Cimmerian Shade
Sufjan Stevens Lyrics

@leeannparry9234

I'm so sorry for your loss of your beloved pets! That's awful, friend. Prayers for comfort and peace.

@jarretwolfman

:(

@midnightnettle7510

@@leeannparry9234 thank you. I need your prayers 🙏

@hoemogenic

THIS I THE BEST SONG SO FAR I CANNOT STAND THE PERFECTION 😭😭

@AS-ew4dk

I want the last minute on a 10 hour loop.

@feedmestrawberries2178

The verse "fix it Jonathan Demme" is pure genius <3

@biplabkarak1302

Interpreting the lyrics from the perspective of the character of buffalo Bill, and it feels like as if everyone, deep down within soul and heart, longs only for love, even the most despicable ones, e.g. buffalo himself/themselves. That's what we eventually get to realise when we try to understand others from a more raw and uncensored personal point of view, like almost placing ourselves in their positions, wearing not only their shoes but skin, and flesh too! But this song also affirms, as i interpret, that even though everyone is essentially a lover and a seeker of love, not everyone is lucky enough to receive it unconditionally or receive it at all, or that they can seek or try to seek it in loving and innocuous ways! In the quest for love many end up being what can conventionally be termed as 'monsterous'! Of all such unfortunate cases, Buffalo is perhaps only one single instance!!!
The song has a peaceful face yet so much of vehement and volatile forces are, i believe, rippling underneath the surface, through the unknown, unseen dank tunnels of mind!! It's chilling to be reminded of the gory activities of buffalo but knowing that love's the ultimate refuge for all of us regardless of our identities, gives me so much of comfort and could somehow generate within me a sense of being safe within my faith in love!!
Much love Sufie and Augustine ✨🌻

@dogukan7406

Dude what an effort to write this, I really appreciate it !

@biplabkarak1302

@@dogukan7406 thanks🤗🌻

@Emma-wg8sm

beautifully written!!!

@samsalamander8147

The Autogynophilia line sold it for me it took me a couple listens to realize it was a take on Buffalo bill from Silence of the Lambs

@ambermoon8293

This is so beautiful omg "beauty resides where your spirit dwells" i love it

@chiranisilva1625

Sufjan’s back and he’s stronger than ever. I love how reminiscent this is of the soft whispers of Seven Swans

@YesItsMeGuys68

His music is trance inducing .. calming . It touches the ephemeral sprit of the human experience through ones soul ... what other artist does this ? The sounds of angels comes to mind . I would bet he’s a very complex person in his daily life .. his river runs so deep. I saw him in concert by pure chance . Walking past the theater in boston one evening .. i was looking to kill a little time so i bought a ticket not knowing him at all . I was then 59 now 66 . I may well have been the oldest man in that crowd . Once they walked out on stage wearing home made wings and tinfoil hats .. pretty ragtag looking and me thinking perhaps i made a mistake here ...the music started and he began singing ... i was awash with such emotion .. i knew in the matter of only 2 songs , that i was witnessing genius.

@minimalist.twinkle

I am sick for more than a week now, and this song puts me in peace. Thank you so much Sufjan and Angelo for making such beautiful songs...You made life bit easy to live💜

@saritajoshi1737

Hope you are doing better now.

@minimalist.twinkle

@@saritajoshi1737 I'm doing well, thanks for asking😇

@kellymac1212

I'm sick right now! Fever just finally broke after several days... Found the song Reach Out - which brought me to this. LOVE!!!
✌💙

@danteamarantes3781

less than 1 minute in and I can already tell this song is perfection, as well as all the others that have been released. I can't wait for the full album ❤️

@gay_aliens

These new tracks dropping on my birthday is honestly all I could ask for

@AS-ew4dk

❤️

@christopheroquier5732

Un petit commentaire en français ? Eh oui, les fans sont nombreux de l’autre côté de l’Atlantique ! Toujours aussi magique, léger et profond. 🐬

@adamjaffe8544

Je ne savais pas que les fans de Sufjan existaient en France, mais ça me fait très plaisir en tout cas. Salut, mon pote !

