Cherry Wine (Hozier song) explained

Cherry Wine
Cover:Cherry Wine (Hozier song).jpg
Type:single
Artist:Hozier
Album:Hozier
Released:14 February 2016
Genre:
Label:
Producer:Rob Kirwan
Prev Title:Jackie & Wilson
Prev Year:2015
Next Title:Better Love
Next Year:2016

"Cherry Wine" is a song recorded by Irish singer-songwriter Hozier for his eponymous debut studio album, Hozier (2014). The song was released on 12 February 2016 as the seventh and final single from the album, with proceeds from downloads benefitting anti-domestic violence charities. It is a folk and indie folk song written by Hozier, whose lyrics describe the trappings of an abusive relationship while simultaneously retaining fondness for his partner. The song received acclaim from music critics, who praised its lyrics and sound. Commercially, the song peaked at number 32 on the US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart. The accompanying music video premiered on Valentine's Day, and was directed by Dearbhla Walsh and stars Saoirse Ronan as a domestic violence victim.

Background and composition

Hozier initially was shooting his first press photos at an abandoned hotel in Ireland that had caught on fire; the building had a caved-in roof and walls covered in graffiti. "Cherry Wine" was recorded on the roof of the location at 5 a.m.[1] [2] [3] The song is written from the perspective of a man in an abusive relationship, while his love endures through abusive episodes and a culture that enables them.[4] Hozier stated that it is "a love song about the awful parts of love" that "get(s) across the difficulty of [...] facing up to domestic violence"."[5]

Musically, "Cherry Wine" is a folk[6] and indie folk song.[7] The song is the final track of Hozier, written solely by Hozier,[8] and concludes the album on an intimate, apologetic note, with the singer "finally earning yearned-for redemption".[9] It consists solely of "resonant" acoustic guitars against Hozier's vocals during a live recording.[10] Plucked strings are intertwined with the chirping of birds as a red herring opposite lyrics describing a tempestuous, hot-headed, fluctuating love.[11]

Release and reception

"Cherry Wine" was released as a single on 12 February 2016 by Island Records. The song was met with acclaim from music critics for its lyricism and production. Annie Zaleski of The A.V. Club cited the song as "compelling", providing a prime example of "creative friction" on the album. Steven Dunne of State depicted the track as "an aural warm blanket, folksy and rich in tone", comparing the composition to a Dave Van Ronk song.[12] The voice-work was described by Carly Snider from The Michigan Daily as "haunting" and "delicate yet powerful".[13] Kelsey McKinney from Vox stated that the song is "a love sonnet steeped in abuse" and that Hozier's voice "sounds sadder, more distraught, and more exhausted than [it] does in the rest of the album"."

The song peaked at number 32 on the US Billboard Hot Rock and Alternative Songs, spending 20 weeks on the chart.[14] Island Records confirmed that they donated the proceeds from the downloads to international charity organisations benefitting victims of domestic abuse.[15]

Music video and promotion

The official music video for "Cherry Wine" was released on 14 February 2016, coinciding with Valentine's Day, as part of the #FaceUpToDomesticViolence social media campaign.[16] Directed by Dearbhla Walsh, the video casts actors Saoirse Ronan and Moe Dunford as the victim and her partner. The video features low-key lighting and exposed wood floors in an apartment, with a heart motif appearing throughout in the character's decoration and jewelry. The abuser "sports a tidy beard" and is "wrapped in" a cardigan, with his behaviour appearing" caring as he caresses the cheek beneath his partner's injury. Ronan's character is implied to be a mother, who accepts her partner's apparent affection while, in isolation, she tearfully and stoically observes her wounds. The scenes alternate between Ronan and Dunford kissing, laughing and drinking wine intercut with Ronan slowly removing her make-up to reveal a black eye and a forearm bruise.[17] [18]

The music video was described as "powerful", with Ronan's performance praised as "delicate" by Dylan Kickham from Entertainment Weekly.[19] Eileen G'Sell of Salon noted the video's defiance of the "cliched abuser" trope whose behavior is "unremittingly tender —horrifyingly so."[20] In March 2015, "Cherry Wine" was including on the tracklist during Hozier's NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert.[21] In March 2016, Hozier performed the song live at a HeForShe event by UN Women, supported by SAFE Ireland.[22] The following month, he performed "Cherry Wine" on The Late Late Show with James Corden.[23]

Charts

Chart (2015)! scope
Position
US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[24] 94

