I like to interpret this song differently. I think it's about a gay man who is in love with a straight man. He describes himself as the serpent in the Garden of Eden, for the sin of homosexuality is his crime. He is madly in love with another man who is in the closet, describing him as both positive and negative adjectives, because he is beautiful yet not true to himself. "Vacant stares" is the man's response to the gay man's invitations to homosexual activity.
The man is familiar to the gay man, like looking in his "mirror years ago", when he was in the closet too and feared a open homosexual life. "Idealism" is the perfect nuclear family, with a man and a woman, and "chivalry" is men looking after their ladies. His "innocence died screaming" was how he faced homophobia, which he thought he would not have to face. The gay man persists the closeted man, "sitting outside your door" is a metaphor or trying to tempt the man out of the closet and love him back.
He describes his "sin" as both precious and wretched, which alludes to the sin of homosexuality, also the theme of Hozier's song "Take Me To Church".
"A rope in hand for your other man" is about the closeted man's father, who would be ashamed to have a gay son, or about God, who would be angry that men were committing this sin.
@Shoggy You actually have no idea how right you are! :) Hozier is indeed a homosexual man, and yeah, he pretty much only writes about his homosexuality, so no women lol.
@Shoggy You actually have no idea how right you are! :) Hozier is indeed a homosexual man, and yeah, he pretty much only writes about his homosexuality, so no women lol.
@jessica9710 I'm not saying anything you said is wrong, but it should be noted that artists do sometimes write songs from others point of view (this may make it more relatable to the masses, or simply a better way to tell the story). Not everything an artist writes is about them necessarily ... it may be a character, a friend, family or even a story from another source.
@jessica9710 I'm not saying anything you said is wrong, but it should be noted that artists do sometimes write songs from others point of view (this may make it more relatable to the masses, or simply a better way to tell the story). Not everything an artist writes is about them necessarily ... it may be a character, a friend, family or even a story from another source.
I like to interpret this song differently. I think it's about a gay man who is in love with a straight man. He describes himself as the serpent in the Garden of Eden, for the sin of homosexuality is his crime. He is madly in love with another man who is in the closet, describing him as both positive and negative adjectives, because he is beautiful yet not true to himself. "Vacant stares" is the man's response to the gay man's invitations to homosexual activity. The man is familiar to the gay man, like looking in his "mirror years ago", when he was in the closet too and feared a open homosexual life. "Idealism" is the perfect nuclear family, with a man and a woman, and "chivalry" is men looking after their ladies. His "innocence died screaming" was how he faced homophobia, which he thought he would not have to face. The gay man persists the closeted man, "sitting outside your door" is a metaphor or trying to tempt the man out of the closet and love him back. He describes his "sin" as both precious and wretched, which alludes to the sin of homosexuality, also the theme of Hozier's song "Take Me To Church". "A rope in hand for your other man" is about the closeted man's father, who would be ashamed to have a gay son, or about God, who would be angry that men were committing this sin.
@Shoggy You actually have no idea how right you are! :) Hozier is indeed a homosexual man, and yeah, he pretty much only writes about his homosexuality, so no women lol.
@Shoggy You actually have no idea how right you are! :) Hozier is indeed a homosexual man, and yeah, he pretty much only writes about his homosexuality, so no women lol.
@jessica9710 I'm not saying anything you said is wrong, but it should be noted that artists do sometimes write songs from others point of view (this may make it more relatable to the masses, or simply a better way to tell the story). Not everything an artist writes is about them necessarily ... it may be a character, a friend, family or even a story from another source.
@jessica9710 I'm not saying anything you said is wrong, but it should be noted that artists do sometimes write songs from others point of view (this may make it more relatable to the masses, or simply a better way to tell the story). Not everything an artist writes is about them necessarily ... it may be a character, a friend, family or even a story from another source.
@Jesica9710 hazier isn’t gay ??
@Jesica9710 hazier isn’t gay ??