@christopheroquier5732

@@adamjaffe8544 Salut mon pote Adam 🙂 Je vais encore te surprendre, Sufjan est assez connu en France. Pour ma part j’ai toujours aimé sa capacité à créer des passerelles entre différents genres musicaux, cela m’intéresse et me touche beaucoup. Et quand je fais des chansons je me rends compte qu’il m’influence réellement.

@josator4318

Words are not enough to express the calmness this song gives to me

@tomwiser2923

One of my wife’s favorite artist! Absolutely brilliant. Call outs to the director of Silence of the Lambs who brought us the anti-hero Hannibal who does not eat his own. An absolute monster none the less said Peterson.

@h00liaa

the intro kills me every time 😭 so so gorgeous

@dobazajr

Just close your eyes and listen. It's so calming and warm.

@iHateMondays98

This harmonization ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

@aiswaryaarun97

It has been an hour after this released and I just came to say that when Sufjan releases a song it’s like a dear friend’s music project im in awe of. Keep going sufjan and Angelo :)

@midriiny9494

this song feels like a pat on the head after a bad day thank u

@2507196040

Une musique qui vient chercher tous les souvenirs de ma jeunesse. Un cumulus de mélodies qui atteint mon âme. Merci Sufjan et Angelo. J’espère vous voir à Montréal.

@mijntjeH

I never knew I needed a beautiful song inspired by my favourite movie. Love it so much.

@manueloviedo1306

This song is SO beautiful

@doolittletrump6638

Album gets better and better with each listen! Thank you for this gift!

@TheSebOfAwesome

This is heaven

@user-un2hc8wl9u

this is all about silence of the lambs!

@Aggiemcdee

Omg it is too!!!

@lorenaatorres._

Sufjan come to Brazil! We all love you ❤

@moodyangel

Thank you Suf & Angelo

@AsthmaticKitty

thanks for listening moody!

@astridmaro

this is healing

@predatorywasp465

sounds like Seven Swans and Carrie & Lowell,the lyrics are deeper than ever,more thinking.love u sufjan❤️

@littlemissprettybird

the silent of the lamb

@apresmoiledeluge

υπέροχο 💗💗💗

@NastassiaEvans

Beautiful lyrics

@zatannaluvr5427

loveee this song and this album.

@trqpnest

i'm so extremely happy !!! i can't wait for the full album to be released <3333

@obsidianhowls3228

“I’m still just running from the answer” oh my godddd

@polyester8844

so in love with your songs. 🥺

@mauricioortega1261

My mind and body are ready for this

@cristinalojan5153

Lovee this song

@Kairava

Aw! Thanks for the lyrics! :D

@WertYuksel

Amazing

@AS-ew4dk

My g-d, that's amazing. ❤️

@Ianmybeloved_

summer vibes

@fffianist

wow a 5/4 time signature, don't see that too often. then the chorus alternates between 6/4 and 4/4

@sarvagyalama9291

Ive been getting chills for the past 20 mins and i cantnbjjssjxnsjaja

@Peachplumpearstan

i just wish sufjan's voice was louder in this album it seems like he just does backing vocals for most parts :(((

@michel_soriaa

I missed this Sufjan Stevens version

@suesmith9665

My God, what have you done to her? Really this is how they paint her, good lord.

@stacial

en serio voy A AMAR ESTE ALBUM al estilo redención después de carrie & lowell uwuwuwu

@UR.right.

Raptor loved my side
Where all wheels turned
My head twisted to the heavens
Catching the pieces wild

@septianparadesa6421

Sufjan, Angelo, please :)

@astridmaro

@Navneetisawesome

this is gonna be good.

@dogukan7406

"fix it all Jonathan Demme, beauty resides where your spirit dwells"
Oh God...

@sarahmoney5094

Beautiful :)

@Rentung20

Never been so early. 💛 it's magical

@10nsolly

this is gearing up to be an AOTY for me

@AJE1111

YESSSS!!!!

@jakepaterson6857

Anyone else think this is sonically very similar to Death with Dignity?

