Hozier (album)

Hozier
Studio album by Hozier
Released 19 September 2014 (2014-09-19)
Genre
Length 53:26
Label
Producer Rob Kirwan
Hozier chronology
From Eden
(2014)		 Hozier
(2014)
Singles from Hozier
  1. "Take Me to Church"
    Released: 13 September 2013
  2. "From Eden"
    Released: 9 March 2014
  3. "Sedated"
    Released: 20 May 2014
  4. "Someone New"
    Released: 2 March 2015
  5. "Work Song"
    Released: 23 March 2015
  6. "Jackie and Wilson"
    Released: 29 September 2015
  7. "Cherry Wine"
    Released: 14 February 2016

Hozier is the eponymous debut studio album from Irish musician Hozier. The album was released on 19 September 2014 through Island Records and Rubyworks Records. The album contains some tracks from Hozier's previous two EPs, Take Me to Church and From Eden.

Well received by music critics, Hozier was also commercially successful, reaching top ten positions in Ireland, UK, the United States, Canada, Australia, Denmark and Greece. The album's lead single "Take Me to Church" was a huge success worldwide, and also earned a nomination for Song of the Year at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards in 2015.

Recording
"Take Me to Church"
A sample of "Take Me to Church" by Hozier.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

At a live performance in Boston, Hozier explained that "Cherry Wine", was recorded late at night in an old, abandoned hotel with a caved-in roof and walls covered in graffiti. "It was like 5 in the morning and I was so tired... and it ended up on the first EP!"[5]

Lyrical content

The lyrics "Two corpses we were, two corpses I saw / They'd find us in a week" of "In a Week" revolve around an upland area known as the Wicklow Mountains or Wicklow Hills near Hozier's hometown of Bray. "Anytime you hear 'Wicklow Hills', it's usually before or after the words 'a body was found'," said Hozier.[5]

Singles

Release

The album was available to pre-order in Europe upon its announcement with North American and Australian pre-order dates from July 2014.[8] The album was released 19 September 2014.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic79/100[9]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
The Arts Desk[10]
The A.V. ClubB[11]
Clash8/10[2]
Entertainment WeeklyA-[12]
Exclaim!9/10[13]
The Irish Times[14]
Rolling Stone[3]
State[15]
The Telegraph[4]

Hozier received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 79, based on ten reviews.[9]

AllMusic's Timothy Monger called the album "a strong debut," praising the singer's soulful voice and the quality of the material. "Like fellow Irishman Van Morrison did decades before, Hozier draws on the soul and R&B of Jackie Wilson and runs it through the mystery white-boy filter of Jeff Buckley, adding a touch of Bon Iver's rural indie aesthetic to mix into his own dark cocktail," he wrote.[1]

Sergiusz Królak of JazzSoul.pl claimed, "Hozier (...) revealed album with emotionally strong songs," adding that "acoustic-rock-ballad tracklist makes a great whole with deep-emotional vocal and strong lyrics".[16]

Simon Harper of Clash magazine commented that "His voice, more poitín-sweetened than whiskey-soaked, caresses delicate melodies and rougher rhythms alike with confidence – it lingers compellingly in the creeping blues of 'To Be Alone', whispers prettily in the folky 'Like Real People Do', and preaches fervently in the ragged R&B of 'Jackie And Wilson'. The Irishman's storytelling is suitably fluid, relying on the realism of true romance rather than affecting any impoverished Delta designs. As a result, 'Hozier' is an authentic portrait of an artist – soulful, spiritual and seductive – and is a deeply impressive first step."[2]

Rolling Stone magazine's Jon Dolan wrote, "Blessed with a sensual singing voice and a seemingly bottomless well of lapsed-Catholic-style conflict, Hozier channels Van Morrison's Celtic R&B, Southern soul and Black Keys-style garage blues into intimately roiling songs like 'Angel of Small Death and the Codeine Scene.'"[3]

