It looks like third time’s the charm for alternative singer Weyes Blood as the songwriter prepares for the release of her upcoming album, And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow, this Friday.
Co-produced by Ben Babbitt and Jonathan Rado (of Foxygen), new single “God Turn Me Into A Flower” is much more subdued in nature compared to the Weyes’ previous singles, “It’s Not Just Me, It’s Everybody” and “Grapevine.” But on the other hand, all three tracks remain true to Weyes’ doom-and-gloom songwriting signature. “Grapevine” chronicled her escape from the losing game an emotionally unavailable partner trapped her in. On “It’s Not Just Me, It’s Everybody,” Weyes confessed to her longing for true connection.
Unlike the previous singles, “God Turn Me Into A Flower” intentionally lacks the theatrics. The nearly stripped track doesn’t have much heft in terms of instrumentation, which forces listeners to hyper-focus on Weyes’ vocals. The layering of them creates an echo chambers allowing her tear-jerking lyrics to pierce through.
Often a lone wolf as it relates to her individual work, on “God Turn Me Into A Flower,” Weyes recruited the help of producer Oneohtrix Point Never (real name Daniel Lopatin). However, instead of serving in a production role, Lopatin joined in on the record by way of the synthesizer. Lopatin’s played heightens the coldness Weyes feels in her romantic pursuits.
This track plays more so like a prayer rather than a song. In the stanza, “It always takes me / it’s such a curse to be so hard / you shatter easily / and can’t pick up all those shards / it’s the curse of losing yourself,” Weyes seemingly acknowledges her faults in the relationship but admits that it could never work.
In the lines, “You see the reflection / and you want it more than the truth / you yearn to be that dream / you could never get to,” Weyes doubles down on this sentiment. She later prays to be revealed of this strain as she’d rather be a flower than a person.
Listen to the track above.