A standout on The Thrill Of It All, “HIM” is a story of a boy coming out of the closet to a combined father/priest/God figure. This boy wishes to make those who disapprove understand that no matter how hard he tries, nothing and no one can change him. Note that this is not a story about Sam, who has always praised their parents for their support and acceptance of who and what Sam is.

In an interview with NME Sam spoke at length about this track, saying,

This is not my story … it’s for the LGBT Community.

They also refer to the intolerance in some American states. Their reference in the song to ‘the streets of Mississippi’ is a metaphor for all intolerant societies, including Australia where, they say, the situation for the LGBT community ‘… is not where it should be.’ After years of ‘coming out’ stories in past decades, in many communities nothing has changed. So the stories need re-telling again and again for every generation.

Mississippi scared the shit out of me and I wanted to write about it. I am gay and my music is gay. It’s so important to speak about this … we should be addressing these issues. We should be talking — shouting about this.

The assertive tone of the NME interview is mirrored in the song’s lyrics, notably the line where the boy says ‘Don’t you try to tell me that God doesn’t care for us (gay people).’ For all his trepidation they can give a sharp rebuke to this priest/father figure.

The gospel influences in the production, especially the choir, fit the mournful yet angst-ridden mood. In an Apple Music video, entitled ‘On the Record; The Thrill of it All’, Brendan Grieve, bass player who was responsible for much of the production, described the sound as ‘stark gospel’. Pianist, Reuben James, also commented that the title is ‘… a play on words. We wanted it to be in the style of a traditional hymn.’