Music / Soil

I get to be devoted to him, I'm like his cherubim

I called all your ex-boyfriends and asked them for a kiss
I needed to know if they still carried your fragrance
Baby boy, as their mouths, their mouths consumed mine
Their lips were sweet as yours, I hope your flavor stays in mind

— "fragrant"

soil is the debut album of serpentwithfeet, moniker of the experimental Baltimore musician Josiah Wise, released in June 2018.

After releasing his debut EP blisters, Josiah began to work on his debut album enlisting noted producers such as Clams Casino and Adele collaborator Paul Epworth alongside experimental producers such as mmph and Katie Gately to assist in the album's production and to further refine his own sound.

Inspired by a breakup and experimentation with his own vocal capabilities, soil is an art pop record taking as much influence from Afro-American church music as it does thudding and ghostly experimental electronica. It gained many accolades from outlets such as The Guardian and The New York Times upon release.

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Tracklist

1. "whisper" (4:21)
2. "messy" (3:31)
3. "wrong tree" (3:43)
4. "fragrant" (3:14)
5. "mourning song" (3:19)
6. "cherubim" (3:38)
7. "seedless" (3:29)
8. "invoice" (4:01)
9. "waft" (2:48)
10. "slow syrup" (3:20)
11. "bless ur heart" (4:23)

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bless ur tropes

• all lowercase letters: The album and song titles are all in lowercase.
• Break Up Song: "slow syrup":
  When you made a chorus of your painful things
  Didn't know it was a song you hated to sing
  I'm a glutton for "can we make this work?"
  We can argue and leave room for dessert
  Can you pour syrup all over my face?
  The truth is much too hard today
• Double Entendre: Multiple tracks do this, using spiritual / esoteric subjects to allude to romantic or sexual topics, most notable tracks that do this being "waft", "cherubim", "mourning song" and "wrong tree"
• Genre Mashup: Of classical music, gospel, electronica, Alternative R&B and (at times) Industrial.
• God-Is-Love Songs: An odd variation, in which, "cherubim" has serpent comparing devotion to a lover, to a devotion to God.
• Intercourse with You: "seedless", "cherubim" and "waft".
• One-Word Title: "whisper", "messy", "fragrant", "cherubim", "seedless", "invoice" and "waft"
• Unrequited Love: "wrong tree":
  When his limbs hung to the floor
  Thought he was inviting me to love him more
  But he broke my heart and said
  "You're climbing up the wrong tree."

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