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Bedian . Knar . Blues-ing the Red Room: Hozier . Sound of Boston . 16 February 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190122005845/http://soundofboston.com/blues-ing-red-room-hozier/ . 22 January 2019 . dead.
  2. Web site: McKinney . Kelsey . Hozier's success means great things for the future of music . . 16 February 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150423143954/https://www.vox.com/2015/4/21/8441443/hozier-profile-interview . 23 April 2015 . dead.
  3. Web site: Abarce . Hozier: Live in Columbus . WIUX . 16 February 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180915033636/https://wiux.org/read/hozier-live-in-columbus/ . 15 September 2018 . dead.
  4. Web site: Kombercova . Katerina . An Interview with Hozier – Human rights, homophobia, sexism, and domestic violence. . Kaltblut Magazine . 4 March 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304001517/https://www.kaltblut-magazine.com/an-interview-with-hozier-human-rights-homophobia-sexism-and-domestic-violence/. 4 March 2016 . dead.
  5. Web site: Kaplan . Ilana . In the Middle with Hozier . Interview Magazine . 10 January 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140926011840/https://www.interviewmagazine.com/music/hozier. 26 September 2014. dead.
  6. Web site: Hampton . Erin . Hozier – Cherry Wine . Euphoria . 10 January 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200720023424/https://www.euphoriazine.com/blog/2016/02/music/videos-hozier-cherry-wine/ . 20 July 2020 . dead.
  7. Web site: Lai . Naomi . Hozier's Gorgeous Unplugged Acoustic Of 'Cherry Wine' Will Melt Your Heart . See It Live . 16 February 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201128192110/https://seeitlive.co/hozier-acoustic-cherry-wine/ . 28 November 2020 . dead.
  8. News: Hozier, Cherry Wine . . 10 January 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160509122720/https://www.allmusic.com/song/cherry-wine-live-mt0050575121 . 9 May 2016. dead.
  9. Web site: Pearce . Knar . Hozier: Hozier . . 10 January 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190428103131/https://www.popmatters.com/190069-hozier-hozier-2495567055.html . 28 April 2019. dead.
  10. Web site: Hozier . Cherry Wine (live) - Hozier . YouTube . 16 February 2021 . "Audio recorded live by Hozier. This recording appears on Hozier the album.".
  11. Web site: Annie . Zaleski . Irish singer-songwriter Hozier crafts a solid, bluesy debut . . 10 January 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191103075911/https://music.avclub.com/irish-singer-songwriter-hozier-crafts-a-solid-bluesy-d-1798181516 . 3 November 2019. dead.
  12. Web site: Dunne. Steven. 23 September 2014. Hozier – Hozier. State. 22 November 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141225152604/http://state.ie/album-reviews/hozier-hozier. 25 December 2014. dead.
  13. News: Snider . Carly . Music Video Review: Hozier's 'Cherry Wine' is delicate yet heavy . 16 February 2021 . . 17 February 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210112055637/https://www.michigandaily.com/section/arts/music-video-review-cherry-wine . 12 January 2021. dead.
  14. Cherry Wine . . 10 January 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210216060705/https://www.billboard.com/music/hozier/chart-history/ARK/song/821169 . 16 February 2021. live.
  15. Web site: Marsh . Joanne . Saoirse Ronan stars as domestic violence victim in Hozier's 'Cherry Wine' video – watch . NME. 16 February 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190126061557/https://www.nme.com/news/music/hozier-2-1200750 . 26 January 2019 . dead.
  16. Polanco . Luis . Hozier and Saoirse Ronan Address Domestic Abuse In 'Cherry Wine' Video . Billboard . 10 January 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160220015222/https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/6882403/hozier-saoirse-ronan-domestic-abuse-cherry-wine-video. 20 February 2016. dead.
  17. Kickham . Dylan . Hozier Cherry Wine video: Saoirse Ronan sheds light on domestic violence . . 10 January 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160218091540/https://ew.com/article/2016/02/17/saoirse-ronan-domestic-violence-hozier-cherry-wine/. 18 February 2016. dead.
  18. News: Xia . Kay T. . Hozier's 'Cherry Wine' Tenderly Addresses Domestic Violence . 16 February 2021 . The Harvard Crimson . 7 March 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160307051937/https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2016/2/23/cherry-wine/. 7 March 2016. dead.
  19. Web site: Here's Hozier's powerful new music video starring Saoirse Ronan . . 10 January 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160216223450/https://www.thejournal.ie/hozier-cherry-wine-video-2-2603775-Feb2016/. 16 February 2016. dead.
  20. Web site: G'Sell . Eileen . The sinister seduction of 'Cherry Wine': Domestic violence, filtered through a soft Instagram gloss . . 10 January 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160224005808/https://www.salon.com/2016/02/22/the_sinister_seduction_of_cherry_wine_domestic_violence_filtered_through_a_soft_instagram_gloss/. 24 February 2016. dead.
  21. Web site: Bolen . Bob . Hozier: Tiny Desk Concert . NPR . 16 February 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181013054226/https://www.npr.org/2014/05/27/314585084/hozier-tiny-desk-concert. 13 October 2018. dead.
  22. News: This Hozier performance in Áras an Uachtarain gave us chills . 16 February 2021 . . 11 March 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201028175618/https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/celebrity/arid-30724805.html. 28 October 2020. dead.
  23. Web site: Kelly . Aofie . Watch: Hozier performs Cherry Wine on The Late Late Show with James Corden . Independent.ie . 16 February 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160502023422/https://www.independent.ie/entertainment/music/music-news/watch-hozier-performs-cherry-wine-on-the-late-late-show-with-james-corden-34604716.html. 2 May 2016. dead.
  24. Hot Rock Songs – Year-End 2015. Billboard. 25 September 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160115000806/https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/2015/hot-rock-songs. 15 January 2016. dead.

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