But The Wages

But The Wages is a song not many people are familiar with. Never officially released, the only record of it are live recordings on the internet, the earliest of which was posted in 2019. However, much like the other three unreleased songs of which we have recordings – The Love Of, I Could Be Yours, and Blood – it is worth a listen. But The Wages is an anti-capitalist, pro-worker song which criticizes corporate greed, the military industrial complex, and the global response (or lack thereof) to climate change.

But The Wages is a very cynical song. Starting with the lines “Although many contend you can find hope ascend / Just to mark how everything changes,” Hozier dismisses that with the frank observation “Be it the temperature highs / Or the sea level rising / It’s all going up but the wages.” Within this song, Hozier seems to argue that the situation is quite hopeless. The downtrodden suffer, while the wealthy and powerful prosper at their expense.

There are other things on the rise, apart from the temperature and sea level. “And murdered reporters,” he sings, referring to the countless journalists killed in Latin America, the Middle East, and more (47 were killed this year alone), “And talk of hard borders” amidst Brexit controversy between Ireland and UK-ruled Northern Ireland (where the Good Friday Agreement permits hard borders between the Irish people), the Trump campaign in the United States, and other anti-immigration sentiment among right wing populists. These things are rising so high they are “Sky-bound as a heavenly choir,” perhaps another reference to politically motivated murders.

“Or the stock price in Boeing,” a company that profits from genocide and war around the world, especially in the Middle East, “The screams of the dying / Or the skies over Yemen last night.” As the military industrial complex continues to make more and more money, the number of the dead rise, especially in Yemen, where airstrikes supplied by Boeing kill thousands of civilians. This is followed by the chorus, where he repeats “It's all going up but the wages” followed by the claim, “And maybe it's time,” demonstrating a leftist political leaning towards higher wages for the working class.

Hozier uses this moment to transition into another criticism of capitalism, which is at fault for more than just the crimes he previously sang of. “Don't mention the rent / Or the money that's spent / Keeping the banks in good health.” While the working class continues to pay more and more money just for a roof over their heads, the government bails out banks each time they fail or falter, keeping the rich rich and the poor poor.

To close the verse, Hozier sings “Or ridiculous claims / Or the level of blame / Pointed to anything else.” These, he suggests, are on the rise in reaction to the others. As rent climbs and the poor suffer, they can turn to leftist ideology, or even the alt right, which might suggest Jewish people or other minorities are at fault for the insecure man’s economic anxiety. The left blames the right, the right blames the left, and whoever wins the elections stay rich and powerful while the people who voted for them tend to receive little in return – except perhaps short-term safety.

The next verse reads as follows: “And preachy musicians / And those stuck in prisons / For scarcely enough for a blunt / Or the pressure of blood / That new hotel in the hood / With an oligarch's name on the front.” At this point, Hozier offers a self-aware nod to the song – these preachy musicians, he seems to argue, do nothing but sing of our problems and do nothing to help. He seems to suggest we don’t need more of them. He moves on to refer to the rise in drug-related imprisonments, which can disproportionately the poor and people of color, especially in the United States. Even so, new hotels are erected in Ireland almost daily by the wealthy who seek to become wealthier, as the stress (blood pressure) of the ordinary citizen rises.

At this point the chorus repeats twice, and the song fades away, however there’s two new lyrics introduced in this new chorus: “It's all going up with the bump in the heating bills / Even though the city's on fire.” This could be another reference to climate change, or even a lamentation on the state of the world. The city is burning down, metaphorically, and even so the renters are made to pay heating bills which rise and rise in cost due to inflation and corporate greed, while the energy that feeds it heats not only that apartment but the global temperature as well with the burning of fossil fuels. This is undoubtedly a song for the working class and those disillusioned with capitalism, climate change, and the military industrial complex.

Moment’s Silence

The meaning of the song Moment’s Silence (Common Tongue) is . . . not safe for work or NationStates. For this reason, we will not linger long on the analysis. However, I will summarize it in broad strokes. This song describes sex as an act of protest against institutionalized power, particularly conservative institutions, which find such activity sinful or immoral.

Expressing discontent with society, the speaker sings of physical pleasure as the cure to soothe one’s soul in difficult times. Hozier rolls his eyes at “those who lead us oh so morally” while dedicating his art to love and its physical manifestations. Furthermore, religious imagery reinforces these claims, mirroring the songs discussed in part one of this essay series.

Nina Cried Power

A protest song about protest songs. Nina Cried Power is the epitome of Hozier’s politics and a transcendently emotional experience. The title refers to Nina Simone, a gospel singer and civil rights activist whose folk and R&B music directly inspired Hozier. In her song “Sinner Man,” Simone sings of crying “power” to the Lord. In Hozier’s song, “crying power” refers to the act of protest as crying for sociopolitical change.

This song is sung with Mavis Staples, similarly to Nina Simone a gospel singer associated with the civil rights movement. An icon, a legend, and an inspiration of Hozier’s as well. This song is a tribute to her, as much as it is a tribute to Nina Simone and all the other singers mentioned later on.

To begin the song, Hozier sings, “It’s not the waking, it’s the rising.” The term woke has been used and overused and abused and tossed away, but the principle remains the same. Being aware of discrimination, inequality, and injustice (woke) is not enough. You must rise up against it. “It’s the grounding of a foot uncompromising.” Protest, he says. Cry power. Resist. And settle for nothing less than justice. “It’s not forgoing of the lie, It’s not the opening of eyes, It’s not the waking, it’s the rising.”