@kanishkjoshipura547

The lyrics feel like suf and Angelo are telling Demme that there's nothing wrong with seeing yourself as a woman. The line "Beauty resides where your spirit dwells" gives affirmation to gender euphoria.
(I might be terribly wrong here, of course)

@yoink1113

i just read that angelo said the song is a dialogue between creator and creation, he was imagining how buffalo bill would feel about being created. when viewing it through that frame, i think its an attempt at viewing the character in a much, much more empathetic light, but the use of "autogynophilia" muddies all of that

@kanishkjoshipura547

@@yoink1113 you're absolutely right about that cursed word though they need to take responsibility for that

@samsalamander8147

@@yoink1113I think the framework of Autogynophila explains a lot about why heterosexual men like to dress and act as woman it’s as good a theory as anything else and it makes sense. The use of it to explain buffalo bill was perfect.

@yoink1113

@@samsalamander8147 its not a good theory at all given that no trans person and no psychologist who works with trans people views autogynophilia as legitimate. its in fact an outdated and insulting "theory."

@samsalamander8147

@@yoink1113 I know people who actually have and admit to having AGP. The only people who have a problem with it are people who are afraid they are AGP themselves. I don’t think it explains all of “trans” people but it is definitely a valid theory. I honestly think most trans people are experiencing some type of disconnect between mind and body. You can induce similar feeling with a strong magnet, you feel as if you are standing behind yourself. I see it in a lot of autistic people, they just don’t quite feel right and they don’t have the words to express it.

@calicosky9863

Just realized this song is in 5/4, but feel so natural

@yoink1113

have to wonder what exactly suf and angelo are getting at with the use of "autogynophilia," well-intentioned as it may be

@hoemogenic

there is no intention, it's based on the movie

@yoink1113

@@hoemogenic there's more to it than that, as their bandcamp description for the album says, they took liberties with the source materials. and this one in particular seems like they're relating the film to themselves, seeing the desire for change in themselves in the movie, appealing to the director. id just like to know cause that word (and the movie too) have such a bad history

@thornyporcupine

Any mention of that pseudoscience is offensive and gross.

@PeaceTrainUSA-1000

Bonehead choice for sure.

@saoirsecameron

Can anything about Buffalo Bill ever be well intentioned? It’s literally all the worst transmisogynist tropes rolled up into one character. I don’t think anything good faith can be made from that source material. Mentioning autognyephilia was just adding insult to injury.

@afdm4334

omg i love it already (2)

is this The Only Thing vibes?

@timothycarr5714

A lot of people commenting seem to be taking issue with the word "autogynephilia" on the assumption that the song is written with the intention of a) being a sympathetic take on the Buffalo Bill character through the lens of transgender identity issues and b) using the word "autogynephilia" as a synonym. Personally, I don't agree with that interpretation. If we accept that the song is a conversation between the character of Buffalo Bill and his creator then we need to look at the lyrics with that context in mind. The character of Buffalo Bill was explicitly stated not to be transgender in the film. So it would be a mistake to assume, that for this song, we're supposed to assume he was. In fact, the use of the word "autogynephilia" would be evidence of the exact opposite intent.

To me, the chorus sounds like a plea to convince or justify the actions outlined in the verses. It could be Bill trying to convince Demme or Demme trying to convince himself, I'm not quite sure.

Each time the chorus comes up in the song, it changes a little. "I just want you to love me, I just wanted to know myself" is changed to "I just want you to know me, I just wanted to love myself" by the end of the song. This gives the impression of uncertainty and/or dishonesty. Changing his reasoning after the fact in order to sell us on the idea that "beauty resides where your spirit dwells".

Anyway, that's my take. I don't think there is any agenda or intended messaging in the premise of the song.

@unclejohnthezef

Sufjan and Angelo use the term “Autogynephilia” in this new song. This term is an outdated, denounced, fringe word, a pseudo-scientific label, a hateful word to the community it purports to describe. Some listeners believe the singers use it intentionally as an era-specific disproven belief, in order to generate discussion and a more nuanced understanding of the character Buffalo Bill from the 1991 movie "The Silence of the Lambs": the assertion is that the singers use it knowingly, ironically, intellectually.



