Hello, all. Izzy's going to take this one again. I promise I'll start writing some more of these... I've been busy. Send music shit and anything else you want to [ fosterhildingmusic@gmail.com ] or DM me on Instagram.
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| photos stolen from the internet. |
When Perverts first came out, I immediately knew it would be an album that would make me feel something. Between the ambient clips I had seen online, the imagery and themes which were correlated meticulously with the album’s release, I knew this wouldn’t be just any old listening experience--something to throw down when I’m in for a long car ride. I waited, possibly longer than I should have for the right moment to indulge. I even pulled out an appropriate indie house perfume, Ýdalir by Alkemia, with notes like smoked juniper tar setting the tone. As I sip my cup of earl grey tea, I bring to you my review of Ethel Cain’s second official studio album under her label Daughters of Cain.
Perverts. Fear. Actual nightmare fuel. The droning is uncomfortably long and irregular with the “lyrics” leaving me on edge throughout the track for whenever the next thing will change. Loud, abrupt, jumpscare-like changes contrast the ambient noise. This track is binaural, which I noticed towards the end of the intro as the voices singing seem to get closer. The way the droning sound seems to accelerate and decelerate in both ears, paired with the occasional demonic voice creates somewhat of a schizophrenic, trippy mess for the listener. I actually jumped in my seat listening to this track, my palms sweaty from unease.
The wavering of the track genuinely made me feel nauseous, paired with a ticking noise that sounded like it was coming from inside my body. Contrasted by the opening, Ethel’s dissonant rendition of Nearer, my God, to Thee, this song speaks directly of the shame in sin associated with self gratification: “Heaven has forsaken the masturbator.” A weird and creepy introduction to the album which derives its inspiration from a fittingly weird and creepy theme. There is some scientific-type beeping paired with cinematic orchestral building and ocean waves towards the end of the track. I am left with the notion that Ethel Cain would be extremely talented as a cinema soundscape artist, since this track did all but physically show me what shame can do to the human psyche.
Punish. Ah yes, more unease. This time, paired with beautiful melancholic piano and lovely harmonies. Ethel’s voice is entrancing and ghostly. After, “That I was an angel, but they made me leave,” I began to feel tears well up in my eyes--low, electric guitar suddenly making what was an ethereal song feel heavy on the heart. This song speaks again of shame, which was already an incredibly visceral picture painted by the previous track.
After this listen I was inspired to dig a bit deeper into the original intention behind her messages here. Via Tumblr in November of 2024, Ethel had this to say:
“the og concept for perverts was a character study about different “perverts,” inspired by reading knockemstiff. a sex addict, a pedophile, an arsonist, a sedative addict, etc. the project is completely different now but punish and amber waves are the only surviving demos from it so they’re still about that. punish is about a pedophile who was shot by the child’s father and now lives in exile where he physically maims himself to simulate the bullet wound in order to punish himself. at least that’s what i had in mind i wrote it. the song can be whatever you want it to be.”
This track actually ended up being my favorite on the album.
Houseofpsychoticwomn starts off with a bagpipe-reminiscent violin and, “I love you’s.” The clear sound of a sonogram wobbling away through the bagpipes. The lyrics speak of toxic obsession, the narrator displaying signs of emotional abuse saying things like, “Do you understand what it means to be loved? You don’t and you never will” in between “I love you.” The binaural audio sounds like Ethel is whispering directly in my ears at times, while at others I feel as if it enables me to get completely lost in the song--immersed and distracted by the dynamic changes with, “I love you,” front and center. Perhaps this is an echo of what an emotionally abusive relationship can feel like in the mind. Distracting and all encompassing, with a gut feeling that something is deeply wrong despite chronic reinforcement that you are loved.
Supposedly, this track is named after a book titled, House of Psychotic Woman: An Autobiographical Topography of Female Neurosis in Horror and Exploitation Films, by Kier-La Janisse which calls into question whether or not the love from these female hysterics is real or rather a result of psychosis/neurosis.
