Leith Ross’s debut EP Motherwell is an incredibly honest and intimate collection of songs. The music was inspired by their own coming of age story, and written in hopes of providing the soundtrack to a shaping moment for someone else. Motherwell was humbly recorded live off the floor in one afternoon with college mates, and released in October 2020 on Birthday Cake.
Songs from Ross’s debut EP have been played on CBC Radio 2 as well as editorial playlists on Spotify, Amazon Music, and Apple Music. The EP received critical acclaim from Exclaim!, Stylus Magazine, Red Guitar Music, and indie blog If It’s Too Loud.
“The phrase "wise beyond their years" implies that young people don't experience the world as deeply or intellectually as older people, but the wisdom that Ross applies to their music pierces on each song.” - Exclaim!
As they transition into the next phase of life, Leith Ross is using their new music to dive deeper into themes of identity, finding a sense of self, and growing into understanding one’s relationship with the world around them. With plans to share more with the world in the second half of 2021. Leith Ross will embark on their debut international tour in spring of 2022, supporting management and label mates The Bros. Landreth across the UK and Europe.
We’ll Never Have Sex
Leith Ross Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Suck the rot right out of my bloodstream
Oh, dilute me, gentle angel
Water down what I call being grateful
Oh, you kissed me just to kiss me
Not to take me home
It was simple, it was sweetness
You look perfect, you look different
I don't wonder about your indifference
If I said you could never touch me
You'd come over and say I looked lovely
Oh, you kissed me just to kiss me
Not to make me cry
It was simple, you are sweetness
Let's just sit awhile
Depollute me, gentle angel
And I'll feel the sickness less and less
Come and kiss me, pretty baby
Like we'll never have sex
The song "We'll Never Have Sex" by Leith Ross seems to be about a romantic encounter that is not consummated. The first two lines of the song introduce the theme of purification, with the singer asking their partner to "depollute" them and "suck the rot right out" of their bloodstream. This could be interpreted both literally or metaphorically as asking for a kind of emotional or spiritual cleansing. The next lines continue in this vein with the singer asking to be "diluted" and for their gratitude to be "watered down," which might suggest that the singer does not fully trust or believe in their own positive emotions.
The second stanza is perhaps the most revealing, as the singer seems to be describing a situation where they were kissed by their partner with no further intention. It is unclear whether the singer was looking for more, but the lines "It was simple, it was sweetness / It was good to know" suggest that the encounter was satisfying in its own right. Lines like "You look perfect, you look different / I don't wonder about your indifference" underscore the fact that the encounter was brief and that the singer does not expect anything more.
The final stanza begins with the same plea for purification, and it seems that the singer sees kissing as a kind of salve or antidote to the sickness they feel. The final line "Like we'll never have sex" is interesting, as it suggests that the singer both wants and doesn't want sex with their partner. Perhaps, for the singer, the experience of being intimate with someone is so fraught and difficult that kissing is the only safe option.
Overall, "We'll Never Have Sex" is a song about the complexities of intimacy and the ways in which people use physical closeness to try to purify or heal themselves. The lyrics are open-ended and leave a lot of room for interpretation, but the song's gentle melody and soothing vocals suggest that, whatever the outcome, the singer has found some measure of peace in their encounter with their partner.
Line by Line Meaning
Depollute me, pretty baby
Cleanse me of all impurities, my dear
Suck the rot right out of my bloodstream
Remove all the decay from within me
Oh, dilute me, gentle angel
Weaken my emotions, my sweet
Water down what I call being grateful
Lessen the intensity of my gratitude
Oh, you kissed me just to kiss me
Your kiss was for the sake of it
Not to take me home
You didn't have ulterior motives
It was simple, it was sweetness
The moment was pure and delightful
It was good to know
The experience was satisfying
You look perfect, you look different
You appear flawless and changed
I don't wonder about your indifference
I don't ponder on your lack of interest
If I said you could never touch me
If I imposed a restriction on our physical interaction
You'd come over and say I looked lovely
You'd still express your admiration for me
Oh, you kissed me just to kiss me
Your kiss had no hidden motives
Not to make me cry
You didn't aim to hurt me
It was simple, you are sweetness
Your approach was innocent and charming
Let's just sit awhile
Let's enjoy each other's presence in peace
Depollute me, gentle angel
Purify me further, my darling
And I'll feel the sickness less and less
I'll gradually recover from my sickness
Come and kiss me, pretty baby
Grant me your pleasant kiss
Like we'll never have sex
Without any expectations beyond intimacy
Lyrics © SC PUBLISHING DBA SECRETLY CANADIAN PUB.
Written by: Leith Ross
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@amberthomas788
I’m not particularly asexual, but have had a couple of experiences that messed up my relationship with sex.