“Cimmerian Shade” is the next to last song on the album, presented, I believe, as the album’s defining single. The title seems to come from the definition “Cimmerian: Very dark or gloomy”, or “of a mythical people described by Homer as inhabiting a land of perpetual darkness”. So Cimmerian Shade is like saying “really dark blackness.” This probably refers to the darkness the killer keeps in his underground lair (in the well, in the basement, with the night-vision goggles, etc).

In his excellent review, Mark Redfern writes: “Cimmerian Shade” is sung from the perspective of Silence of the Lambs’ serial killer Buffalo Bill (aka Jame Gumb, as played by Ted Levine). De Augustine had this to say about the song in a press release: “Many authors have emotional attachments to the characters they create. But in this instance, I was interested in how a character felt about being created. In my imagination I was giving consciousness to someone else’s creation. The song is essentially a dialogue between creation and creator that seeks to find understanding to some of the same questions that we ask ourselves about existence, free will, fate, purpose, guidance and if anyone or anything out there is listening or cares.”





The entire song, in fact, is made up of low level word play based on the film: the lamb cries; my prison of shame; I’ll keep her safe in the well, tailor made; my Starling; Chrysalis; black witch moth, etc. Except for one shocking word we never expect to hear come out of Sufjan's mouth: Autogynephilia.











In her excellent article, “The Ongoing Damages of The Silence of the Lambs’s Buffalo Bill 30 Years On”, Stephanie Markwell writes “This idea of the autogynephilic trans woman was popularised by The Silence of the Lambs – Bill’s mission to “become” a woman is entirely informed by his sexual perversions, as mentioned earlier. Much of the disgust levelled at Bill throughout the film is informed by this, with Lecter’s accusation of Bill and other gender non-conforming (GNC) people being ‘… savage and terrifying’ being at least partially influenced by a disdain for Bill’s autogynephilia.” (2.)
This is perhaps best illustrated in one of the most famous scenes in the movie: Jame Gumb dances seductively for a video camera (to the song "Goodbye Horses"), while putting on makeup and a wig and lipstick, hiding their genitalia and asking the camera "Would you ** me? I'd ** me hard..." all the while becoming aroused, playing with their nipples, etc.




Julia Serano in her scholarly denunciations of autogynephilia(3.) writes: “It is generally accepted within psychology and among trans health providers that transgender people who transition do so because they have a gender identity that is incongruent with their birth-assigned sex, and distinct from their sexual orientation. In contradiction to this standard model, the theory of autogynephilia posits that transgender women’s female gender identities and transitions are merely a by-product of their sexual orientations. While subsequent research has yielded numerous lines of evidence that, taken together, disprove the theory, autogynephilia is still often touted by anti-transgender groups, including trans-exclusionary feminists.” (4.) and “Autogynephilia is a paraphilic model that states that all male-to-female (MtF) transsexuals who are not exclusively attracted toward men are instead sexually oriented toward the thought or image of themselves as a woman. The assertion that transsexual women are sexually motivated in their transitions challenges the standard model of transsexualism—that is, that transsexuals have a gender identity that is distinct from their sexual orientation and incongruent with their physical sex.” (5.)




I still think it’s a great album: just now every time I see a horror movie, I have to wonder what Sufjan would sing about it (eg. I just watched Malignant, and I’m already hearing the pretty melodies “in my head…”, pardon the pun...)

@liloeuf

Why are you using julia serano as evidence that agp isn't real?
"Most of my fantasies began with my abduction: I’d turn to putty in the hands of some
twisted man who would turn me into a woman as part of his evil plan. It’s
called forced feminization, and it’s not really about sex. It is about turning the
humiliation you feel into pleasure, transforming the loss of male privilege into
the best fuck ever.

While I never really believed the cliché about women being good for only
one thing, I found that that sentiment kept creeping into my fantasies. In my late
teens, I would imagine myself being sold into sex slavery and having strange
men take advantage of me."
-Julia Serano

hmmmm

@hiphopmusicreveiw

Oh okay sure

@samsalamander8147

I think AGP explains buffalos bill pretty well, it may be a bit extreme but I bet the only people who are upset by the use of that word are afflicted with those feelings themselves and it’s just a whole lot of projecting going on.

