[[Intro – hi-fi tape hiss, soft rubber-bridge guitar, faint synth pad, deep snare and tight electronic sampled drum kit] [instrumental – 4 bars, intimate, warm, midrange-heavy] [break] [Verse 1 – close-mic vocal, half-sung spoken slurred voice, cracked tone, slow strum, subtle analog wobble] Up winding roads that never stop I try to reach the mountaintop To be the cream of this ol’ crop To see as far as I can see (see, see) [Verse 2 – add ambient pedal steel guitar swells, gentle sub bass pulse] I reach for stones that break away The sky grows cloudy, dark and gray The peak still seems so far away It turns, and runs away from me (me, me) [Chorus – kick in low-tempo drum machine, layered harmony whisper] Mountain, river, ocean This is gravity in motion I reach, I slip, I cry in pain Wondering if I should try again [Instrumental – soulful pedal steel guitar with tape flutter, subtle reverb tail drifting] [Verse 3 – stripped back to muted rubber bridge acoustic, faint hum of room tone] And with the melting of the snow A little stream begins to flow I track it down and watch it grow To see where it will carry me (me, me) [Verse 4 – synth pad blooming, quiet glitch percussion enters] The river flows, I let it lead We rush downhill with urgent speed I pray, please take me where I need But it just casts me out to sea (sea, sea) [Chorus – layered vocal stack, reverb blooming like fog] Mountain, river, ocean This is gravity in motion I climb so high but fall so low Wonderin’ where this journey goes [Instrumental – synth returns, soft reverse guitar textures, heartbeat kick under] [Verse 5 – vocal near whisper, distorted bass side-chained softly] The waves come crashing with the tide They toss me round from side to side I fight the pull, I swim, I try I know not where they carry me (me, me) [Verse 6 – add vocal harmony, pad swelling, drums loosen into half-time groove] The waves and I begin to blend. No longer foes, my deep blue friend, Our rhythm plays out without end. The ocean flows inside of me. (Me, me) [Final Chorus – outro, slow fade, ritardando; instruments pull back to only voice, pad, violin] Mountain, river, ocean This is gravity in motion The highs, the lows, they come and go All I can do is ride the flow [instrumental outro – sustained through tape hiss, clean low-pass fade to silence] All I can do is ride the flow