Ever since I was a kid guys at my school would leer at me. One of my exes admitted that he only dated me because of my appearance. I wondered if anyone would ever love me without wanting something in exchange. Perhaps not all relationships are like this, I know many happy couples who do have sex, but because of what happened to me i feel like i’m always being used.
It made me depressed. A lot of people liked me not for my intelligence, my thoughts, or my achievements, but for something as unimportant and questionable as my flesh. Something I couldn’t control. Something that now, I hardly consider a true part of me. So I worked hard, I really did, I improved my knowledge, I spoke my true thoughts, I gained skills and more hoping that if I expressed who I was louder enough that they’d finally look at me, the real “me” instead.
My friends would constantly bother me about my relationship status, asking why I was still single. If my standards were simply too high. Wondering why I could “easily find someone with your looks” but chose not to do so. I have been single for more than two years.
It’s not that I want to be single, not exactly. I just feel so broken like this. Like if I told my friends I didn’t want sex, or any potential partners, then I’d be alone forever. People would think I’m weird. Broken. So I crack jokes about it, pretending like I view sex the way they do. I always feel an immense sense of regret after those conversations.
After a life of being sexualized, of having people score me up against the looks of other girls in school, having pictures being passed around behind my back.. I would do anything to have something like this. For someone to love me and to love them back, and to make memories. Sometimes I just want to rip my soul out of my body. Sometimes I wish we never had bodies at all.
That’s why I hold on to things like affection from family. They hug you simply because they love you. My dog being excited when I come home. How a mother cares for her child unconditionally. My friendships with other women.
I wonder if anyone will ever love me this way. And that’s the scary part, I will never know. Perhaps my fear works against me. But seeing other people feel this way gives me hope as well.
@user-ol5wu3gs9r
As a asexual person this song really hits the spot. I used to be pressured to sext and be sexual with my body by people when I was 11-12, and that really left a bad scar on intercourses for me.
I always used to hope that when I get older it’ll all go away. That I’ll finally be okay with it and be “normal” and have a “regular” relationship. And turns out that may never happen, all thanks to those people who gave me a bad first impression of that sort of relationship.
As time passed though, and my thoughts never changed, I learned to live with the fact I may never indulge in those types of things. I feel like a lot of people just think or assume asexual people are happy that they don’t like that type of stuff, but in all truth I dislike the fact that I feel this way. That I’ll never understand having that sort of connection with a person.
But then you have the fear of people wanting those things, forcing you, I have literal nightmares of people taking advantage of me and let me tell you it’s not a lovely thing. Sex has always been scary to me, always been a fear of mine, and most people don’t understand that.
This song makes me feel loved, it makes me feel like someone else finally gets how I feel. That maybe someone, I’ll find someone who will except me for who I am and love me wide big open arms. I still wanna cuddle, I still want hugs, I still want touch, I still want to kiss you, I just don’t want to go farther than that. And it gives me hope hat I will find that person one day, and they’re just waiting for me.
Thank you for this song, it truly makes me feel seen. I makes me feel understood. It means the world to me. :) 💙💙
@Rose-hh7mk
This reminds me of a beautiful quote from Waitress (2007)
“I hope someday somebody wants to hold you for 20 minutes straight and that's all they do. They don't pull away. They don't look at your face. They don't try to kiss you. All they do is wrap you up in their arms and hold on tight, without an ounce of selfishness to it.”
@WhoamI-ml6dj
"Beautiful" doesn't do it justice, but what word surpasses "beauty?"
@banelemkhabela3229
Hey i was born in 2007
@jco9656
As someone who was sex trafficked as a teenager and only knew love through sex this breaks me in half. I met the love of my life six years ago and he still loves me entirely without physically using me.... it's so healing.
@westy_besty3261
I'm so sorry you went through that, you are incredibly strong, and I am glad you're here. :) Thank you for sharing that, I hope that you are doing well <3
@westy_besty3261
And just know that you NEVER deserve to be abused. You are a wonderful and beautiful person, and I hope your partner is treating you with the love and respect you deserve.
@lindsays2007
Thank you for sharing your story ❤️❤️
@juliannahhendra-martinez7622
Wow I'm going through the court system right now at 16 fighting to get justice from my abusers I now live with my mom so I'm so happy I'm not alone going through that you are so strong ❤️❤️
@naheenisapoet69
Oh thank god you are out of it. I often think of the horrors of Sex trafficking... that's a dirty world
@lasagna.1706
I like how hypersexual and asexual people came together to say this song is so good. And people with truama with sex and relationships. And I bet people who don't even have anything like that, just appreciate this song so much!! I love this song soooooo much, it makes me wanna cry from wholesomeness