the ring, the great dark, and proximity to god

song playing in background: • You Never Came
link to ring/mixing chart diagram: www.tumblr.com/mothercain/724...
might also try to film a video next on etienne louis bouleé and his view on temples and also my view on temples lol. (p.s.: the word i was looking for was “spurred”, not spurned OR churned.)

[@bennettkohler-morris1305]

Yo I'm 1:55 in and this chick is SO FRIED

[@glue444]

😭😭😭😭😭

[@johnjenkins5854]

Fried. Deep. Nice and crispy.

[@glue444]

@@johnjenkins5854 calm down john jenkins 😭😭😭😭😭

[@sfipsalms8924]

LMAO MA MAN

[@rebelliousfineart8202]

As soon as she said “I’m thinking churned” I went to the comments, saw this and realized I was paused at 1:55 😂😂

[@jas0206]

I’ve always maintained that I would never fall into a cult, but this video convinced me that I probably would.

[@85hr]

literally same

[@The_King_in_yello]

I have mixed feelings about the cult I was in from 16-25, it made the army seem like nothing and I literally saw someone’s head explode into a million pieces but I got my first serious relationship in the cult people who escaped were in my wedding party every one of us is totally fucked up but their are people still going strong for this method of sobriety and structure to form groups in Alcoholics Anonymous and rules and sacrifices that are still even though they absolutely ruin peoples lives victimizing families by extracting mothers and fathers to do a bunch of unnecessary bullshit for superstitions really do seem like their really good guys like they really do make their lives about others and they are not hypocrites and they’re challenging and changing a stale malfunctioning organization monolithic structure and more importantly, completely undermining and subverting and in some cases outright destroying the totally fucked up rehab industry but again after experiencing that way of life for ten years seeing someone a couple feet away from you get shot in the head with a shotgun and pieces of brain get in your mouth and that level of trauma didn’t even register emotionally.

[@HXGSH]

🤣

[@leem_shosh5920]

Create ur own, dont be a sheep

[@AlbertoSanchez-cx7sb]

Same

[@Hola41035]

front row for ethel´s lecture

[@ArtHeaux420]

I'll pay out of pocket for that class 😅 need an open discussion at the end tho

[@littleangelfish]

Me:

[@fr33dumb0]

"Spurred" is the word you were looking for my dear friend.

[@andrewrobertson5508]

I think she was going for “spawned”. As to create or establish, google will tell you it’s about fertilizing fish eggs, but colloquially it’s about laying a foundation for something.

[@dayceem]

Spurred would work. I too took it to be spawned.

[@tammylynn6147]

Love Florence of course :) 💗😍 and machine of course 😂

[@AlephYobby]

“spurred a thought” is a common phrase and the most common way the word spur/spurred is used in english

[@BLMacab]

i spawned a 6lb holysht@@andrewrobertson5508

[@matthewheitkamp1474]

when I saw slowdive last november, they closed their show with their song golden hair. as the song reached its highest crescendo I experienced exactly what you are describing. I shut my eyes and tilted my head back, the energy of the guitars was pulsating through my soul in the most extraordinary way. It’s like you say, I could feel god. it was like my body was a glow stick and someone had just snapped me. I felt fully activated, transcendent even, like I was more connected with everything in the world after that momment. so so beautiful. thank you for putting words to this, it’s beautiful.

[@mmanyhandss]

body like a snapped glowstick... wow that is just absolutely perfect. it's like being lit up. the first time it properly happened for me, i was about 15, i think? and standing in the sea on a beach in france. it was raining & behind me the fog was so thick i could barely see the sand dunes. in front of me the sky was stormy but there were the most incredible shards of light slicing down through the clouds. just an absolutely transcendental moment. thank you for sharing, this was so moving to read and made me think of my own 'rings'. gonna go and listen to that slowdive song now haha

[@p3xo]

the same exact thing happened to me when i saw slowdive in october. it’s so funny, it’s like the entire audience was enchanted for those 8 minutes, everyone was so still. genuinely so good

[@ALXNE4805]

slowdive’s version of that song is amazing no doubt, but credits gotta go to Syd Barrett for that one

[@arabellasartworks]

I just watched a performance of golden hair and body like a glow stick is the perfect way to put the feeling it evokes. I can only imagine how incredible that was to experience in person. What a cool moment!

[@madifritts8976]

I saw this in April and felt the same way 😭

[@Biba-uv3pd]

something that’s so special about your art is that you’re not afraid to finish it and start over just because it doesn’t feel 100% honest to YOU and that’s something we need to appreciate more. Thank you for always being 100% true to yourself and not letting time influence that

[@ferrisbueller9991]

I get it, essentially not being a perfectionist which can in turn kill the flow of art. It is a go with the flow thing, something I wish wasn’t so but that is how it goes. "Dont fear perfection, you will never reach it." -Dali (one of his many pretentious quotes)

[@Biba-uv3pd]

@Alejandro-gk9jw not necessarily. i feel like a lot of artists sell out and don’t stay true to themselves

[@Biba-uv3pd]

@Alejandro-gk9jw i’m just saying how much i appreciate hayden. it’s not that deep lmfao

[@Biba-uv3pd]

@Alejandro-gk9jw dude what the fuck is your problem 😭

[@wrustria]

Ok i fully get the ring concept. Theres times where ive been in the forest and the sun is shining just right and the forest ambience is heavenly and ive just closed my eyes and felt the sun on my skin and the green of the plants is so green and beautiful. Definitely felt this a lot when i smoked weed. Music, yoga, and nature mainly do it for me these days.