@maria-vt4cw

Soft 😭😭😭

@FIREBRAND38

The word in the lyrics, Autogynephilia (derived from Greek for 'love of oneself as a woman') is the term for "a male's propensity to be sexually aroused by the thought of himself as a female". What a weird song. An Ode to Buffalo Bill in Silence of the Lambs. So, of course The Resident used it last night. That shows getting too woke. It's a shame.

@grantisbae8092

I really love you

@unclejohnthezef

One would hope that Stevens and DeAugustine use the term autogynephilia ironically in an attempt to be intellectual or artistic provocateurs, but that’s not good enough. If just judging from the small number of people who have listened to the song on YouTube and responded to it in the Comments is any indication, it has already hurt people. From the comments:

“dudes why the heck are you singing about autogynephilia, get that word out of your mouths. making a song based on an infamously transmisogynistic film, this is painful to hear.”

“These people have no business singing about or even uttering the word “autogynephilia”.”

“Any mention of that pseudoscience is offensive and gross.”

“i think it was still a really poor and uneducated choice on both of their parts, but i don't think there's any kind of ulterior motive behind using the word.”

“Bonehead choice for sure.”

“Can anything about Buffalo Bill ever be well intentioned? It’s literally all the worst transmisogynist tropes rolled up into one character. I don’t think anything good faith can be made from that source material. Mentioning autognyephilia was just adding insult to injury.”

“id just like to know cause that word (and the movie too) have such a bad history”

“but the use of "autogynophilia" muddies all of that”

“you're absolutely right about that cursed word though they need to take responsibility for that”




So what does Jonathan Demme have to do with all this?

Demme became a great Hollywood Director, who had always tried to be aligned with marginalised people, like the gay community. When the film came out, in 1991, Demme was crushed to find himself denounced as having made a homophobic film (while today, it is discussed for it’s transphobic depiction). As GLAAD said to the press about Jame Gumb back in 1991, ““He has a poodle named Precious, he sews, he wears a nipple ring, he has an affected feminine voice, and he cross-dresses. He completely promotes homophobia.” Demme’s response to his film being labeled as homophobic was to next direct Philadelphia, about a gay lawyer dying of AIDS and fighting for his rights. Philadelphia was also roundly criticized, but Demme’s response was very inspiring:


“I expected it—actually hoped for it,” Demme said in 1994. “It’s the job of militants to demand more of anything. If these people were satisfied, change would be hard to get through. Every one of them is right. There could have been more of this, or more of that, but now, maybe another film will take it further.” As the years went on, he also seemed to understand why activists were so incensed by Lambs. “Jame Gumb isn’t gay. And this is my directorial failing in making The Silence of the Lambs—that I didn’t find ways to emphasize the fact that Gumb wasn’t gay,” he said in 2014. “Juan Botas, who was one of the inspirations for Philadelphia, said, ‘You can’t imagine what it’s like to be a 12-year-old gay kid, and you go to the movies all the time and whenever you see a gay character, they’re either a ridiculous comic-relief caricature, or a demented killer. It’s very hard growing up gay and being exposed to all these stereotypes.’ That registered with me in a big way.” He acknowledged, fondly, “It’s now become a part of the dialogue on stereotypical portrayals of gays in movies.” (6.)




In an interview with GQ (7.) Stevens explains that he met Jonathan Demme when the director brought his family to see Stevens’ show. Stevens is a big fan of Demme’s work. DeAugustine goes farther (too far, I’m sure) in adding “That song began when I woke up one morning and started to write on the ukulele. I’d been imagining this situation where the character [Buffalo Bill] could have a conversation with the director. What would be said between the two of them? Would the conversation be one-sided because they’re both living in separate planes of existence? Or could that barrier be broken and an understanding be achieved? I think [The Silence of the Lambs] is about wanting to be loved for who you are. We seek guidance all the time for what purpose our lives hold, and that movie can be helpful for understanding some of those things.”

