After the tender declaration of love of ‘My Guy’, Sam Smith delivers just the opposite. ‘Oh Mother’ talks about betrayal and how comfort ends up coming from a maternal figure, real or symbolic.
‘Oh Mother’ starts with only Sam Smith’s voice and some handclaps. The entry of the 28 voices of The TwoCity Chorus marks the first big rise of a song that stands out for its crescendo: the initial gospel ends up meeting electric guitars, Western-style percussion and a roots rock that never overshadows its two great protagonists, Smith’s voice and the choir.
Smith himself explains that the chorus represents “a mother’s fury at witnessing the betrayal suffered by her son,” an almost divine protective force. Among these voices also appears Dante, a friend who served as a maternal figure during his first years as a queer person, reinforcing the idea of community.
‘Oh Mother’ does not seem like a song designed to repeat the play of ‘Unholy’ (which also had its gospel touch), but rather it works as a more than worthy exercise in style.
It gives the impression that Smith is at a stage of exploring new musical paths, rather than chasing another hit. The gigantic success of ‘Unholy’ is now so unattainable that it almost works in his favor: freed from that expectation, Smith seems to have free rein to go wherever he wants.