[@mothercain]

nature is a huuuuuuge ring for me. the stillness of the world in its natural form, the air moving freely, the beauty of the flora and fauna. nature is most definitely proximity to god (as well as just extremely peaceful).

[@period6650]

@@mothercainoddly, nature IS a ring for me, but an even bigger ring for me is being underwater. Between floating there, seeing blue or the shapes the light takes on underneath the surface, the silence. It almost feels as if ur not there. Not in like a drowning sense, but floating underwater truly feels like true peace (for me at least)

[@shadiestsquid5032]

@@period6650yes! I crave to have headphones that are waterproof so I can swim and listen to music

[@rottingdreamland]

Shrooms also help you with this ♡ I need to take another trip and listen to Ethel, because she’s the only person who I’ve heard explain it so well.. ♡

[@rottingdreamland]

@@shadiestsquid5032this. I need this to exist

[@lindseyb2586]

I love when people pull out a dictionary and double check word usage. Love that you kept that in the video, that is such an important behavior to show others!!

[@goatstabernacle9039]

Hayden covered the songs @ 9:45 pretty fast, so here they are written down :) "Cosmic Love" - Florence & The Machine "Grandloves" - Purity Ring "The Culling" by Chelsea Wolfe "Pedestal/Cover Me" by Vera Blue

[@BalboaBaggins]

Listened to all those songs, didn't like even 1 of them.

[@Dindimdin]

Listened to all those songs, loved every single 1 of them

[@queenofgoldenhearts]

cosmic love being one of my favorites ever 🖤🖤🖤🖤

[@cheeseballer_]

@@BalboaBaggins you must have terrible music taste to not like cosmic love

[@BalboaBaggins]

@@cheeseballer_ "Taste" is subjective.

[@gabrielverdan8698]

the weather + nature + music are always it for me as well. living in georgia, i have a lot of trees, and streams all around me. when i get a good weather - cold, cloudy, with purple/pink skies, and the sound of a heavy stream running after the rain… there’s no better feeling. i just sit down by the water and put some earbuds on and enjoy that moment. it’s a moment very special to me. i just look around and everything i see is so beautiful and it makes feel lucky for being alive. it makes me happy for being alive. it’s little moments like that that keep here. it’s a feeling that i’m not sure i’ll get after i die. it’s supernatural but only if your heart is beating.

[@allyson--]

Wow, you described bliss!

[@growing.flowers]

but only if your heart is beating

[@TheParatrooper1980]

SPURRED

[@matheus8530]

Same

[@F1lip3JF]

Damn, nice thoughts right there

[@motherofashes]

to have this feeling visualized is insane. the divine theater blocked by fear due to overwhelming emotions, good or bad, is the best way i’ve ever seen this described.

[@mayargrandy]

hayden this video sort of has changed my life

[@alancantu2557]

Anyone else feel like you could just fall peacefully asleep to Ethel’s voice and have the best rest of your life?

[@twoheadedsoty]

yes twinnn

[@finasab]

girl this is how ur music makes ME feel. i feel as though no music has really ever brought me closer to enlightenment than preachers daughter.

[@aheapofwisteria]

came to the comments to say this same thing. like ethel you have created my ring!!

[@damienxxbiannca]

literally 😭

[@Buffaloreplaced]

Sun Bleached Flies is one of my Rings. Once that sax hits…It feels like I’m raptured, like I can breathe, like my body is lighter. I’d say some of my other rings are Bite The Hand by Boygenius, The Only Thing by Sufjan Stevens, A Pearl by Mitski, Square by Mitski. I for one, don’t feel a Ring in drugs or alcohol (I actually can’t stand the feeling of being drunk or high), I’d say music is the only place I truly feel a Ring and I can’t thank you enough for adding to my list of Rings with your beautiful music ❤️

[@babelaids3645]

sun bleached flies is absolutely a ring you're so right

[@Caves_of_Altamira]

Close to the Edge by Yes was the first song that made me feel like that. Dark side of the moon, kid A, What's Going on, Pink Moon, Grace, Titanic Rising, and of course Preachers daughter all followed. I consider any album that can put me in that place a masterpiece.

[@zigzaq]

bite the hand is soooo good!!!

[@romane9666]

omg yes!!! and bite the hand too i always feel kind of overwhelmed but also complete when the end comes ?? (seeing it live changed me fr fr)

[@BABBIAN]

​@@Caves_of_Altamiralisten to "Betsy on the roof"(song) by Julia holter, you'll be taken

[@rubyayers7320]

As someone who is schizophrenic, I feel this flexibility between the great dark, the veil, the crest, the ring, the hole and the maze. Like I'm constantly shifting between it all, sometimes with but mostly without control. Music for me, keeps me grounded. I feel like I shift into the ring and touch the veil more often than I fall into the maze. Either way, it is very hard for me to stay in the great dark.

[@maricarmensandovalcapa6057]

Noone is schizophrenic... your body and mind are vehícles for spirits. Different ones inside of you. Everyone is a battlefield INSIDE

[@ithinkiwoulddie9196]

@@maricarmensandovalcapa6057stop telling schizophrenic people bullshit like this. Our brains are extremely complex, schizophrenia is an example of that.

[@rubyayers7320]

@@maricarmensandovalcapa6057 Womp womp

[@nayaabshah1155]

@@maricarmensandovalcapa6057what a stupid thing to say. You probably think autism can be cured 🙄🙄🙄

[@alionroare7777]

⁠It’s the same thing

[@alijhernan]

This algorithm is getting scary, I feel like you took this from my head lol. I've definitely seen this in my mind before, but this visual makes it super clear! It's like the heros journey in everyday life, and during very big, important times in your life. Tysm for existing

[@cassidybryant3250]

many of her songs give me this feeling. it’s the closest i’ve ever been to what it seems like everyone around me in church was feeling that i could never experience in church.

