Affecting and anthemic… Read Full Bio ↴Sivu is British singer-songwriter James Page.
Affecting and anthemic, 'Miracle (Human Error)' is a bold step forward from Sivu - marrying his trademark brand of baroque-pop, which has drawn frequent comparisons with Wild Beasts, to the soaring, wide-screen quality of Arcade Fire, and the distorted, aggressive guitars of Radiohead circa-'Creep'. It's a dramatic but ultimately uplifting mix, produced alongside long-term collaborator Charlie Andrew (who has recently completed the second Alt-J album, due for release in September). The surreal accompanying video, in which a couple collide as the world appears to collapse around them, was directed by Georgia Hudson (who has recently worked with Klaxons, Swim Deep and MØ).
Whilst growing in confidence and ambition, lyrically 'Miracle (Human Error)' retains the intimate, internal conflictions that run throughout Sivu's work. He started writing solo songs two years ago, upon moving from a sleepy Cambridgeshire town to a claustrophobic apartment on the twentieth floor of a daunting ex-council block in Kennington. Frank Sinatra's'Strangers In The Night' was the blueprint for a glitchy form of melodically dreamy, idiosyncratic pop, whilst the name Sivu was equally strange but memorable: a translation of his surname in Finnish, it's a fitting snapshot of the dark and lyrically direct mirror-image that would become James Page's performing alias. New single 'Miracle (Human Error)' was penned shortly after breakthrough moment 'Better Man Than He', whose viral video (filmed in an MRI machine) was filmed in between shifts working in a call centre, and picked up over half a million hits - with M.I.A among those declaring it her video of the year.
And like 'Better Man', 'Miracle (Human Error)' sees Sivu's mind wandering towards bigger topics, often between dead-end sales calls from the office. It's a vocal fear of The Unknown, asking questions of both the short-term, day-to-day acclimatisation to London life, and the bigger-picture crisis of our place in the cosmos. Not being religious, it's a theme Sivu was surprised to find himself returning to. "With social media and technology, it sometimes feels like we're all getting a little colder and are becoming just a bunch of URLs," he explains, pointing to the oddly-sing-along chorus of "because it's time to collide / this human error's what we're made for / but now we're dead inside / we're ones and zeros of a half-lived life"."I've always suffered from quite bad anxiety, and 'Miracle (Human Error)' is about that sense of feeling small in the world - and me being as honest as possible, to move forward."
Sivu has recently completed his debut album, ”Something On High”, a stunning soundtrack of time spent settling into a new city, young-adulthood, and ultimately his own skin.
https://soundcloud.com/sivusignals
My Oh My
Sivu Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
While screaming My Oh My
Covered these stains by secret's keep
While screaming My Oh My
Standing in the door I disbelieve
As I'm not lying
Becoming something that I never knew
Attacking veins, they trying drain it out
I'm trying for you
My Oh My,
We steal, we heal for now
It's enough,
Well enough is never enough for me
My Oh My
We steal, we heal for now
It's enough!
Marching to a chained gate,
While screaming My Oh My
If you & I are
Then when do I love
Becoming something that I never knew
Instead of starring at the??
Attacking veins, they trying drain it out
I'm trying for you
My Oh My,
We steal, we heal for now
It's enough!
Well, enough is never enough for me
My Oh My
We steal, we heal for now
It's enough!
In Sivu's song My Oh My, the singer seems to be in a state of disbelief and intense emotions. The opening lines suggest that he is dancing on the floor with a heavy heart, screaming "My Oh My." He then confesses to covering some stains with a secret, which could either refer to physical or emotional stains. As he stands in the door, he disbelieves something, and it appears that he's not lying. It could be that he is in shock or overwhelmed by something that has happened to him.
The second verse seems to suggest that the singer is experiencing some intense changes. He is becoming something that he never knew or anticipated. The attacking veins line could suggest that he's trying to cope with something that's weighing him down, perhaps a memory or a relationship. He concludes by saying that he's trying for the person he loves.
Overall, My Oh My seems like a song that deals with complex emotions and unexpected changes. The singer might be struggling with something that he can't quite articulate or understand. The repetition of the line "We steal, we heal for now, it's enough" suggests that he's trying to make peace with whatever is happening and that he's willing to do whatever it takes to move past it.
Line by Line Meaning
Floating across the floor, I jacked my feet
While screaming My Oh My
I feel alive and excited, as if I am dancing on air, and I cannot contain my enthusiasm and joy.
Covered these stains by secret's keep
While screaming My Oh My
I am hiding my flaws and faults from others, pretending to be perfect, all while feeling ecstatic.
Standing in the door I disbelieve
As I'm not lying
I am in disbelief of my own happiness and feeling like it's so good that it must be too good to be true.
Becoming something that I never knew
Instead of starring at the??
Attacking veins, they trying drain it out
I'm trying for you
I am transforming into a new, unknown version of myself, rather than dwelling on the uncertainties of life, and I am willing to fight to maintain this feeling for the person I care about.
My Oh My,
We steal, we heal for now
It's enough,
Well enough is never enough for me
My Oh My
We steal, we heal for now
It's enough!
We are doing whatever we can to feel better and recover from our emotional pain, but despite feeling like it's enough, we know that it never really is.
Marching to a chained gate,
While screaming My Oh My
If you & I are
Then when do I love
I am feeling like I am at a dead end and shouting in frustration, wondering when I will finally find true love with this person I am with.
Contributed by Gavin T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.