Helen Brown of The Telegraph noted, "Gospel choirs hum and swell tenderly beneath the rougher edges of his riffs. They add mature, universal gravitas and often a holy ecstacy to an intense, youthful lyrical tangling of religion and romantic obsession that regularly finds him poised 'between love and abuse'," adding that "Hozier mixes his tormented blues with sunny R&B."[4]

In 2016, Hozier's song, "Arsonist's Lullaby", was featured in the film trailer for the Ben Affleck directed film, Live by Night. [17] [18]

Accolades

For the 57th Grammy Awards, "Take Me to Church", written by Hozier himself, received a nomination on the category Song of the Year. Jessica Goodman and Ryan Kistobak of The Huffington Post included the album on their list of 2014's best releases.[19]

Commercial performance

As of January 2016, the album has sold a total of 808,000 copies in the United States.[20] It has sold 90,000 copies in Hozier's home country of Ireland.[21]

The album debuted at number two on the Canadian Albums Chart, selling 8,800 copies in its first week.[22]

Track listing

All tracks written by Andrew Hozier-Byrne, except "Someone New" written by Hozier-Byrne and Sallay Matu Garnett. 

No. Title Length
1. "Take Me to Church"   4:02
2. "Angel of Small Death and the Codeine Scene"   3:39
3. "Jackie and Wilson"   3:43
4. "Someone New"   3:42
5. "To Be Alone"   5:23
6. "From Eden"   4:43
7. "In a Week" (featuring Karen Cowley) 5:18
8. "Sedated"   3:27
9. "Work Song"   3:49
10. "Like Real People Do"   3:18
11. "It Will Come Back"   4:37
12. "Foreigner's God"   3:45
13. "Cherry Wine" (Live) 4:00
Total length:
 53:26

Personnel

Credits adapted from AllMusic.[23]

Musicians
  • Hozier – vocals, guitar, bass, piano, synthesizer
  • Karen Cowley – vocals (track 7)
  • Alex Ryan – bass, piano
  • Ken Rice – viola, violin
  • Kate Ellis – cello
  • Matt Rafter – cello
  • Andre Antunes – drums, percussion
  • Rory Doyle – drums, percussion
  • Fiachra Kinder – drums
  • Rob Kirwan – percussion
Technical personnel
  • Hozier – producer
  • Rob Kirwan – producer, engineer, mixing
  • Niall Muckian – direction
  • Roger Quail – A&R
  • Andrew Scheps – mixing
  • Stephen Marcussen – mastering
Additional personnel
  • Mark James – design
  • Raine Hozier-Byrne – artwork
  • Steven Appleby – fonts, logo

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2014–15) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[24] 3
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[25] 22
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[26] 2
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[27] 28
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[28] 2
Czech Albums (ČNS IFPI)[29] 20
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[30] 9
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[31] 7
French Albums (SNEP)[32] 18
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[33] 34
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[34] 14
Greek Albums (IFPI Greece)[35] 2
Irish Albums (IRMA)[36] 1
Italian Albums (FIMI)[37] 7
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[38] 3
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[39] 11
Polish Albums (ZPAV)[40] 1
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[41] 29
Scottish Albums (OCC)[42] 6
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[43] 6
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[44] 14
UK Albums (OCC)[45] 3
US Billboard 200[46] 2
US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[47] 1
US Digital Albums (Billboard)[48] 2
US Folk Albums (Billboard)[49] 1
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[50] 1
US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard)[51] 4

Year-end charts

Chart (2014) Position
Irish Albums (IRMA)[52] 2
US Billboard 200[53] 137
US Alternative Albums (Billboard)[54] 16
US Folk Albums (Billboard)[55] 2
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[56] 27
Chart (2015) Position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[57] 12
Irish Albums (IRMA)[58] 3
Italian Albums (FIMI)[59] 64
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[60] 12
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[61] 49