[@lyla7097]

I love how weirdly comforting she is. I feel like I’m supposed to be off put by her energy but i can tell her heart is so soft and pure

[@idratherstayanonimous7020]

Why you felt like you were supposed to be off put by her energy? That's interesting.

[@amyleann9392]

@@idratherstayanonimous7020 I think what they meant is that what Hayden or Ethel, if you will, is saying in this video, would be very off putting or kind of “crazy” to the general public. Like what she is talking about is so different to many people but she explains it so well and thoughtfully that it is sort of comforting to listen too.

[@gyapa]

@@grunions9648probably the sickles on the wall or the face tattoos are we just all gonna pretend like alternative styles aren’t alternative for a reason now??? lol

[@angelcakeiscute]

you've just put to words something i've felt so many times 😭 you have the most beautiful mind. i love the way you think and the way you speak about your ideas. thank you so much for this video:)

[@ratgxrl]

i love how you talk about god as a higher calling. i’ve often felt this with music, or on mushrooms, in nature, or during transcendental intimacy. but it really is a way to touch something higher than yourself, kind of like tapping in to something “other”. Intimacy or even desire is something that i feel i often “touch god” with and I find that it almost immediately fall to the hole. In the deepest parts of my hole, your music is such a comfort. the raw vulnerability is something that can’t be replicated. the dark is incredibly inspiring. i find that the creativity i’m able to tap into while in there, and the themes that pop up that i’m able to play with, is something i can’t get while in the great dark, or even proximity to god. it’s only found within the dark. i used to be so scared of the me that was down there, your art reminds me to get to know her.

[@koridevereaux]

As a mystic of sorts, I believe in energy and using frequency to ascend dimensional planes, using vibration as a way to alter the physical reality. I like the idea of the ring, you can listen to frequency music but it gets kind of monotonous. Songs, however, are a mix of all kinds of them, used like some sort of lockpick for the soul to transcend to not just a higher plane of existence but to a specific place in human experience that nothing else can do like that. Your music is a perfect reflection of that ring because it alwaysssss takes me somewhere I didn’t even know existed and I love that so much.

[@avabean5853]

some songs are almost like a sling shot in a way to the ring.

[@heterodoxx5300]

yes, you love the Anti-Christ, Lucifer.

[@ReubenWalton]

Spurred was the word you were looking for! I knew what you meant 🖤

[@mothercain]

ah, that's exactly what i was thinking!! i've said spurned so many times this year knowing it was close to what i meant but also not what i meant at all so this definitely solves my mystery haha. thank you very much!

[@rwolfson1935]

@@mothercain i was thinking "spawned:" to bring forth; generate. but, hey...we get (and appreciate) you.

[@xprimordialx]

I was thinking sparked @@mothercain

[@drprick7432]

from using spurs to motivate your horse

[@linguisticsnerd433]

Came here to say the same. Side note, I love videos like this

[@sunblexchedflies]

i sat through almost this entire video with tears down my face because i couldn’t believe the way you got this so spot on. i’ve never heard anyone describe this feeling so in depth and right on point, we usually just hear words like “euphoria” and “ecstasy” mentioned like you said, but those words will never be enough to describe this feeling. like you, i experience this through music also, specifically your own. after i watched this video i listened to sun bleached flies and strangers with the thought of the diagram in mind and i genuinely felt my soul coming forward to enter that beautiful yet overwhelming theater more than ever. you’re so intelligent and talented in everything you do, you genuinely give new meaning to my life every single day. i’m so thankful for you and your existence.

[@stardustluv666]

‘House in Nebraska’ is for sure a ring for me, as well as your collab with Ashnikko on ‘Dying Star’… I’ve listened to your entire album and just walked in the sun, taking pictures of my serene midwestern safe spaces lol. Your music really speaks to me on this soul level, it inspires me to make my own music ✨

[@whoisxenon]

i’d love to see more sitting-down-and-talking videos from you like this!! it’s so interesting to hear you talk about your art, plus your voice is so soothing 😌

[@perryjones7771]

Her voice sounds a little bit like Angela’s Bassett voice.

[@nirvannaa888]

thisss

[@ellabee2453]

no really it's like asmr

[@kileymcdonnel6705]

Artists sharing their thought process and experiences is my absolute favorite thing, thank you so much for posting this

[@isabelleghofrani]

This is truly one of the best videos I've ever seen and one of the most fascinating concepts I've ever learned about. The way The Ring really doubles as music theory and spirituality is so beautiful. The Pull is something I feel when I play my violin or that certain song plays that just makes me transcend a little lol. Thank you for creating and sharing this incredible concept that puts a name to a feeling so precious. I've so fallen in love with your music and artistry

[@elliesadler5863]

I'd love if you created a playlist with songs that you see as, 'completing the ring' and allowing you access to the divine theatre. It's interesting cause within this concept (if I understand it right), sharing music whether it be producing, performing or curating playlist is like casting magic - opening portals for others to feel the pull as well!

[@imnotmakingvideosrry]

the ring is something i have felt my whole life listening to certain songs and i could never put it into words

[@emdressdelrenaissance]

it makes a lot of sense why in church we sing and worship to be able to reach past the veil and grow closer to God, life itself.

[@Spotlessmind888]

So thankful to have come across this and you. Your words are wise and bring great comfort

[@WhatAmIDoingHere12]

Strangers is the ring for meeeee. I found your music literally two days ago and I’ve had Strangers on repeat nonstop since. Changed the trajectory of my life.

