Irish singer-songwriter Hozier was the musical guest on Saturday Night Live yesterday (Oct. 11), performing his rock hymn "Take Me to Church" on national television.
Hozier did his hit justice during the performance, giving the soulful tune some extra guitar edge (see video below).
The singer released his self-titled debut album recently and it includes "Take Me to Church" along with other cuts from his first two EPs. The Take Me to Church EP came out during 2013 and Hozier followed it up with his From Eden EP earlier this year.
"This gospel-inflected, fire-and-brimstone song—which condemns organized religion while praising sex and love as a replacement—kicks off his self-titled debut on an appropriately strident note," the A.V. Club wrote about the song in its review of Hozier. "Musically, the rest of the album follows suit: The Black Keys' electrified garage-rock days and Gary Clark Jr.'s crackling Southern blues are major influences, while the languorous "It Will Come Back" boasts devilish strings to match Hozier's smoky, wizened voice."
The singer spoke with the Huffington Post last month about the record. "A lot of things on the album are quite heavy but they're approached from a bright point of view," he said. "I've always loved that kind of...Tom Waits approach. With some of the heavier stuff, I like looking at awful things in a good way. I think there's wonderful things about some of them, so sometimes I approach it from that angle."
Hozier is currently on an expansive tour through March 2015. He will be in Los Angeles on Oct. 16, San Francisco Oct. 17, Portland Oct. 19 and Vancouver Oct. 20.