Again, I’m no Psychiatrist, but the serial killer in SOTL is definitely NOT motivated by seeking to be loved for who he is; he is motivated by the desire to torture, terrorize, maim and kill his victims; he desires their fear and to watch them die, then to cut them up and use their skin for a “woman suit”: not to “gain understanding”. It’s just possible Angelo and Sufjan have overthought this song a little bit. Their story/lyrics don’t hold up at all: Jame Gumb does not know Agent Starling and never calls her “My Clarice”: that’s a different serial killer in the movie. Jame Gumb did not “just want you to love me”: he never even knew her. There is an exhaustive article about Buffalo Bill’s origins and narrative at HannibalWiki. (8.)







But it is very interesting to have a fictional character wish they could have self-determination: Sesame Street used to have a simple line drawing character crying, and the character sobs “but I don’t want to be sad”… but they were drawn sad, and they are sad about being forced to be sad by nature; by their creator.

Cimmerian Shade would not engender all this discussion about Buffalo Bill, about SOTL, about Jonathan Demme, or about many important trans issues including the hateful and hurtful term “Autogynephilia”, if they left that word out of the song. My greatest wish, and the only thing I think that can address the harm using this word has caused, is to come out HARD against it: to make a strong, unambiguous statement right away, on the order of “We strongly denounce the concept of “Autogynephilia”, and any lingering credence anyone gives to this archaic and hurtful term. We use it here only to denounce the use of it by … and to hopefully make it even more unacceptable and rejected.” Sure, stir the pot, rile up all the greater non-trans public to raise awareness of these issues. But trans people are already hurt by this. Picture a listener (cis, trans, transitioning) hearing their hero Sufjan using the term in this song: “well, it must be acceptable or possibly even OK to believe in autogynephilia.” and from then on they keep their ears open for theories about trans people, believing this is a viable discussion point. don’t play coy about it: that’s a JK Rowling maneuver. None of this “We won’t ever discuss our lyrics’ meanings, that’s for our listeners to interpret for themselves… artistic privilege etc” Blabla bla... They should just come right out and say “We completely condemn autogynephilia theory, we just used it in our discussion because it was part of a film from 30 years ago.”

I wrote to Sufjan, and Asthmatic Kitty asking for clarification. (yeah, like they ever read a letter from me, let alone respond to me…) “Suf and Ange, I don’t know what’s “right” or “wrong”: I just know using this term is hurtful to a lot of people and many of your fans are confused and hurt: that’s a good time to say something, don’t you think?”











1. https://www.undertheradarmag.com/news/sufjan_stevens_and_angelo_de_augustine_share_cimmerian_shade_and_you_give_d




2.

https://scratchthatmagazine.com/issue-four-written-template-3/




3.

http://www.juliaserano.com/TSetiology.html




4.

http://www.juliaserano.com/av/Serano-AutogynephiliaEmbodiment.pdf




5.

https://www.juliaserano.com/av/Serano-CaseAgainstAutogynephilia.pdf




6.

.https://slate.com/human-interest/2017/04/director-jonathan-demme-faced-down-silence-of-the-lambs-gay-backlash.html




7.

https://www.gq.com/story/sufjan-stevens-angelo-de-augustine-interview

https://asthmatickitty.com/merch/a-beginners-mind/




8.

https://hannibal.fandom.com/wiki/Jame_Gumb




https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/sufjan-stevens-angelo-de-augustine/a-beginners-mind-album-review/




https://lwlies.com/interviews/sufjan-stevens-angelo-de-augustine-a-beginners-mind/




https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22005209/




https://www.huffpost.com/entry/why-jonathan-demme-applauded-the-lgbt-criticism-of-silence-of-the-lambs_n_5b4f6330e4b01e373aabe61b




https://www.wordnik.com/words/Cimmerian

@qebuiqebui1730

I get that you think you’re doing people like me a service, and I obviously don’t know your own situation, but holy shit calm down. I feel like you’re taking the song on such bad faith. It’s trying to reread a transphobic character in a more sympathetic light, not read the transphobia in a positive light. It’s a beautiful song about being trapped in an unchangeable fate, that’s it. As a trans woman currently living in the UK, it’s fucking insulting to compare this to the real harm JKR is causing. Your strawman is ridiculous, please stop. You do not get to speak for every trans person and act like this song is some kind of hate crime. Calm down.