[@LvcifersBaby]

I want to share my most intense and overwhelming experience with 'the ring' as I understand it. I am from Masuria (currently Poland but not even 100 years ago it used to be part of Germany), so we have a lot of old, German graveyards here. I was 17 at the time. One night, I decided to go with my ex-best friend to one of these graveyards and drink vodka there. We got super wasted, stayed there through most of the night but when we saw the sunbeams slowly peaking through the horizon, we decided to come back home. The terrain here is super hilly I must add. As I was walking among the wheet fields, sobering up and with my headphones on, I saw one of the most breathtaking and astonishing views of my life. It may seem simple and not special at all but it captivated me for an unknown reason at that moment. Just the tip of the orange sun coming out of its hideaway behind the horizon alongside with still visible stars on the sapphire-blue sky, lighting up the fog-veiled hills and the front trees of the forest nearby. I was feeling the cold breeze on my face and the humidity in my nose as it was almost 5AM. All of this while listening to Indian Summer by Jónsi (from Sigur Rós) and Alex Somers. I just stood there almost paralized, bursting into tears of so many feelings. Sadness, calmness, acceptance, happiness, longing, beauty, finity of our lives. It just hit me that we are all limited, our lives are limited, filled with joy, grief, misunderstandings, fights, victories, failures, goodbyes and welcomes. No one will ever stay here forever, no one will stay with me forever, because the world is an everchanging place. I will experience all the amazing highs and depressing lows, I will die just like my relatives, but I just felt so peaceful about it. And as bitter-sweet as it is, I somehow accepted it all in one moment. And I stood there bawling my eyes out due to this weird feeling of coming to terms with all of this as if it was some sort of sacred knowledge. Even to this day, when I listen to this song I cry everytime and get this particular feeling, although weaker. It changed me, it was so sudden and out of place but it did really change me. I won't ever forget this beautiful sight along this incredible song.

[@sheeptrails]

Omg

[@abimon76]

gorgeous and visceral.... thank you so much for this

[@lucify8143]

There's something about Ethel's videos that always makes me feel like I'm at a church seminar but in a good way

[@chazdomingo475]

ASMR

[@craiglucas9538]

You’re music touches me in a place that music hasn’t reached in years. You make me feel the way I felt when I first discovered evanescence as a queer little boy, not understanding or being able to verbalise why I felt so different, but through the music being able to connect to the feelings in the most visceral way. That’s what I feel hearing your music. I forgot what that felt like. It hurts and also feels liberating. You’re my ring and your my sigh and I’m so grateful for you art. I’m from South Africa but on top of my list for 2024 is to travel purely to see you live. Thank you for the music

[@SyMpHOny893]

I feel that pull thru your music so often and I think you explained this amazingly. I have experienced it in other music as well as in literature and film. it’s indescribable and yet you’ve put it into words

[@whoisplaceholder]

"the muck and the mire of the human experience" is such a cool way to phrase life. this was such an enlightening video!! love how you drew the mixing diagram. it's very different to how i tend to approach producing, but it makes so much sense. thanks for sharing :)

[@LIZDOM]

Experienced a ring this morning - I live in mid-Norway, and the sun is only present for a couple of hours a day in the winter. While waiting for the bus, alone, wrapped up cozily, Family Tree plays from my headphones, the sun hits my eyes... I close them and feel the moment of warmth; of dissolving into grace. "So take me down to the river... and bathe me clean"... I open my eyes, and I'm surrounded by people also waiting for the bus - when did they arrive? I don't recall this moment. I was just lost in a sigh.

[@zuzuthefirelord164]

Incredible lecture, really like the concept of it, never thought of experiencing art in such way, definitely felt it, but never had the words to explained that feeling, thank you

[@Sydney_s_knight]

It’s beautiful to hear how others see and experience music, and put words the feeling of music like I never could (I felt but never knew how to explain it) honestly beautiful

[@lizg833]

you’re so intelligent and fascinating to listen to. truly a once in a generation artist & talent. sun-bleached flies means everything to me as a (recovering) preachers daughter, definitely one of my rings. As I heard the song for the first time I cried and let so much trauma go because finally, it felt like someone understood. Thank you for everything

[@lauracoates7605]

I love your point about brushing the veil of God without totally immersing yourself with God. Such a profound statement. I love your art and your interpretation of the unknown. Thank you for this lense!

[@zeketheboi]

The first time that I listened to Adagio in G minor was one of the first times I ever felt this way. I had just smoked a bowl and had my little LEDs fading between colors. The song was nearing the crest and I could feel something more evidential of something within my body than my body itself getting sort of pulled upward. When the song reached its peak, it felt as if my body/spirit was becoming bright. My heart felt full and I felt fulfilled. I feel this way more frequently now and I've realized that it always seems to occur when I feel most connected to everything. Whether it be in deep meditation, on shrooms, or just sitting up at a mountain overlook staring into a deep golden sunset. I was never able to properly word it in a coherent way. Thanks for sharing your perspective on this!

[@nini-bc7zu]

This made so much sense to me and I understood it intuitively. The maze being something I’m familiar with luckily I’m able to go back and forth, and crawl my way out of it but I have true knowledge of the maze . It made me slightly tear up, understanding a strangers words so deeply in myself.

[@cacklepup]

I've never been able to put this into words before, but I've felt this once in my life. Earlier this year I went to a rave in Texas and experienced euphoria unlike any other. The dj started playing lil wayne and me being from Louisiana used to listen to him as a kid. Without skipping a beat I started singing all the lyrics to one of the songs while at the same time taking in every instrumental. I haven't listened to him since I was little yet knew every lyric and in that moment, surrounded by friends, I felt at peace and I mean true peace while also feeling connected to my past, present and future. Connected to my past through my favorite childhood artist, connected to the present through the movement of my body and senses, and connected to the future through my friends around me. I know this sounds silly because, it was an artist like lil wayne, but It was really beautiful.

