SEPTEMBER_UNIKUM_WEB (1)

Album Review:
“Unreal Unearth”
by Hozier
REVIEW
Anjali Mariampillai
Web Editor
Photo: Twitter; Illustration: Unikum // Natalia Bogdanova
The modern-day Shakespeare, the master of yearning, the forest
prince that shows up every 5 years and blesses our lives with his
heavenly voice, mister Hozier himself, is finally back! OH my god
I’m excited about this one! After having released his previous
album “Wasteland Baby!” in 2019 to great success, he has finally
grazed us with his glorious new album “Unreal Unearth”. This is
the third studio album that this man has released, and I am happier
than ever. Let’s get into it!
The album consists of 16 beautiful tracks that tell stories. Whenever
I listen to this man’s albums I deep dive into the thought behind
every word, the interviews, lyric analysis etc. And I found out that
the album structure is inspired by Dante’s Inferno, more specifically,
the 9 circles of hell. And you know what? I have coincidentally
been reading that book this year, so I was thrilled to find out about
that. This album like most of Hozier’s music explores themes
like apocalypse, sin, death, life, mythology, religion, heaven, and
hell. No song goes without making you feel something absolutely
ethereal.
The album starts with a two-parter, being “De Selby”, the first part
starts with a beautiful guitar melody, building up with strings, and
finally you hear his majestic voice. The song pulls you into what
you can imagine as a post-apocalyptic landscape. It’s soft, soothing,
and haunting in a way. The song builds up to a choir and finishes
beautifully into a transition to part two. And that transition is
so satisfying! One thing to note already in the first song and
throughout the remainder of the album is that Hozier sings some
phrases in Irish Gaeilge, which is one of the Celtic languages spoken
in Ireland – where Hozier is from. It is really great to witness him
embracing his heritage in that way, and it really shows in the song
“Butchered Tongue” later in the album, where he addresses a part
of Irish history where the English inflicted several brutal actions
upon Irish rebels. The Gaeilge phrases in the songs really makes
it all feel very raw and authentic, which is not unlike Hozier at all.
As mentioned, the album structure is loosely based on Dante’s
Inferno and the 9 circles of hell. If you’re not familiar with this, it is
a story about Dante being guided through the 9 circles of hell as he
tries to find back to his deceased love. What’s fun about it all is that
you can place all the songs in the circles. For an example, the song
“Eat Your Young” can be tied to the third circle, which is Gluttony.
The song “Francesca” can be correlated with the second circle
which is Lust. This all makes sense if you’re interested in Dante’s
Inferno, and as a writer this was very fun to analyse and get into.
An absolute favourite song of mine from this album is “Son of Nyx”,
which is actually an instrumental track. I could write a lot about
it, but let’s just say that listening to it literally made me feel like I
was the one traveling through all the circles of hell. It’s absolutely
terrifying, exciting and an absolute masterpiece. I digress, but if
you’re somewhat poetic, I’d recommend sitting down with the
lyrics to all of these songs. There are some truly gorgeous lines to
cry to, I promise. He could mask the death of the world in a cheery
love song, and I think that’s absolutely magical.
I could talk about how Hozier has changed my brain chemistry
for hours, but I’ll try to shorten this down. The vibe of this whole
album can only be described as dark, comforting, ethereal and soul
cleansing. The use of heavy choir, strings, and haunting vocals in
general, really reminds me of the “Take me to Church” Hozier from
2013, and I love it. The album is perfect for the fall, it gives warm
and cheery vibes, as well as dark and depressing for those of us
who thrive on that (aka me). I’ve listened to this album for multiple
days in a row and I can’t get tired of it. Hozier’s voice, lyrics and
thought process behind it all will always bring me some sort of
comfort. I can’t say that this album is my favourite out of all three
albums, but it’s definitely a masterpiece of its own.
Favourite tracks to cry myself to sleep to:
“Son of Nyx”
“First light” (which is an absolute banger
of an ending to the whole album)
Favourite soul-crushing lyrics:
“Eat Your Young
“De Selby (Part 2)
“Unknown/Nth”
“You called me angel for the first time, my heart leapt from me.
You smile now, I can see its pieces still stuck in your teeth.”
“If I could hold you for a minute, darling I’d go through it again.”
“If the wind turns, if I hit a squall, allow the
ground to find its brutal way to me.”
“I have never known a silence, like the one fallen here.
Never watch my future darken in a single tear.”
SEPTEMBER 2023 UNIKUM NR 7 33