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/Sales
Australia (ARIA)[62] Platinum 70,000^
Austria (IFPI Austria)[63] Platinum 15,000*
Canada (Music Canada)[64] Platinum 80,000^
Denmark (IFPI Denmark)[65] Gold 0^
Germany (BVMI)[66] Gold 0^
Ireland 90,000[21]
New Zealand (RMNZ)[67] Gold 7,500^
Poland (ZPAV)[68] Platinum 20,000*
Sweden (GLF)[69] Gold 20,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[70] Platinum 458,000^
United States (RIAA)[71] Platinum 808,000[20]
Summaries
Worldwide (IFPI) 1,800,000

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

Release history

Region Date Label Format
Ireland[72] 19 September 2014
United Kingdom[8] 6 October 2014
United States[73] 14 October 2014

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Monger, Timothy. "Hozier - Hozier". AllMusic. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  2. 1 2 3 Harper, Simon (6 October 2014). "Hozier - Hozier". Clash. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 Dolan, Jon (21 October 2014). "Hozier's New Album: Hozier". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 Brown, Helen (6 October 2014). "Hozier, Hozier, review: 'glorious and uplifting'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  5. 1 2 Bedian, Knar. "Bluesing in the Red Room". Sound of Boston.
  6. ↑ "Future Releases on Triple A (AAA) Radio Stations, Independent Artist Song Releases". All Access Music Group. Archived from the original on 26 February 2015. Retrieved 26 February 2015.
  7. ↑ Stefan Kyriazis. "Game of Thrones Natalie Dormer in Hozier video Someone New - Music - Entertainment - Daily Express". Express.co.uk.
  8. 1 2 "Hozier Store". hozier.com. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
  9. 1 2 "Reviews for Hozier by Hozier". Metacritic. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  10. ↑ H. Green, Thomas (30 September 2014). "CD: Hozier – Hozier". The Arts Desk. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  11. ↑ Zaleski, Annie (7 October 2014). "Review: Irish singer-songwriter Hozier crafts a solid, bluesy debut". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  12. ↑ "Albums: Oct. 10, 2014". Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. 3 October 2014. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  13. ↑ Herd, Mackenzie (7 October 2014). "Hozier – Hozier". Exclaim!. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  14. ↑ Boyd, Brian (19 September 2014). "Album Choice – Hozier: Hozier (Review)". The Irish Times. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  15. ↑ Dunne, Steven (23 September 2014). "Hozier – Hozier". State. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  16. ↑ Królak, Sergiusz (2 January 2015). "Recenzja: Hozier "Hozier"". JazzSoul.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 4 January 2015.
  17. ↑ Live by Night at the Internet Movie Database Retrieved September 9, 2016.
  18. ↑ "Hozier lends voice to Affleck's Irish mobster movie" Retrieved September 9, 2016.
  19. ↑ Goodman; Kristobak, Jessica; Ryan (15 December 2014). "The 23 Best Albums of 2014". The Huffington Post. The Huffington Post. Retrieved 15 December 2014.
  20. 1 2 Keith Claufield (March 14, 2015). "Billboard 200 Chart Moves: 'Hozier' Has Sold a Half-Million". Billboard. Retrieved March 14, 2015.
  21. 1 2 "Hozier dethrones James Bay to reclaim Irish No 1". RTÉ. April 10, 2015. Retrieved April 28, 2015.
  22. ↑ "A Journal of Musical ThingsWeekly Music Sales Report and Analysis: 15 October 2014 - A Journal of Musical Things". A Journal of Musical Things.
  23. ↑ "Hozier - Hozier | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  24. ↑ "Australiancharts.com – Hozier – Hozier". Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 April 2015.
  25. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Hozier – Hozier" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  26. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Hozier – Hozier" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  27. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Hozier – Hozier" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  28. ↑ "Hozier – Chart history" Billboard Canadian Albums Chart for Hozier.
  29. ↑ "Czech Albums – Top 100". ČNS IFPI. Note: On the chart page, select 201538 on the field besides the word "Zobrazit", and then click over the word to retrieve the correct chart data. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
  30. ↑ "Danishcharts.com – Hozier – Hozier". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  31. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Hozier – Hozier" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  32. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Hozier – Hozier". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  33. ↑ "Hozier: Hozier" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 22 February 2015.