[@babiedelrey222]

Love this so much

[@Quietanarchy1]

It makes perfect sense, like everything was right in the world for a minute

[@chaoswitchofthewyrd]

Hayden, I am a melomaniac and this is the most articulate and accurate explanation of how music makes me feel. I watched this 3 times in a row with tears streaming down my face. I feel such a kindred spirit in you, and through your music. House in Nebraska and God's Country are my biggest rings of yours. I feel the ring in almost every single Florence song, too. Thank you so much for this Mother. 🖤

[@chaoswitchofthewyrd]

@@colonizedgrain4034 that's a good song. Good album. But not an insult if that's how you meant it. I am melomaniac. I have a unique relationship with music. Especially since I have end-stage Multiple Sclerosis and music is one of the few things I can focus on without feeling like my brain is on fire. In fact, there were several Ethel Cain songs on the playlist I created that played through the speakers in the operating theater while I was awake for my 9 hour craniotomy to remove a brain tumor this summer. Hopefully you or someone close to you never has to know what that's like. As for me, I'll continue listening to and making music and integral part of my life. And I hope you do as well. ✌️

[@abrahamjesse3425]

You really need to learn to draw a line to not idealise music artists otherwise you end up looking like this girl commenting jesus

[@chaoswitchofthewyrd]

​@@abrahamjesse3425or you could leave other people to feel however they want. And also maybe Google the word 'melomaniac'. I'm sorry you're so unfulfilled you feel the need to harass people that have a deep connection with music. Something that makes people feel deeply and motivates them, gives them hope, help them deal with whatever is going on in their lives, is not a bad thing. I hope you find something someday that makes you feel that way.

[@abrahamjesse3425]

@@chaoswitchofthewyrd you are exasperating

[@chaoswitchofthewyrd]

​@@abrahamjesse3425😂😂😂 English isn't your first language, is it?

[@robert661]

i can't describe how much i loved watching this video.. i also feel that now i understand your music even better 🤍 thank you!

[@gulfcoastnati]

I’m curious to know more about your perspective on the maze. Everything you spoke on allowed me to make sense of thoughts I didn’t even know I had so thank you for the guidance. Love you always ❤️

[@moodymay1423]

I was really moved as you described the divine theater as being overwhelming and terrifying, complicated. My heart aches-I always cry! I’m obsessed.

[@motheramia]

videos like these are my comfort videos. like i can be so upset and overhelmed and this just makes so calm and at home. love u so much Hayden, you are my muse

[@jamespuchalla7718]

this is the most seen and heard i’ve felt in some way. like, hayden, you’re so good at describing and creating ughhh

[@HowdyOaks]

Beautifully said, I love the way you articulate concepts. Two rings I've noticed really bring about the sigh in me are "Golden Arm" by Sadurn and "Sunset Canyon" by Foxwarren. Particularly that second one, I cry with this feeling of almost relief towards the end of the song every time. Both always give me goosebumps. It's such a beautiful experience that I think highlights a lot of what you discuss in this video. Anyway. Bless you and hope you have a good holiday season.

[@supersucks]

I vividly remember the first time I felt “The Ring” It was a very mundane day, my sister was cleaning the kitchen while I was blasting music in front of the TV. It started as an exercise of sorts then I started dancing to songs, eventually Runaway by Aurora came and I danced & sang it. The whole act felt like I was chanting, primal. I was enthralled and deeply into the music that I started dancing in circles. Dizzying myself. Emotions surged so much that I started crying. It’s like how it feels when you’re in church and everyone is singing and you’re also singing and you start crying. I forgot the exact word for that feeling but the closest I can describe is Belonging. That mundane night when I danced and sang was probably the first actual time I felt The Ring. And then after years, I try to find that feeling again… More songs that made me felt that way in order are - Tahanan by MuniMuni - Solomon by MuniMuni (ft. Clara Benin) - Goodbye by The Sundays - Asleep from Day by The Chemical Brothers - Dream by Ryuichi Sakamoto - Ladies and gentlemen we are floating in Space by Spiritualized - Goodbye by Toe - One Last Kiss by Hikaru Utada - Space Song by Beach House - Pale September by Fiona Apple - Forever by Charli XCX - Starting Over by LSD and the Search for God - Never Meant by American Football

[@gprinciple-vv2kb]

what the fuck is the ring, is this witch shit or christian shit i’m lost

[@BalboaBaggins]

Try these: "Says" by Nils Frahm "From East to West" by Enigma "Mojave" by Afro Celt Sound System

[@katieshadid2991]

Lovin’ Touchin’ Squeezin’ by Journey for me

[@MRR-mw4rv]

Heavy heavy on the One Last Kiss by Hikaru Utada, it’s also on my list!!

[@cuntgettingeaten.]

goodbye by the sundays and forever by charli make me feel a similar way as well

[@ssanhayeob]

you fully explained the feeling i get when listening to ptolemaea, especially the sigh in the last "stop". even if i wouldn't describe what follows as ecstatic, the catharsis of the rest of the song does feel divine. thank you for sharing your thought processes, i find them profoundly valuable as an aspiring artist.

