On her last studio album, 2000's The Green World, Williams was already dealing with serious subjects. Tunes such as "And a God Descended" investigated the cult of personality common to gurus and politicians, while "Another Mystery" dealt with our fascination with form over substance.
"['Another Mystery'] came to me when I saw a woman walking down the street on a summer day, in a black coat, a perfect embodiment of despair and alienation," she recalled, "and suddenly I realized I knew her, and in that moment I realized it was all a stance, and I wondered who she was dressing up for.
"Today, many young women sit there and polish their containers, which cheats everyone of the person inside," Williams, a self-described feminist, continued. "It's the essence of sexism -- spending more time on the plumage than the real self. I've noticed this during my travels in Europe, too. You see people in the ruins of temples wearing comfortable clothes so they can appreciate the world, but you don't have to look like a model to appreciate the Parthenon. My goal is to have substance and enjoy things from the inside out."
On her last studio album, 2000's The Green World, Williams was already dealing with serious subjects. Tunes such as "And a God Descended" investigated the cult of personality common to gurus and politicians, while "Another Mystery" dealt with our fascination with form over substance.
"['Another Mystery'] came to me when I saw a woman walking down the street on a summer day, in a black coat, a perfect embodiment of despair and alienation," she recalled, "and suddenly I realized I knew her, and in that moment I realized it was all a stance, and I wondered who she was dressing up for.
"Today, many young women sit there and polish their containers, which cheats everyone of the person inside," Williams, a self-described feminist, continued. "It's the essence of sexism -- spending more time on the plumage than the real self. I've noticed this during my travels in Europe, too. You see people in the ruins of temples wearing comfortable clothes so they can appreciate the world, but you don't have to look like a model to appreciate the Parthenon. My goal is to have substance and enjoy things from the inside out."