(You want my read on the use of Autogynephilia? The song is clearly metafictional, Bill is talking to Jonathan Demme. Bill is trapped within the film, unable to be anything more than what the film allows. As such, they can only identify themself through the film’s transphobic lens, hence them begging Demme to fix it all, he is their creator. It’s not Stevens and De Augustine agreeing with the word, but rather using it within the context of the film to emphasis Bill’s spiritual innocence (obviously they aren’t innocent, they’re a mass murderer). They don’t know any better because they can’t, they are a character trapped within a stereotype stuck in the cycle of the film, they have no freedom to be anything else, but “beauty resides where your spirit dwells.”)

@adamkane

@@qebuiqebui1730 Thank you for your intelligent, clear-headed response.

@ZimmerSquash

@@qebuiqebui1730 Your read on the use of Autogynephilia sounds like what Sufjan and Angelo envisioned the song to be sharing (from what I've read in their interviews too). Thank you for writing that, it helps me visualize it all better.

@myactualfullname

@@qebuiqebui1730 This is exactly how I read it. The character is speaking to the director, an analogue of God, pleading for redemption, purpose, sympathy, freedom from themself and their "fate." They exist as they are written, and can be nothing else, so the usage of the term is not an endorsement of it or an implication of its validity, just an apt description of how the character was designed, how they are seen by the creator. In fact, since the song is REALLY about raging against the providence of some kind of creator, the listener can assume there is some dissonance between how the character views themself and how their creator does. They are in essence OPPOSING the definitions ascribed to them by their "God," because they see them as inaccurate and unfair.

@annashirley6243

'i just want you to love me'

@vxolences

OMG

@AJE1111

Waiting to see how many people mistake Angelo De Augustine's voice for Sufjan's.

@AS-ew4dk

It's hard to tell for the untrained ear.

@AJE1111

@@AS-ew4dk Maybe, but it's also because their voices are really similar (and thus work well together!). Though a dead giveaway is also range. Angelo De Augustine has a HEAVENLY vocal range. So if you hear it pretty high up there, it's very likely him singing.

@dimetrodonz

im a big sufjan (and angelo) fan but i'll admit it took me quite a few listens to differentiate sufjan's voice from angelo's in Reach Out

@wrinkleintime4257

It took many listens to realise that sufjan’s voice is the background vocals (right?) either way, the vibe , lyrics, harmonising - like this song is perfect and they sing together so beautifully that now I am a new fan of Angelo de Augustine !!

@habim9670

Does this song reminds anyone nostalgic feelings from call me by your name movie?

@daryl7453

I'm early 😭❤️

@AmazingDroneShow

George R. Johnson sent me. Good stuff

@dogukan7406

People, what does "soil from the sod" mean??

@samsalamander8147

Sod is a type of soil. It’s the soil that the grass grows into like what’s under the terf, but I think maybe in this song it’s meant biblically and a Sod in the Bible is like a secret divine council that meet with God for deliberations.

@beatrizmiranda576

😭

@astridmaro

:)

@Good754

On

@colinfrantz5453

Iceage anybody?

@etoiledeclipse3340

The song is beautiful but... these lyrics are so weird? What was on their mind when they wrote that

@dimetrodonz

its based off of the film silence of the lambs, more specifically its written from the perspective of the serial killer character buffalo bill.

@humanmisspiggy5422

what

@KS-bo5bg

I reclaim Jamesina Gumb (Billie Bobcat?), and I recognize the gatekeeping that tries to this day to shove a double standard that cis women have long left behind onto us. Seriously this all could have been avoided if she was given HRT, and surgery.

@samsalamander8147

Or maybe he could have gone to talk therapy and he may have not needed HRT he may have just been a confused serial killer. From all the things I have seen on serial killers it seems to be more brain damage that skews thier ability to empathize with others and also damages thier ability to have a healthy sex life, the brain damage makes them more deviant.

@Moxie2017

here before edgy GD trash comments

@saoirsecameron

These people have no business singing about or even uttering the word “autogynephilia”.