[@ChuckSchickx]

One of my music "rings" is listening to Yes. Songs like "Close to the Edge" , "And You and I", "The Revealing Science of God", and many others. I experience the beautiful journey that you describe so well listening to Yes. I appreciate you putting it into words. I don't know that i could ever have articulated my "ring" to anyone...but now I can share this video! Thank you.❤️

[@21_salvage51]

I feel this “pull” often. And I believe I've felt this divine theatre on occasion. I very much appreciate this level of introspection and sharing of your thoughts. Your music very much helps me and hurts me at the same time. And I definitely feel like it has shown me a way of dealing with intense melancholy. So for that, I thank you. And look forward to your next piece.

[@vexed2nightmare]

i honestly feel like live music in general is such a ring for me, it's so powerful and beautiful to be in the same space with so many people having the same experience. i can't describe it super poetically but the connection to everyone else and feeling the music in your body as well as hearing it... what a rush! what a beautiful thing to experience!

[@wweep]

Hayden, i have never heard such a close description to how i feel when I listen to epic music. I would love to hear more of your thoughts on life, spirituality and psyche. Thanks for sharing

[@adaliestoddard1225]

This makes so much sense to me. I would get this feeling as a kid listening to music in the backseat driving down the highway. I get it at other times too and it’s when I feel the most in touch with myself. I’m grateful you’re so eloquent because I’ve never been able to describe it.

[@midnight51]

Ugh, I just stumbled onto this video at 10PM on a Sunday knowing nothing about you or your music, and now it's 4AM and I have to work in the morning. You are so talented. I grew up in a Baptist home as well, going to church with my grandparents every Sunday. I feel connected to your struggle and admire your openness and self awareness. A few of my "rings" in music would be: Counting Crows - Colorblind, Tool - Parabola, A Perfect Circle - Gravity. In nature, it would be sitting on the break walls on the shore of Lake Erie, listening to the waves crashing in with the smell of the lake in the air. Looking forward to listening to more of your music. Cheers.

[@PoopShitz]

A James Maynard Keenan fan :)

[@midnight51]

@@PoopShitz - Very much! Ironically enough, Maynard's parents were both Southern Baptist, so it does seem to be a theme here.

[@rab-cnesbit4181]

No denomination s, no religion, only " the way " Jesus Christ not any divisions ( Baptist, or catholic, protestant ect ,) only a personal RELATIONSHIP with Jesus Christ, I know him through POWER in his name against shapeshifting fallen Angel's I dont care if people call me crazy , I have witnessed this . Church is where two or three beleiver s are gathered together , not any building.

[@ninjanerd1000]

sun bleached flies is one of my rings i have an entire playlist that describes this but i’ve never actually ever been able to put it into words. this was so beautifully said thank you

[@pockymonn]

the feeling you're describing is the sublime, and what you created out of it is really special

[@rottenette]

ive been looking for a way to describe how music feels to me and this ring makes so. much. sense. thank u sm

[@MicaelaSmith]

The fact that you were able to put this into words and show all of us this feeling that so many of us have experienced is incredible. I was just talking last week with my boyfriend how I feel like music is spiritual, and it's just incredible. You are so intuitive and it's a beautiful, beautiful thing!! I had this video saved in my watch later, hoping to be able to watch it at some point. Every time I went onto my KZbin your video was the top one in the feed. I'm definitely here for a reason, to listen to your words. Thank you🙏

[@jerrydonquixote5927]

Music is very spiritual to me too, it's not just something to enjoy for pleasure, some music touches the depths of my soul...

[@bradm2833]

"The Hole" reminds me of how Grimes produced and made her album visions. She locked herself in a room for 2 weeks, blacked out the windows, cut off contact to everything, and only ate sparingly when friends would slide food through her door hatch. Her goal was to go insane for that short time to manifest that inspiration. Of course she always had that option to leave, which was her way of "escaping" the hole, but she chose to stay in it for that time period. What a beautiful video. edit: HOLY FUCK I GET IT SHE AMDE IT UP YALL CAN STOP REPLYIG IT LMAO PLEASE I UNDERSTAND IM BEING TORMENTED EVERY WEEK BY A NEW COMMENT PLEASE

[@diegobermejo9773]

sadly, this was very much exaggerated for her own lore-building purposes :/

[@miiiserable]

i desperately wish i had filmed myself during my last bout of psychosis. it lasted for over a year. it was very mystical

[@remid2013]

Grimes is a fart

[@mialily6787]

she admitted to making that all up lol

[@tranquilllxxx333]

​@@mialily6787where?

[@bhernandez4987]

i think it’s so important that us as humans have conversations like this. conversations about just life as what it is and our feelings/emotions moving through our lives i love this video!!

[@floozyspeak]

really beautiful, your mind is fantastic, your articulation of the notion, your truth, is wise, old, magical, and a perspective in translation that is elegant in ways that make many kneel before your wonder, continue to make great content like this, you, the notion, your research, your feelin, this is the way

[@jossyjaycoff]

Idk if I even have the words to articulate how hearing you offering this guidance thru what life can feel like, gifted me a understanding & healing. the hole, that part, it resonated so hard, the maze, how appealing it all is, for those of us attracted to the comfort of darkness, to the vast magical unknown that sparks interest when you're in the low. I just hope you know this was beautiful, and helpful. thank you for sharing your mind with us, truly. big love your way babe

[@sirxnofgod]

I love this video so much, what a beautifully articulated concept. Something I've always pondered about, but you illustrating a diagram and explaining it really gave such a clear visual for me to reference. You're a very intentional person and I think that's what makes your art so special to me. You're capturing such precious things about the human experience and then being so generous and sharing them with all of us. I really appreciate you and your beautiful existence. Much love.

