Interview: what 'Cathedrals' is about

Egypt explains the album's origin: pressure to follow up the successful 'Letters and Scars' while it was under Grammy consideration, then touring the Mexican border with the Christian folk band Desiring Dead Flesh, where she found a massive locked church building on the Rio Grande in a hurting, high-crime neighborhood. Asking whether anyone would notice if her own church vanished led her to frame Cathedrals as an open letter to the church — spurring change, not conflict. She adds that spoken word can't hide its faith the way music can, recalling a bargoer who was stunned a Christian wasn't judging him.