“It’s not the shade, we should be past it.” Bigotry is not the target. “It is the light and it’s the obstacle that casts it.” Why is an individual engaging in hate speech and hate crimes? Are they driven to it by oppressive institutions and an education in hate? “It’s the heat that drives the light” – blaming immigrants for problems, calling transgender people groomers, etc. – and “It’s the fire it ignites.” In the Take Me to Church video, we saw not bigoted beliefs but their consequences. The fire they ignited. A young man killed for loving another man. That is what you must fight against.

“It’s not the song, it is the singing.” For whatever cause you fight, you must cry power. To sing is an act of protest. Slaves did it in darkened groves to show their faith in God, civil rights leaders did it to bring awareness and fight for change. “It is the heaven of the human spirit ringing.” Pour your soul into your protest song, he sings in his own. “It is the bringing of the line, it is the bearing of the rhyme” – the act of singing is a protest itself and a pure art form.

“And I could cry power” – Hozier seeks to follow in their footsteps. “Nina cried power” refers to the titular Nina Simone. “Billie cried power” refers to Billie Holiday, who sang of civil rights injustices as well, particularly lynchings. “Mavis cried power” refers to Mavis Staples herself, who comes into the song with the next half of the chorus. “And I could cry power” sounds different coming from one who already has – to her it is a renewal of her commitment. “Curtis cried power.” Curtis Mayfield. Another soul singer of civil rights. “Patti cried power.” Patti Smith sang at events protesting the Iraq War, and for AIDS charities in the 90s. And, for repetition’s sake, Nina cried power.

“It’s not the wall but what’s behind it.” You must not just identify unjust systems to break down, but create just systems to take their place. “And everything that we’re denied by keeping the divide” refers to the idea that issues of race, gender, and sexuality are pushed to the forefront of society so that the people in power can pit the people against each other. By having their constituents focus on ‘cultural marxism,’ ‘immigrants,’ or some other bogeyman, the government officials are free to act without oversight or consequence, making themselves and their corporate sponsors wealthy.

The chorus begins again shortly. This time, the figures named by Hozier are John Lennon, who protested the Vietnam War and was killed by a religious extremist, and James Brown, who advocated for education access. Staples then lists B.B. King and Joni Mitchell, the former of whom has supported prison reform and the latter of which has spoken out against the religious right wing in America. As always, Nina Simone is emphasized by both.

The bridge is sung by Mavis Staples. “And I could cry power / Power has been cried by those stronger than me” has a stronger effect coming from a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award Winner who sang about civil rights in the 60s. Even as a voice of the movement, she acknowledges the bravery of the efforts of people like the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr himself and all practitioners of civil disobedience who marched on Washington, sat in white diners, or were beaten, arrested, and killed for the color of their skin and their burning desire for liberation.

She continues to sing, “Straight into the face that tells you to rattle your chains, if you love being free.” This line speaks directly to the core theme of the song – the effectiveness and importance of the protest song, and of acts of protest in general. Complacency is not a good use of your constitutional rights. They do not exist so that they cannot be exercised. You do not notice your chains if you do not try to rattle them. In the following chorus, the added line of “Power is my love when my love reaches to me,” Hozier ties social activism to love. Especially poignant when tied to the themes of Take Me to Church and queer activism.

To close off the song, Hozier and Staples name the following activist singers: James Brown, who was discussed above, Pete Seeger, an anti-fascist singer from the 30s, Marvin Gaye, who advocated for anti-war and anti-racist policy in the 60s, John Lennon, Patti Smith, and Billie Holiday, all three of whom were mentioned before, Bob Dylan, who was anti-war and anti-racist, and Woody Guthrie, who was socialist and anti-fascist. All the singers mentioned in the song, and in other versions of the song – as he does sometimes change the names, such as naming Allison Russell in the Unreal Unearth tour – are inspirations for Hozier and beacons of social justice.

The description on the music video says it best: “This song was intended as a thank you note to the spirit and legacy of protest; to the artists who imbued their work with the vigour of dissent, and a reflection on the importance of that tradition in the context of the rights, and lives, we enjoy today. My hope for this video is much the same.” The description goes on to thank numerous activists and other inspirations, adding to the list of tributes. Christina Noble, Bernadette McAliskey and Eamon McCann, Joe Caslin, Saoirse Long, Panti Bliss, Victoria Chimera, Anna Cosgrave, Simone George, Grace Dyas, Sinéad Burke, Maria Walsh, Colm O’Gorman, Ellie Kisyombe, Stephen Rea, Sam Blanckensee, Florence Adebambo and Aaron Edo, Blessings Moyo and Lucky Khambule, and finally, Mavis Staples herself.

The video itself adds much to the sense of the song as a tribute. Various actors of all ages listen through headphones – whether to Nina Cried Power or to the songs of other activists, it is unclear. A video projector plays black and white film of protests, demonstrations, and riots presumably from the 1960s civil rights and anti-war movements, which are the common denominator of most activists named in the lyrics. Some sway or nod their heads to the music, some look off solemnly as they listen, some cry. Some may have been old enough to have been there, or known people who had been.

Co-directed by Hozier’s brother, like many of his music videos, it embodies the essence of Nina Cried Power. This is a protest song about a protest song, where Hozier pays tribute to all the activist singer-songwriters that came before him and seeks to empower all who will come after him, while singing to his own experience trying to follow in their footsteps as well. In an age where activism is as important as it was in the times all those artists were active, it rings true and powerful.