Vacillator. Drums! This song is sultry and simultaneously sad in tone. Much more simple of a track compared to everything else we have heard thus far. A vacillator is someone who is indecisive, often due to fear, and this song hit the nail in the coffin. This song was built for folks with avoidant attachment styles or borderline personalities. “If you love me, keep it to yourself.”
Onanist. The distorted piano on this track sounds exactly like something $uicideBoy$ would sample. Ethereal vocals, layers, and echoes. A static, loud, electric guitar. This song is the turning point for the narrator. Instead of rejecting her sexuality out of shame for a lack of holiness, she is giving in to her desires. However, rather than being an orgasmic indulgence, her, “It feels good,” chants sound incredibly bleak and forced. Perhaps, even if she wants to indulge, she does not have the mental fortitude to let go of her guilt yet.
Pulldrone. It is at this point in my listening journey in which I discovered this: the ring, the great dark, and proximity to god, which, I learned, details a concept Ethel used heavily over the course of the creation of Perverts. The lyrics in this song specifically bring poetic ties to the concepts detailed in her YouTube video, creating multiple double entendre. I do not believe I could bring justice to these concepts within this review without doing a separate review entirely, but for anyone interested in Ethel Cain’s lore, I highly recommend watching the video. The ring described in her video and referenced in this song is both a sonic concept (in reference to a complete musical experience, one with which begins to transcend into a larger scale emotional experience) and a philosophical concept: the ouroboros. Musically, lay for the poem, this song sounds like a lawnmower. If you have ever dreamed of a 10 minute long lawnmower and violin duet, this will be a treat.
Etienne. Pretty detuned piano. As the song continues, it gets a bit jazzier than anything we have seen thus far on the album. Again, I can imagine this slightly altered, making for the perfect horrorcore sample. The acoustic guitar is absolutely lovely, almost Spanish sounding at times. An edgy sample at the end is included of a preacher describing someone attempting suicide so many times that he eventually no longer wants to kill himself. Again on Tumblr, Ethel Cain wrote of the sample:
“i bought this old box of sermon tapes from the 70s and 80s last year and was listening to them one night and heard that segment and it stood out to me.”
Thatorchia is an entirely instrumental track, with Ethel singing soft harmonies alongside the ambience. Tension rises about halfway through the track, slowly and gradually. Dark synth comes in towards the end to really pull the piece together. Although nothing is said in this track, there is something emotional evoked. This is a song that would pair nicely with falling deep, deep into the ocean.
Amber Waves starts off with a sample from The Little House on The Prairie where one of the characters is offered a drug by a doctor who says, “I would recommend that you take just as much as you need to feel good.” Our Tumblr queen left one solemn remark about this track: when asked, “Who is Amber in Amber Waves?” she responds:
“the personification of love cast aside to get high”
The lyrics speak of anhedonia brought about by extreme addiction, with other smaller references sprinkled about, one specifically for the movie, The Reflecting Skin, where a man self-immolates after being accused of being a pervert. There are remnants of the passing thought that one could be strong, but with the ultimate acceptance of a catatonic emotional state. It’s a quite pretty song, and possibly one of the more personal tracks to Hayden herself out of this project. You get a sense tthat it is more than just grandiose storytelling. The final line of the album, “I can’t feel anything.”
Overall, I have learned more than I was expecting to. I think the experience for the average person may be similar to mine, however for the fans of Ethel, this was indeed a treat. I had been made aware of her lore in Preacher's Daughter, but I never went down the rabbit hole which led many fans to this album long before its arrival. I think it is beautiful and special that Ethel has cultivated such a community surrounding her art, and despite having over 3 million monthly listeners (over 82 million plays on American Teenager, alone), she is still more active and interactive with her fanbase than most mainstream artists of today. Her material is out there, and for the right person there is a depressing yet spiritual, philosophical, paranormal story to unravel so long as you can read between the lines.
7/10
Stream Perverts.
-Izzy.
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