[@Jonman621]

Your voice is a ring for me. I feel a pull every time, even when you are just speaking. That thing that I can't explain. I feel it when I listen to you! You are a musical genius! Thank you Hayden! You are awesome!❤️‍🔥

[@evelinescouten5408]

The first time I experienced this was the first time I took shrooms. I was in a car with my friends parked behind our neighbourhood church coincidentally enough. I remember having this pull to the sky, to the full moon above me. I got out and ran into the field to be closer to the sky. I remember just staring at it with pure love and felt my soul lift and become lighter. I remember letting out a very satisfying sigh and feeling content like I had just said “see you later” to a good friend and went back. I couldn’t describe it. For me your music really helps me feel and process human emotions. I just wanna say thank you for putting yourself out there, when I listen to your music it’s like you made it just for me! I really enjoyed listening to you speak about these thoughts! I feel listening to Ptolemaea is a fine line for me. Either I come out of the hole and feel better or I get enticed by the dark and struggle to come out of it for a day or so. I think it’s almost a fond, familiar, comfortable feeling I get listening to it. The despair is all I knew for so long that it feels like home. I have 100% been lost in the maze in my younger years. Through medication and therapy it’s been liberating to know I was able to feel hope and control again. You’re my favourite artist hands down. If you did more of these talking videos I’d watch every singe one!

[@IgnacioVogel]

This is so accurate and makes a lot of sense, I feel in another dimension when I listen to certain songs, I love the word ring to define that fullfness. This is the first time I hear someone put words to what I've been feeling with music for yearsssss.

[@era_s]

I think the distinction between the Hole and the Maze, and the implications of the visualizations of those things that are conjured by the names you've given them here, is a really useful idea. I'm definitely going to be thinking more on everything you talked about, but those in particular resonated with me as things I've experienced but haven't been able to name. Naming a thing is the first step towards interacting with it on your own terms. Thank you for that ^-^

[@fantasy4933]

This video and a blunt is all I need

[@SomeThoughtsPodcast]

I couldn’t figure out why this kept coming up in my feed and now I get it!🙂 (thanks YT algorithm) I love the idea of creating your own diagram to explain your relationship with “the unexplainable“. I too have been thinking about the idea of personalizing your spirituality based on your own needs, and perspectives. Nature is a easy path for me…Digging your music.🧘‍♂️

[@ashleyg8633]

Thank You Hayden!!! We live in amazing times and there is a great “pull” being felt by all those who are open to it… Your music is an amazing pull for me and, you are a transcendent artist because … you feel and tap in to that indefinable part of art that draws people towards it without them fully aware of what it is that draw them…. Keep exploring all that is …and know that it is an honor for come along on the ride with you!!! Onward!!! 🙋‍♀️💕🌻

[@briannacarney8281]

I love the conversation around fear existing within euphoria. I think there’s so much our intelligence doesn’t know and can’t comprehend, and I feel like any time I enter the divine theater it’s a realization of how microscopic my life is while wanting to understand everything i don’t know and feeling joy in knowing I’m not in control of anything. But it’s also scary to feel SO out of control on that level.

[@TractoRbeam-kn4uv]

GIRL I KNOW YOU DONT RELATE TO EREALIGEON GIRL SHUT THE HELL UP SERIOUSLY xoxo Tracto Rbeam

[@Perezmaya21]

Hayden your music makes me feel like that, it tugs on my soul in the best way

[@gretchenmiller4102]

SHE SAID IT PERFECTLY!! Wow I’ve never visualized it that way but she just articulated the exact way I feel about art and spirituality.

[@HaroldGester]

You put this so well, as an aspiring artist/mystic/human I've expressed this (privately) and it feels even better to hear someone else expressing something I once held so close to my heart. I forgot the whole purpose of divining such a truth was to share with others; scared of losing it, either by someone taking it or stamping on it. Forgetfulness is the condition of the great dark and we cannot (perhaps even should not) remember everything, but every day I realize that life can become the divine theater once I submit to my role in the act (the trouble is discovering what role you're playing, and for how long). So I troll through the great dark and wait for my entrance, keeping one foot in the funnel-web and one in-step, wary of the minotaur and his labyrinth. I like this world you've built, we've built. Thank you for sharing.

[@pascalmanla5997]

For me sun bleached flies is definitely a ring. It just feels so good being like a song of acceptance within the sadness. I remember that one time when I was listening to it while walking home while it was dark, windy and very rainy, I was walking over a bridge and it was such a beautiful moment

[@moo1531]

you've explained this concept so well! this video helped me name a lot of on my own experiences, "the pull" is such a beautiful thing and even though I'm not religious at all, it does make me feel closer to god, to the universe, to everything... but I definitely feel an overwhelming amount of fear about it too, it gets too intense for me very quickly and I think that's why I never thought about this concept long enough to get it. really glad I watched this

[@asheubert6119]

Ive never had someone explain transcendentalism so well and on such a personal level, I’m so used to having the idea of connectedness to a higher plain or being shown to me through an old American writer or a book that’s 200 years old, this is so refreshing! I love the idea of the ring, it does remind me of the connecting to the omniscient eye that was used as a transcendental metaphor for describing the connection with nature, but the ring extends itself a bit wider and I find it more approachable. Music, nature, drugs, sex, all these intense sensory experiences that flood the mind with an overwhelming sense of connectedness are so sacred and I love how you talked about them. Love from mountains of Tennessee

[@heatherrules9093]

This year I found out I was autistic. I am 38 of always gotten that feeling from Music but when I told other people they didn’t understand you putting it in the words like you did make me feel seen thank you and I love your music.

[@rabidwasp]

Thank you Ethel for this wonderful insight into your creative and spiritual space - really inspirational!

