Hozier – Angel Of Small Death & The Codeine Scene [Lyrics]

"Angel Of Small Death & The Codeine Scene" performed by Hozier with lyrics on screen. :)

© + ℗ 2014, Andrew Hozier-Byrne, Rob Kirwan; Rubyworks, Island, Columbia

Lyrics:

Fonts:
Mari & David by Rasdesign

[negrusoiurazvan]

Fun fact: Small death or "La petite mort" is an analogy coined somewhere around 1882 used to describe the sensation of "brief unconsciousness" after an orgasm.

[Mid_Youth_Crisis]

I once dated a girl in the worst moment in my life. Literally freshly disowned, kicked out of my home, poor, and minutes away from dropping out of school. I Met this insane, mean girl. She meant nothing but chaos, and I fell so hard for her. We were evil together. She raised me up, then pulled me down. With her I felt alive. I had a purpose. I will miss her forever

[billyjoeparker]

"tongue so mean" our boy is getting RIMMED good for him

[steviethompson]

He’s like Shakespeare with all his analogy’s, I bet in a couple hundred years people will be talking about him and there’s gonna be some kid like me sitting in the back thinking ‘if only you knew’

[nitanuksupah]

this makes me think of a crime duo. she plans and leads everything and he follows faithfully. though he knows it's wrong, hes so caught up in her, he cant help but obey.
also shes probably a top

[gabbyfringette]

Hades singing about Persephone when she returns to the Underworld in the fall.

[steadybeats]

The line “it’s bloody and raw but I swear it is sweet” reminds me of the line “the blood is rare and sweet as cherry wine” from his other song Cherry Wine. Coincidence???

[Mng]

something about this song seems so, , , familiar? but so new, at the same time. i adore it.

[mysticdaisies]

hozier’s music: *exists*
lesbians: this is now my property

[lorendaemon]

Me: yeah, I don't really like it when musicians make songs about sex, it's boring

Hozier:

Me: ah,

[Samookely]

teacher: you can play whatever songs u want but they cant mention sex or drugs

me:

[EvilMarshmallow]

one of the best unofficial lyric videos i've seen--simple, HQ, on beat. absolutely fantastic. thanks for the upload!

[Peizooooooo]

The gay agenda is strong in these comments

[oneof]

The way the 'hozier' and the title appear with the rhythm is satisfying

[heliumtea]

This song is kindda like Take Me To Church's older, hotter brother. Idk if that makes sense tho-

[brandonbitsuie]

There is the pain that he is expressing and a lot of things people are missing

[ironysteeth]

Scrambled to find this one after hearing a few licks on the blacklist. It's got that southern churchy choir vibe that "take me to church"has so shoulda guessed it was hozier that and of course those great vocals.

[smasherbroxd]

I'm a straight heterosexual guy from the ghetto who also listen's to gherbo or j.cole. yet also love hoziers songs. Shows music's universal feel and I just wanted to comment on that.

[oliviastubbs]

"tell me you're gay without telling me you're gay" i listen to hozier is that satisfactory

[JukeboxTheGhoul]

My interpretation of this song is Hozier’s celebration of love and sex, as linked with his other song ‘Take Me To Church’, it explores the pain and pleasure aspect of gay identity.





 As in the aforementioned song, Hozier has used the female pronoun to refer to homosexuality as well as his description of ‘my kin’ like the LGBT community being ‘bold’ and ‘boyful’ coining a neologism to describe boyishness which is often related to beauty. “Feeling more human” is very much like Hozier’s line “Only then I am human, only then I am complete.” and the caterpillar to butterfly aspect of them“Shaking the wings of their terrible youths” showing strength growing from pain which is a staple of a community which is widely rejected during youth. The eagerness to join in the community in the second line, “Calling to join them the wretched and joyful” furthers this song’s identity as a celebration of freedom, juxtaposing the “wretched” view from the outsider, and the joyful view of the insider. Showing how differently they define the LGBT community.


“And lease this confusion, I'll wander the concrete
Wonder if better now having survived
Jarring of judgement and reasons defeat”
The character has become unambiguous, he is no longer confused. Pondering how his rejection and judgement has hurt him and also made him stronger. The hate and judgement is confusing to the gay character because to him this is the most natural thing in the world. “Freshly disowned in some frozen devotion.” Referring again to Hozier’s antipathy to parental rejection and religious homophobia on these grounds, describing their faith as frozen and the feeling of abandonment ‘Fresh’ as if still hurting.

However the sexual partner of the Angel of Small Death, as Negrusoiu Razvan pointed out, is a reference to orgasm, is described as having “her arms hard and lean” using the juxtaposition of the female pronoun to show her generally masculine features of being ‘hard and lean’ furthering the idea of a celebration of sex between men. The Codeine scene refers to codeine – a painkiller – a metaphor to suggest making love is a healing aspect, blocking out the pain the character has experienced.

The song is by no mean short on indicators of the pain experienced in rejection and revelation of their gay identity but specifically it is a celebration of something homophobes might label as ‘sordid’ but it is being embraced by the ‘I’ personage. The consensual and willing nature of the sex is emphasised again and again. “no protest from me” “With her sweetened breath, and her tongue so mean” “hooked on her flesh” “The sweet heat of her breath in my mouth I'm alive”

Finally the sexual imagery is unmistakable in the culmination of the pain and pleasure theme in the chorus. “Bloody and raw, but I swear it is sweet” defying the popular image of sex being solely negative, and the sweetness of the experience from the perspective of the participant. It encapsulates the pain but also is quick to emphasise this is an intensely pleasurable experience despite the pain.

In conclusion, this song seems to be celebrating the natural, humanising, joyful effect of making love which explains the sexy tone and sensuality as well as the intense emotion of sex from the view of the gay person, examining how the pain and pleasure runs throughout the life of the LGBT community.