Photo credit: Jack Snell
Melodic-melancholic-doom outfit Sermon are gearing up for their sophomore effort, Of Golden Verse, out March 31st via Prosthetic Records. The group has shared a visualizer for their latest single, “The Distance.”
Sermon’s Him comments:
“’The Distance’ is about the hairline moment that makes the difference between life and death in suicide ideation. I was worried about writing this to explain the song. Will it be seen as exploiting the issue? Do I have the authority to even talk about it? I thought of lying. But it’s quite difficult to write anything with sincerity if it’s not, y’know, sincere. Publishing these thoughts are somewhat risky and maybe it’s not my place to open another forum on it. But I think the more we all do, the more we look at the issue 360 degrees, the closer we might get to understanding, and hopefully prevention.If I was a betting man I’d say many of us have had ‘the thought’ in the time of emotional crisis. This song isn’t about romanticising it or glorifying it or even taking pity, but to recognise the moment between idea and action. To acknowledge that these strands of thought happen throughout life and that pain is, almost certainly, an inevitable but transient feeling. I can’t remember who the quote is from (forgive me) but that it’s important to remember that we all suffer more in our minds than in our reality. Why can’t we talk about it without fear? I can’t count the amount of times that once the discussion is opened, that guilt is all too often the strategy that people wield against the idea of suicide. But I say this isn’t about your loved ones and them feeling sad of the loss of you, this is about you. About you depriving your own future self of having the remarkable effect you can have on the world. This made me think of that distance. And I think, if you can see clearly, don’t go the distance. See it through. This feels a little bit like an open letter rather than a paragraph about a song. Is it an irresponsible thing to write? I hope not. I’m not a clinically trained psychiatrist but I will never not stand by the idea that we owe it to ourselves and our fellow human to talk this through more. No matter how wrapped in fear and shame it might be.”
Watch the clip below:
