… Read Full Bio ↴Will Wiesenfeld AKA Baths was born in 1989, in Los Angeles, California.
Wiesenfield is a classically trained musician, and began learning the piano at the age of four “to compete with his brother”. By twelve he had “completely abandoned it,” but continual musical experimenting lead him to record his first piece of music at age fourteen. Under a previous moniker, [Post-foetus], he wrote four albums and three EPs. He also ventured into a more ambient style with side-project Geotic, a project which Irish magazine State.ie called “gorgeous”.
After adopting the name Baths, he released debut album Cerulean on independent record label Anticon. He recorded the entire album in two months from his bedroom. The BBC’s Mike Diver claims Baths’ nearest musical sound-a-like is chillwave musician Toro Y Moi. Pitchfork noted Baths’ influences, acts such as Björk and Flying Lotus, were “obvious” in his work.
Drowned in Sound noted Baths’ use of “unorthodox” sounds layered in and around the electronics, in particular “clicking pens, vocal samples, rustling blankets and scissor snaps”. British newspaper The Guardian’s Paul Lester commented he was reminded of “J Dilla playing around with the Pavement and Prince catalogues” while listening to the album. While a lot of his music is instrumental, it can occasionally incorporate vocals, most of them falsetto.
Cerulean was listed by the AV Club as the 21st best album of 2010. It made Pitchfork’s Album of the Year: Honorable Mention list.
Miasma Sky
Baths Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Are you maybe here to help me hurt myself
Miasma sky
Would you swallow me alive
Tall rock shelf
Are you maybe here to help me hurt myself
Miasma sky
(Otherwise there's very little you can do for me)
Tall rock shelf
Are you maybe here to help me hurt myself
Miasma sky
Would you swallow me alive
Tall rock shelf
Are you maybe here to help me hurt myself
(Otherwise there's very little you can do for me)
Miasma sky
Would you swallow me alive
The lyrics of "Miasma Sky" by Baths are a reflection of the artist's struggle with depression and suicidal thoughts. The tall rock shelf and the miasma sky are metaphors for the overwhelming feelings of hopelessness and despair that the artist is experiencing. The repetition of the lines "Are you maybe here to help me hurt myself" and "Would you swallow me alive" suggest a sense of desperation and a desire for relief from the pain.
The "tall rock shelf" could represent a physical location, like a bridge or a cliff, where the artist is considering ending their life. The idea that the rock shelf is "here to help me hurt myself" suggests that the artist feels like their depression is driving them towards destruction, and that the only way out is to give in to the urge to harm themselves.
The "miasma sky" represents an oppressive atmosphere that the artist feels trapped under. The word "miasma" suggests a toxic and noxious cloud that is suffocating the artist. The line "Would you swallow me alive" could be interpreted as a plea for the sky to consume the artist, to put them out of their misery.
Overall, the lyrics of "Miasma Sky" are a poignant expression of the depths of depression and the desperation that can accompany suicidal thoughts.
Line by Line Meaning
Tall rock shelf
Questioning the presence of a structure that could aid in self-harm
Are you maybe here to help me hurt myself
Suggesting that the rock may be a temptation to inflict harm on oneself
Miasma sky
Alluding to a heavy, polluted atmosphere that can feel suffocating
Would you swallow me alive
Expressing a desire to be consumed by the suffocating atmosphere, possibly as a means of escape or release from inner turmoil
Tall rock shelf
Reiterating the presence of the structure and its potential danger
Are you maybe here to help me hurt myself
Continuing to question the intentions of the structure
Miasma sky
Repeating the feeling of being trapped in a polluted, heavy environment
Would you swallow me alive
Repeating the desire to be consumed by the atmosphere as a form of release
Contributed by Layla R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
ale martinez
This song gives me nostalgia because I listened to it constantly at a certain period in my lifetime i know it like the back of my hand makes me happy to hear it but brings back so much emotions i can't quite describe there is something dark about it yet so upbeat at the same time. Music is a beautiful thing.
Liliana Torres
Omg I feel exactly the same! Like, my college time, mixed with the fact that I still lived with my parents, my past pets and relationships.. nostalgia and happiness weirdly all together
Nicholas
I feel the same way. I listened to this song my first year of college when I was depressed and lonely. It was a sad song but very optimistic like I was at the same
Valdemar L S Jr
1:45 I can't handle this part so far. Everytime I listen to this, I can't explain my feeling, there are a lot of things happening in the same time, and I've got a sweet emotional confusion, among sadness, nostalgia, emptiness, joy... 🖤
emily savage
I feel happy to be alive when I listen to this
emily savage
I listened to this a lot when I was depressed but I can listen to it with a smile on my face I feel like I've won
usocrzzy
@emily savage very empowering words
Hunter Nichole
Baths helped me through a lot of depression and a lot of art projects I had going on in college. I saw him about 2 years ago in Orange County, CA. still have those videos today.
Trevor Garford
Hope your back to your healthy self. If not, you'll LOVE "Right Away Great Captain". Really brilliant.
Sleep Deprived Warlock
honestly, baths is amazing. found him my senior year of highschool and a lot of my drawings are inspired by baths. lovely bloodflow is my favorite