Moss was born in Hong Kong to an English father and a Chinese mother and was into music from a young age. She emigrated with her family to London at the age of 12.
Moss started performing in 2005 and her first release was the Secret Circus EP the following year.
In 2007 Moss performed with Lightspeed Champion, alongside Florence Welch (of Florence and the Machine) . She has also played with Noah and the Whale. She has not been a permanent member of either line up.
After a series of further singles and EPs, Moss' début full album First Love (Close Harbour) was released in February 2009. The album was ranked by The New York Times at #7 in their list of "Best Albums of the Year 2009."
Moss' band has included Euan Hinshelwood (of Younghusband) and Tom Rogerson (of Three Trapped Tigers).
Moss' second album, Virtue, was released on 13 June 2011. It started out as a third person project, however, the religious conversion of her fiancé and their subsequent break-up inspired her to take a personal approach towards her song-writing.
A Woman A Woman A Century of Sleep
Emmy the Great Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In whatever house you choose to build,
And I will model myself on it,
And wait for you alone
While you are out making a life for us,
I will stay and watch the days go past,
And I'll see how the plants advance,
And they turn on what they know.
Now there is rosemary where previously
No rosemary was shown,
They have aerials they feed from me,
And they grow and grow and grow.
Now I am turning into scenery,
Now the pipes are running bone,
And you might think I was a house
But I'm a woman, a woman.
Come back, come back just like you said,
Come back so you can see.
There are roses in the flowerbeds,
Where they never used to be.
And all my days are
Fading into these
Walls you made us,
But I don't want to be
The queen, in a century of sleep
I know, I know that I believe,
In whatever brings you joy from me,
But I've swept until I couldn't sweep,
And this house is still alive.
Now I have to find a dress,
Have to buy a dress
Have to sew it 'til the pieces mesh,
And I don't think I'm ready yet,
And I haven't got the time.
Now there is rosemary where previously,
There was no rosemary.
They have aerials, they feed from me,
And they tease and tease and tease,
Now I am shifting into greenery,
Now the pipes are running bleach,
And you might think I was a house,
But I'm a woman, a woman.
But you say don't be afraid.
And you try to explain,
That the best that we can hope and hope to gain,
Is to love and then be loved,
Is to have and then to hold,
'Til we age and then grow old.
And all my days are
Fading into these
Walls you made us,
But I don't want to be,
And all my days are
Fading into these
Walls you made us,
But I don't want to be
The queen,
In the century of sleep,
But I know that I believe
In whatever makes you pleased,
In whatever brings you joy, from me.
The lyrics of Emmy the Great's song A Woman A Woman A Century of Sleep tell the story of a woman who is left behind at home by her partner while he goes out to make a life for them. She's waiting for him to return and build a house for them, yet as time goes by, she starts to realize that she has been turned into a part of the house itself. She's become one with the walls and the pipes and the plants, and even though she longs for her partner to come back and see the roses that have bloomed in the flower beds, she's torn between her love for him and her fear of being trapped in a life of domesticity. She wants to be more than just a housewife, more than just a house. She wants to be seen as a woman, with all her hopes and dreams and desires.
The repeated line "I'm a woman, a woman" highlights the singer's struggle to maintain her identity in the face of societal expectations of women. She's not just a house, but a living, breathing human being with her own agency and desires. The rosemary and aerial imagery adds to the dream-like quality of the lyrics, emphasizing the distorted perception of time passing and the feeling of being trapped in an endless cycle of domestic work. The singer is grappling with the concept of love and partnership, wanting to maintain her own autonomy while also wanting to please her partner.
Overall, the lyrics of A Woman A Woman A Century of Sleep are a poignant exploration of gender roles and societal expectations, using dream-like imagery to convey a sense of being trapped in a life that doesn't quite fit.
Line by Line Meaning
I know, I know that I could live
In whatever house you choose to build,
And I will model myself on it,
And wait for you alone
While you are out making a life for us,
I will stay and watch the days go past,
And I'll see how the plants advance,
And they turn on what they know.
The singer is willing to conform to the desires of their partner by living in any given situation, waiting for their partner to return while they observe and learn from the natural world around them.
Now there is rosemary where previously
No rosemary was shown,
They have aerials they feed from me,
And they grow and grow and grow.
Now I am turning into scenery,
Now the pipes are running bone,
And you might think I was a house
But I'm a woman, a woman.
The singer has adapted to the environment around them and the change is taking over not just physically but also mentally and emotionally. They feel as though they are becoming one with the surroundings they are inhabiting, despite others perceiving them as a mere object or structure.
Come back, come back just like you said,
Come back so you can see.
There are roses in the flowerbeds,
Where they never used to be.
The singer longs for the return of their partner, anticipating the joy they will experience upon witnessing the changes that have occurred in their absence.
And all my days are
Fading into these
Walls you made us,
But I don't want to be
The queen, in a century of sleep
Despite the artist's surroundings dictating their everyday lack of activity, they refuse to succumb to a life of mundane existence, equating it to a century of slumber with no change or progress.
I know, I know that I believe,
In whatever brings you joy from me,
But I've swept until I couldn't sweep,
And this house is still alive.
Now I have to find a dress,
Have to buy a dress
Have to sew it 'til the pieces mesh,
And I don't think I'm ready yet,
And I haven't got the time.
The artist is willing to continue making sacrifices for their partner's satisfaction, but they are struggling to find the motivation to remain compliant concerning how they present themselves to the world.
Now there is rosemary where previously,
There was no rosemary.
They have aerials, they feed from me,
And they tease and tease and tease,
Now I am shifting into greenery,
Now the pipes are running bleach,
And you might think I was a house,
But I'm a woman, a woman.
The changes to the singer and their surroundings have escalated, with plants appearing and feeding off of them. The singer feels as though they are becoming one with nature, despite the state of their physical environment.
But you say don't be afraid.
And you try to explain,
That the best that we can hope and hope to gain,
Is to love and then be loved,
Is to have and then to hold,
'Til we age and then grow old.
The singer's partner attempts to alleviate their worries and fears by reminding them of the simplicity of their desires and how those desires revolve around the love shared between them, despite the hardships that may arise.
And all my days are
Fading into these
Walls you made us,
But I don't want to be,
And all my days are
Fading into these
Walls you made us,
But I don't want to be
The queen,
In the century of sleep,
But I know that I believe
In whatever makes you pleased,
In whatever brings you joy, from me.
The artist remains conflicted about their role and the future that is being laid out ahead of them, but they continue to hold onto their willingness to please their partner and make them happy.
Writer(s): Emma Lee Moss Copyright: Stage Three Music (Catalogues) Limited
Contributed by Luke M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.