has formed Isidore with Steve Kilbey of The Church and recorded a solo album under the name Dead Snares,Gregory Slay has recorded multiple albums as Sleepwell, and Cedric Lemoyne has collaborated with Orenda Fink of Azure Ray on an album set for release in early 2009.
In 2006 there was reason to believe, from their MySpace posting, that the group was attempting to reform. However, as of Summer 2007, the Remy Zero MySpace page showed the following statement: "The story so far: We formed in Birmingham, AL in 1989. We took a break in 2003. We thought momentarily that we might start making music again, but now... who knows. We'll keep you posted here on whatever we're doing - together or separately - as much as we can. Stay tuned...". The Remy Zero website now has the following message:
"The five of us thank all of you who have listened, & had faith in us.
These years as Remy Zero have given birth to music and friendships that will hopefully live on past this moment. We will take the inspiration, lessons, and spirits we have encountered as each of us moves forward into new territories. Remy Zero has been put to rest.
thank you again
peace,
cedric, cinjun, jeffrey, gregory, shelby".
On Tuesday May 22, 2007 Jeffrey Cain's solo album Dead Snares Speak the Language was released, featuring performances with fellow Remy Zero members Cedric LeMoyne, Gregory Slay and Leslie Van Trease. A limited edition release on 180 gram vinyl was made available through SoundIsidore Recordings.
Fair
Remy Zero Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Has summer gone so slowly?
We found the ground
And that damage was done
It's cold as you fade into the sun
Where'd you go? To me?
But you're alive!
Fallen frames, they told me
You stand out, it's so loud
And so what if it is?
It's cold as you face into the wind
Where'd it go to? tonight the sun shall see its light
So what if you catch me,
Where would we land?
In somebody's life
For taking his hands
Sing to me hope as she's
Thrown on the sand
All of your work
Is rated again
Where to go ?
And you were somehow the ran thing could allow
But it's all wrong
You're so strong
And this life and work
And choice took far too long
Where'd it go? tonight the sun shall see its light
So what if you catch me,
Where would we land?
In somebody's life
For taking his hands
Sing to me hope as she's
Thrown on the sand
All of our work
Is rated again
When I was sure you'd follow through
My world was turned to blue so thin
When you'd hide your songs would die
So I'd hide yours with mine
And all my words were bound to fail
I know you won't fail
See, I can tell
The song "Fair" by Remy Zero, is about a person expressing their feelings towards someone who has gone through a difficult and dark time, possibly due to mental health struggles or difficult life situations. They ask if they are lonely and contemplatively ponder where they went to, acknowledging the damage that has been done. Despite the bleakness of the situation, they try to give the person hope by stating that they are alive and that they stand out, even if it’s loud.
The lyrics, ‘So what if you catch me, Where would we land? In somebody's life, For taking his hands’ would seem to suggest that the singer is asking the person to trust them and allow them a chance to help them get better or be their support, even if it means leaving someone or something behind. They then sing, "All of your work is rated again, Where to go?" which implies that the person has been evaluated or judged and is unsure where to go now.
The song conveys a sense of understanding and empathy and offers hope that things can improve. It also explores the idea of trust and taking risks, possibly with someone new, to ultimately find peace and happiness.
Line by Line Meaning
Hey, are you lonely?
Are you feeling lonely?
Has summer gone so slowly?
Does it feel like summer has dragged on?
We found the ground
We found our footing
And that damage was done
But we already did some damage
It's cold as you fade into the sun
It's still cold even as you face the sun
Where'd you go? To me?
Where have you gone? Am I the reason?
But you're alive!
But you're still alive!
Well, it's only fallen frames, they told me
They told me it's just a minor setback
You stand out, it's so loud
You shine so bright, it's hard to ignore
And so what if it is?
And why should it matter?
It's cold as you face into the wind
Even as you face the wind, it's still cold
Where'd it go to? tonight the sun shall see its light
Where did it go? Tonight it will see the light of day
So what if you catch me,
Where would we land?
What if you caught me? Where would we end up?
In somebody's life
For taking his hands
Would we have an impact on someone else's life?
Sing to me hope as she's
Thrown on the sand
Sing me the song of hope even when it seems lost
All of your work
Is rated again
Where to go ?
All of your hard work is evaluated once more, where do we go from here?
And you were somehow the ran thing could allow
But it's all wrong
You were once the one thing that made sense, but now it all feels wrong
You're so strong
But you're still strong!
And this life and work
And choice took far too long
Life, work, and choices took so long to make
Where'd it go? tonight the sun shall see its light
Where did it go? Tonight the truth will be revealed
When I was sure you'd follow through
I was once sure you'd come through
My world was turned to blue so thin
But now my world feels so empty
When you'd hide your songs would die
So I'd hide yours with mine
When you hid, your art suffered, so I'd hide it with mine
And all my words were bound to fail
I know you won't fail
But my own words were doomed to fail, I have faith in you
See, I can tell
I know you can do it, I believe in you
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: AUGUST CINJUN TATE, CEDRIC LEMOYNE, CINJUN TATE, GREGORY SLAY, GREGORY SCOTT SLAY, JEFFREY CAIN, JEFFREY CAIN THOMPSON, SHELBY TATE
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