16 Music Week 15.08.14 PROFILE HOZIER TAKE A PEW Irish singer/songwriter Hozier is on a fast route to success after releasing his breakthrough single
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TALENT n BY CORAL WILLIAMSON
A
ndrew Hozier-Byrne – better known as Hozier – is on the cusp of huge success, with a breakout single under his belt and a debut
album on the horizon. But Take Me To Church has been a slightly unlikely hit, with the singer himself admitting he didn’t think it was too radio-friendly. He tells Music Week: “I never thought Take Me
To Church was a radio song. It was an absolute kick over the fence as far as I was concerned.” Fortunately, others thought differently. Hozier
credits Island Records for being “very embracing” of the single, and its potentially difficult subject matter. Not only is the song lyrically critical of the Church, but the accompanying video, directed by Brendan Canty and Feel Good Lost, also references ongoing violence against LGBT members in Russia. At the time of writing, the official video on YouTube has been viewed nearly six million times. “The song and the video are very different. A lot of people think they were made together as one,”
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In demand: Hozier is close to selling out a 22-date US tour,
taking place throughout October and November later this year
“Island Records and Rubyworks have been very supportive and allowed me creative control. It took me many years, but I had to get to that point where I could produce and articulate the music the way I always hoped I could” HOZIER
Hozier explains. “The video references organised neo-Nazi attacks against gay people in Russia, ambushes that have been going on in the last year. These gangs call themselves Occupy Paedophilia and they basically lure kids - 15-16-year-olds who are confused about their sexuality - into remote places, pretending to be other young people who want to meet them. “Then they beat them, film those attacks and
put them online. They do this with impunity. It’s horrific. I’ve been following this political campaign in Russia that had made illegal the right for any LGBT members to advocate for their own rights in a public space. They did this by lumping it in with bestiality and paedophilia. This acted as justification
for this far-right group to do what they wanted to do. So anyway, that’s what the video is about. “The song is more about the Church as
an organisation that undermines humanity, undermines what it is to be a natural human and to love as a person. The Church is very good at doing that, and there will always be organisations that try that. So that’s why I went for that video. I didn’t want it to be about the Church, I wanted it to be about something today that is happening.” He adds: “The video has been a big help to that
song. We all know at this stage how important any kind of viral can be. The word viral is thrown around so much, but it has connected with a lot of people.” Going back to his supportive labels, Rubyworks
and Island, the singer says: “I think I was incredibly lucky to maintain creative control in these deals. It took me many years but I had to get to that point where I could produce and articulate the music the way I always hoped that I could. Or at least try to! They’ve been very supportive.” Besides, it’s not like Hozier is a political writer.
Or is he? “I think that’s for someone else to decide,” he says. “I just write songs. First and foremost, I
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