[@adyabhatta8150]

wow you’re in my head. you visualized the feeling so well. i’ve always had trouble figuring out what to picture in my head while i’m in the ring and this is it. the first time i felt the pull i wasn’t aware of what it was and its implications. only later did i start connecting the idea of the ring to the pull, and the pull to a “god.” maybe not god in the conventional sense but like as a really strong connection that is within all of us, but can only be felt consciously when it is activated by an external stimulus.

[@rlynn6658]

This is making me think of COSM with Alex Grey, how the adventurer goes to the heights and then makes art out of it to bring back to other people in the Great Dark as you call it, beautiful!!!! I love that you upload this with no edits, just being real. I think the reason you are able to access the ring is because you are well anchored in reality. A lot of people become Icarus and they seek the high while avoiding the lows. It's clear you are not avoiding the lows, just being smart about it. Neuroscience is working to prove this tangibly - when our neurons feel too much pleasure and not enough pain, we get warped and unhealthy just as much as the opposite.

[@thistleleash]

you truly put into words the pure, simple joy of feeling alive with a medium that feels so otherworldly yet human. i feel this so deeply about many songs including a lot of yours. songs no matter how many times i listen to them i get a huge lump in my throat and want to cry, not from sadness but because of how beautiful they are. it’s a sensory experience from something that doesn’t physically touch me. it’s a religious experience.

[@sarabethtf]

hi ethel i just wanted to say that you help me get through life every day. you are such a comforting person to me and i'm so thankful i found you when i did. you're such an inspiration to me. i love you and i can't wait to see your future projects!

[@user-ib2bt4ck7y]

This was the fist video i ever came across of yours, prior to ever listening to any of your music. I immediately thought you were very inspirational and i thought about you a lot. I started listening to your music and couldnt really get into it at first, it took time, honestly. Recently i heard ptolomea and ever since, i just love to hear your voice. I dont really skip any of your songs. Ptolomea is a dark ring. Its honestly one of the most perfect pieces of art ive ever experienced, it is just absolutely on every conceivable level-pure perfection. Not a single thing i dont like about it. I like knowing my pain is your pain, i dont really care if that makes me sound like a bad person. Its nice to have you here, its a relief. You're pretty much like a soulmate to me even if i go through this life never meeting you. I just wanted to tell you, that im really glad you create and express yourself the way you do. Its incredible, there are not words to describe how beautiful it is.

[@bouncingbuttons7441]

this was such an interesting insight into your thought process! i was very engaged by your idea of when something goes from a technical chart into a concept, when something transcends beyond mechanics into something that goes into the heartbeat of human experience, past what can be fully articulated. i'm also autistic and music has always been my special interest, so i really admire your ability to verbalize what that feeling is and relate it to us.

[@fairyprincessgmail]

Just got my wisdom teeth out and I'm watching this high as shit but there is something about you that is just so beautifully and calmingly haunting. Thank you for sharing your thoughts in videos like this because it's the closest i'll get to being able to pick your brain. Absolutely adore you and your art

[@laneformation]

this is so so interesting , i feel like i approach mixing in terms of frequency composition and sonic aesthetic in a very similar way to this and it was so surprising to see this chart that’s so uncannily similar to the (what i thought was unique) way i approach music inside my own brain

[@Sarah-un6gs]

I understand The Ring! Or rather, I strongly relate to what you've explained and hold a similar interpretation toward the idea. It's a jolting concept to me, because I've never tried to verbalize nor visualize this concept, more so have only internally conceptualized the idea with feelings. So I appreciate what you've expressed in this video. When you talked about the full circle needed in music, it truly reminded me of taking psychedelics... I feel in both cases (music/ psychedelics) senses are heightened/ stimulated that it pulls you toward the experience of god, being so consumed with the surrounding frequencies, sound, touch, feeling, etc. of that present moment that you almost sort of awaken to the state of being proximal to God/ the energy of life and feel peace or as you described, enlightened. Also side note, I think the word in the beginning you were originally thinking of was spawned. Thank you for sharing! :)

[@tjlaxton5570]

I could listen to you talk for hours. It’s so calming 🤍

[@jamiesloan2355]

you just perfectly put into words not only my experience with ur music, but my own thoughts when processing my own relationship with god and region, as well as my experience of being extremly high on grass and suddenly having this overwhelming fear of god... like...

[@adanrashid6181]

such a privilege to be allowed to look into ur process and these things :) tysm ❤

[@Shplump52]

Your mixing chart reminded me of an experience I have when meditating on sound/silence. I focus on the ringing in my ears, and notice there is like a halo of sound frequency around my head. Depending on which ear I focus on + up or downwards, I hear different harmonics of the same basic ringing tone. It feels like I can place these sounds in space relative to my head, like how you would turn in the direction of a person that has just called your name. But at the same time, the sound does not feel distant, either inside or outside my head. Would love to hear if anyone else has this experience. Also I like your analogy of the pull and the sigh. Different songs have done this for me. Definitely feels transcendent spiritual when it happens. Thanks for sharing

[@haetzchiam]

"spawned" - i think is an appropriate word you may have been searching for at the beginning. I dig your approach towards music/creative expression and mental/spiritual states. Some similitude to kabbalistic concepts in your diagrams. Also, the hole is also a ring and has a "pull". Great job in your concepts, its refreshing to see a person be so vested. Kudos as well to your vision and music - its some of the most emotionally intense music I've heard in years. Godbless ya!

[@isabelleoliver1881]

Your music has definitely taken me to the divine theater before, kind of like a higher level of consciousness or nirvana. I’ve also experienced it with meditation and other music. Super cool concept thank u for sharing ❤❤ I love these chatting vids u make