  34. ↑ "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  35. ↑ "Official Cyta-IFPI Charts Top-75 Albums Sales Chart" (in Greek). IFPI Greece. Archived from the original on 18 June 2015. Retrieved June 30, 2015.
  36. ↑ "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 42, 2014". Chart-Track. IRMA.
  37. ↑ "Italiancharts.com – Hozier – Hozier". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
  38. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Hozier – Hozier". Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 July 2015.
  39. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Hozier – Hozier". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 February 2015.
  40. ↑ "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLIS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 15 August 2015.
  41. ↑ "Portuguesecharts.com – Hozier – Hozier". Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
  42. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  43. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Hozier – Hozier". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 November 2014.
  44. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Hozier – Hozier". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  45. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  46. ↑ "Hozier – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Hozier.
  47. ↑ "Hozier – Chart history" Billboard Top Alternative Albums for Hozier.
  48. ↑ "Hozier – Chart history" Billboard Digital Albums for Hozier.
  49. ↑ "Hozier – Chart history" Billboard Folk Albums for Hozier.
  50. ↑ "Hozier – Chart history" Billboard Top Rock Albums for Hozier.
  51. ↑ "Hozier – Chart history" Billboard Top Tastemaker Albums for Hozier.
  52. ↑ "IRMA - best of albums". irma.ie.
  53. ↑ "Top Billboard 200 Albums: 2014 Year-End Charts". Billboard. Retrieved 2015-01-15.
  54. ↑ "Alternative Albums: 2014 Year-End Charts". Billboard. Retrieved 16 January 2015. (subscription required)
  55. ↑ "Folk Albums: 2014 Year-End Charts". Billboard.
  56. ↑ "Top Rock Albums: 2014 Year-End Charts". Billboard.
  57. ↑ "ARIA Charts - End of Year Charts - Top 100 Albums 2015". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  58. ↑ http://www.irma.ie/#verticalTab2
  59. ↑ "Classifiche "Top of the Music" 2015 FIMI-GfK: La musica italiana in vetta negli album e nei singoli digitali" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  60. ↑ "The Official NZ Music Charts - End of Year Charts 2015".
  61. ↑ "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 2015".
  62. ↑ Ryan, Gavin (10 October 2015). "ARIA Albums: Triple J's 'Like a Version 11' Stops Cold Chisel From Debuting At No 1". Noise11. Retrieved 10 October 2015.
  63. ↑ "Austrian album certifications – Hozier – Hozier" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved 14 March 2015. Enter Hozier in the field Interpret. Enter Hozier in the field Titel. Select album in the field Format. Click Suchen
  64. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Hozier – Hozier". Music Canada. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
  65. ↑ "Danish album certifications – Hozier – Hozier". IFPI Denmark. Retrieved 25 February 2015. Click on næste to go to page if certification from official website
  66. ↑ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Hozier; 'Hozier')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
  67. ↑ "New Zealand album certifications – Hozier – Hozier". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 17 July 2015.
  68. ↑ "Polish album certifications – Hozier – Hozier" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  69. ↑ "Hozier - Hozier" (in Swedish). Grammofon Leverantörernas Förening. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
  70. ↑ "British album certifications – Hozier – Hozier". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 30 January 2015. Enter Hozier in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Platinum in the field By Award. Click Search
  71. ↑ "American album certifications – Hozier – Hozier". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 1 March 2015. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
  72. ↑ "Hozier's album to be released on September 19". RTÉ.ie. 24 June 2014. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
  73. ↑ "Hozier by Hozier". iTunes (US). Retrieved 1 November 2014.
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