In August of 2023, Hozier released Unreal Unearth, his first studio album since 2019. In the months leading up to this, an EP and several singles dropped to build anticipation, and this year, two additional EPs containing unreleased music that didn’t make the full-length album were distributed. It’s incredibly likely that you’ve heard “Too Sweet” playing on nearly every radio station for the past few months since the EP it was issued on, Unheard, was released in March.
As a dedicated fan for the past several years,
I’ve spent a fair amount of time with Hozier’s art. My Spotify Wrapped last year let me know that I listened to the Eat Your Young EP much more than I realized. I’ve had ample time to develop strong opinions on all of the most recent music now, but which of it is most worth listening to?
#4: Unaired
“Nobody’s Soldier” blazes out of the gates in Hozier’s most recent EP. Unreal Unearth takes inspiration from Dante Alghieri’s The Divine Comedy, known in pop culture for introducing the idea of the “Circles of Hell,” and songs off the album are meant to represent each. For Unheard, Hozier has referenced which circles the songs were meant to be, but it seems they’re not defined for Unaired. Although “Nobody’s Soldier” is an analysis paralysis anthem that I get behind, I don’t find myself listening to “July” and “That You Are” very often. Musically, “July” gives me no special touch. “That You Are” will take time to grow on me, because I recognise it for its beauty, but as it stands, I garner no intense feelings towards it either.
#3: De Selby Part 2
De Selby Part 2 was the final presentation of singles before Unreal Unearth, with five tracks in total. If you enjoy “Too Sweet,” you’re likely to find something to enjoy in “De Selby Part 2,” with its equally catchy, pop-adjacent sound and noticeable bassline. Representing Limbo, its deep tones and the premise of mingling with darkness mark the song as a bit edgier than “Too Sweet.” “Francesca,” named after Francesca da Rimini, a woman who appeared in The Divine Comedy in the Circle of Lust, might be my favorite song on the entire album due to its intensity and heart wrenching lyrics. However, when this EP was released, I tended to skip most of the songs for those two. I favor Eat Your Young as a better preview of the album.
#2: Unheard
You know Unheard. Even if you don’t, you do. “It’s been an incredible feeling to see how much support the Unheard EP has received from you all, especially songs like ‘Too Sweet,’” Hozier said. “The reaction to that song has come as a complete surprise.” It’s impossible not to admit to its catchiness and great vibe. With the original intention to represent the Circle of Gluttony, it was left out of the final album, but March was the perfect time for it to get its footing in time for spring.
But “Too Sweet” is followed up by three incredibly strong songs, including “Empire Now.” The story violently awakens Hozier’s revolutionary themes, where martyrs of the past are quite literally turning in their graves in response to the way things are today, and so they are used to generate electricity for profit. And even for those who don’t recognise the visceral plotline, the song’s menacing sound is powerful within itself.
“I know that he’s big into different issues, societal issues, hot button issues,” said Jim Rosenberger, a teacher here at East who also happens to enjoy Hozier. “So beyond just the beautiful music and his beautiful voice, his songs have a lot of depth, and so I do appreciate that about him as well.”
“Empire Now,” as one of the most explicitly political tracks of the EPs, does a spectacular job of making you stop and gawk at its premise, knowing that at some point, it’s a reasonable escalation of events for our day and age.
“Fare Well” rounds out the EP, the deceptive upbeat instrumental clashing with its despairing lyrics in a uniquely Hozier sort of way. Unheard is a great, engaging listen all around.
#1: Eat Your Young
Eat Your Young, comprising “Eat Your Young,” “All Things End,” and “Through Me (The Flood),” emotionally invested listeners for the long run for Unreal Unearth. The haunting titular track kicked “Too Sweet” from its place as the Circle of Gluttony, and takes its lyrical premise from the satirical Irish essay, “A Modest Proposal,” by Johnathan Swift. The essay makes the (again, satirical) argument that Irish people sell their children to be butchered to reduce the financial burden of having children and end the famine the nation was experiencing at the time.
The song made me sick to my stomach upon first hearing it, its orchestral sound mixing with the romanticized descriptions of its premise to make a point that has relevance today. “I won’t lie, if there’s something to be gained, there’s money to be made, whatever’s still to come,” sings the narrator, highlighting the theme and ever present issue of those exploiting everything possible to thrive.
“All Things End,” a more choral-centric song, functions as a song of grief or loss and brings up a lesser explored topic of rebirth that is present throughout the album. “Through Me” acts as a continuation of this song, with a similar but more upbeat gospel sound deepening the topic of loss and despair. It has a strong emphasis on the first person, blurring the lines between their resilience and willingness to give in.
Eat Your Young ranks as my favorite of the EPs not only for its place as an accompanying agent to many highs and lows in my life, but also for how much emotion and meaning is packed into its three songs. I look forward to the next time Hozier inevitably shatters my listening habits with his work, and hopefully without a five year gap beforehand.
