RESOLVED: "Take Me To Church" is this decade's "MacArthur Park"

[gratuitous]

That is, a song with a nice tune, amenable to a wide range of voices and song stylings, and absolutely massacred by sub-stupid lyrics. Rebuttal?

[Xyzse]

1. Uh, no... God-awful song...

Monotonous, and sung like a pastor in choir.

Just, no. No, nonono.

His whole album sounds similar to it, and I am liable to puncture my ear drums bleeding having to listen to that record.

[shenmue]

5. I heard a few seconds

and I'm baffled as to why anybody likes it.

[Xyzse]

15. That's exactly how I feel.

[hibbing]

6. like fingernails on a chalkboard

A song that makes me cringe everytime..blech.


Peace

[Xyzse]

16. Yep, I hear the first few notes of it, and switch the radio station.

[Codeine]

12. He's got a great voice, but yeah, that song blows.

Why the Hell has it become such a huge deal? It's a mess.

[Xyzse]

17. I may have to disagree with you on the voice thing.

Maybe he could pull off something that I would like, but at the moment, I find it highly doubtful.

[NewJeffCT]

19. Not a big fan of the song

but, I think the video depicting a gay man getting beaten is pretty powerful.

[Chan790]

2. What's sub-stupid about his lyrics?

You do realize it's about D/s relationships, more specifically his submission to and worship of his mistress, right?

I'm not a fan of the song, but the lyrics aren't the problem.

[jakeXT]

8. Looking at the video and men kissing, I believe it's more about same sex relationships

In September, Irish songwriter Hozier released the video for his gospel-inspired epic, "Take Me to Church," a cavernous song that uses love and ecstasy as a religious metaphor. The video depicts two men's gentle intimacy, followed by brutal gay-bashing at the hands of masked vigilantes against lyrics like, "I was born sick, but I love it / command me to be well / Amen. Amen. Amen."

The song serves simultaneously as a message about human rights, a commentary about Hozier's upbringing in what he calls a "cultural landscape that is blatantly homophobic," and a strong statement about the institutional homophobia in Putin's Russia. In the months since its release, the video has gone viral (and we've been playing it over and over) — bringing the 23-year-old artist into sharp focus. (He turns 24 on St. Patrick's Day.) This week, Hozier — born Andrew Hozier-Byrne — is in the States for the first time, where he will play twice during SXSW and then tour around the country. The Cut spoke with him about the meaning of “Take Me to Church,” sexuality, James Joyce, and good hair.

http://nymag.com/thecut/2014/03/qa-hozier-on-gay-rights-sex-good-hair.html

[hifiguy]

23. There is such a thing as WAY TOO MUCH reverb.

This is Exhibit A.

[Initech]

3. Wasn't MacArthur Park about a guy who has to take a shit really badly because he got food poisoning?

If not then what was the line "I'll never have that recipe again" about?

At least "Take Me To Church" doesn't have that as a subject material.

[LiberalElite]

4. The recipe

was about the cake left out in the rain and, again rhymes with rain if you say it with an English accent.

[crim son]

7. I need more information.

What makes the lyrics so awful, in your opinion?

[Oneironaut]

9. Agreed. The lyrics on both are terrible.

[seaglass]

10. Love this song and as someone who was raised Catholic and is ex-Catholic the lyrics

are very meaningful to me. That is exactly the church attitude I was raised in.

[Codeine]

11. That song is a dreary, droning, god-awful mess.

Friigin' hate that song!

His second single "The Angel of Small Death and the Codeine Scene" is better lyrically and musically.

[JVS]

13. This thread means nothing without youtube videos

[Revanchist]

14. I prefer the remake

[lovemydog]

18. That's awesome.

Thanks.

[Arugula Latte]

20. Personally, I like the lyrics' message -- sex/love are good and religion is poison.

But, yeah, I won't be too upset if I never hear that song again.

[cwydro]

21. I can't stand that song.

Just sounds like some guy moaning.

[hifiguy]

22. It's certainly, un, GASSY enough to fit the bill.