![]() ![]() Yes, pop music can be about those things, but not in the way Hozier's music seems to be about them. Hozier joins a group of artists who seem to be drawing popular music in a new direction "It's about love at its most empty and vacuous and futile." Hozier's love songs come with an edge.īefore he played "Someone New" at his DC concert, he prefaced it with some context. It isn't upbeat, and it certainly isn't the love songs of Sam Smith. What's interesting about Hozier is that his hit, the amazingly catchy, overwhelmingly melancholy "Take Me to Church," isn't even the most radio-friendly song on his album. There always seems to be room for one or two bluesy soul singers in the Top 40. Like Amy Winehouse and Adele before him, Hozier stands out on a Top 40 station because he simply doesn't sound like he belongs. What's interesting about Hozier is that he joins a smaller group of artists who seem to be drawing popular music in the opposite direction of pop - toward music that's more organic, instrumental, and emotional. Rock, hip-hop, pop, and jazz all at some point managed to break through and become widely popular. "I think Top 40 radio is getting a bit more adventurous now, and I think a lot of that is due to guys like Sam Smith and Andrew," Justin Eshak, who signed Hozier to Columbia Records in the US in 2013, told me. That doesn't necessarily make his way better, but it makes it different. Where other artists hire songwriters to build out their hits for them, Hozier wrote his in an attic. He trades chanting Bruno Mars hooks for an urgent, calling plea. Instead of the pulsing beats of Nick Jonas, Hozier has a slow, rhythmic guitar. Most of the songs are meaty, desperate, and honest about the world we live in. There's not a single synthesizer present. But it doesn't sound like the albums dominating the Top 40 right now. In its entirety, it tells a brutal story of life and love and religion. His debut, self-titled album is solid top to bottom. (Larry Busacca/Getty) Popular but not pop Look at the sparkly guitar Hozier played at the Grammys this year. In some ways, his success points the way to a best-case scenario - in which his popularity represents the future of music and the Top 40 has room for all genres and tones and talent. ![]() He's not a pop star, but he's made a home on the charts with artists like Taylor Swift, Nicki Minaj, and Ariana Grande. "Take Me to Church" is a slow song focused on homophobia, and Hozier's set is lit with electronic candles instead of pulsing strobes. He's not a natural fit for the Top 40, though. He plucks the guitar strings with his fingers. When he takes the stage at the Lincoln Theatre in Washington, DC, in March, wearing all denim and carrying a guitar that sparkles under the lights, he towers over the other members of his band.Ī keyboardist, cellist, two backup singers, a drummer, and a multi-instrumentalist on synth and bass join Hozier on stage, but there are no guitar picks taped to the tall mic stand in front of him. He refuses to brush his fluffy mane of brown hair, writes his songs based off a feeling, and doesn't let a piece of plastic come between him and his chords. The song hit the Billboard Top 20 on November 8 and refused to leave. Since early November, Hozier's gospel-driven blues hit "Take Me to Church" has dominated American popular music with its howling chorus and soaring refrain: "amen," crooned over and over in a glorious tenor. Andrew Hozier-Byrne is a titan - musically and literally. ![]()
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