Rapid Fire Reviews: Genre Challenging Ladies with Kelly Lee Owens, Ethel Cain & Soccer Mommy
This weekend's (or possibly week's by the time I finish) rapid fire reviews will cover a few records I've really wanted to talk about mostly because they have something strikingly unique about them that at the very least you won't hear anywhere else in 2022.
Preacher's Daughter - Ethel Cain
Enjoy <3
LP.8 - Kelly Lee Owens
I think both of Kelly Lee Owens first two records are both quite solid but in the back of my mind I've also always held onto that belief that she has a classic record in her. Her willingness to adventure into compelling sonic directions compared with her vocals talent which thrives over sparse electronic landscapes makes for a great combo that reminds me a lot of what initially made James Blake so appealing. This album is far and away Kelly's most experimental yet trading a lot of conventional song structure out for atmospheric haze and methodically repeated phrases that echo out into the void. It's an artistic choice that I think makes a lot of sense coming off a record where she felt more as much like a singer-songwriter as she did an electronic musician. Much of LP.8 flirts with ambient without ever really getting into the thick of it. Whether it's repeated vocal lines, wordless harmonies high up in the mix, tangible electronic textures or even the occasional percussion there is always something grounding these songs even when the overall progression starts to feel formless. In that sense, the record is really about the sounds and how compelling they are as individual devices but it's a bit of a mixed bag. While some of the highly synthetic soundscapes on the first half of the record can be compelling in their chilling demeanor at first I can't help but think they often go on for too long. The songs on the second half of the record are dialed in a bit more but also willing to dip into something less dystopian and more beautiful like Nana Piano, which as the name would imply is basically just a nostalgic piano piece. My favorite of these experiments mostly come in a row to end the project off. Quickening is a chime heavy and synth layered exploration into spoken word through what sounds like an analog field recorder, One is an eerie and methodical journey into distant shrill synth sounds backing layers of sung refrains that gets more and more compelling as it goes on and Sonic 8 is the records loudest song and the single that originally got me excited with its distorted fuzz, eerie vocal refrains and background whispering. I like this record but unfortunately, I don't love it. Despite how much I enjoy its last leg there are a lot of moments earlier on the LP that don't speak to me nearly as much. However, I wouldn't discourage Kelly Lee Owens from continuing in this more experimental direction as you can see how strong her talent for it is. By honing her skills and even pushing her sound further in this direction I think she can really make something special and at the very least, LP.8 gaurenteed that I'll be paying attention to Kelly's music going forward. 6.5/10
If you roll in trans femme circles online, which I obviously do, you've no doubt seen Ethel Cain being worshipped as our new witchy queen. While I've been paying attention to her rise for a while, "her" being Hayden Silas Anhedonia the singer and songwriter behind the Ethel Cain project and character. I was looking for the right moment to get into this story as a reviewer and Preacher's Daughter is far and away her most fleshed out project to date both conceptually and creatively. So what is there to know about this record going into it, well, quite a bit actually. The concept here details Ethel's teenage years growing up in the face of religious and romantic demons as well as substance abuse. Another thing you should know is that this record is LONG. These 13 tracks run at a hefty 75 minutes and a lot of that is because Ethel stretches these songs out far past the end of their structure. The last thing I think it's important to know is that the Lana Del Rey influence here is HUGE and comes in numerous different ways. Ethel's vocals, the evocative lyrical style and even the way these songs are composed and unfold all feels so distinctly Lana that it can sometimes be hard to overcome. But on the other hand Lana is certainly a good artist to be inspired by and the adjustments Ethel does make can occasionally pay off. The thick reverb that is placed over absolutely everything on the record can feel like a crutch, but on tracks like A House In Nebraska it's turned into an expansive, compelling and dramatic formula. Also I've become quite fond of a handful of the record's singles in the weeks since they came out, none more than Gibson Girl which is still my favorite of Ethel's songs to date. She really is at her best while translating dark subject matter into absolutely irresistible indie-tinged pop songs. Not to mention that the length of these tracks is never a problem on its best moments where the wandering outros feel necessary to help digest the core of the track, it's only on the songs that never connect that deeply in the first place that the extended runtimes turn to pure tedium. If you have the patience for this record there are good moments but I can't deny the mass of seemingly unnecessary time taken up in between. 6/10
Sometimes, Forever - Soccer Mommy
I wasn't head over heels for Soccer Mommy, the indie project of Sophia Regina Allison, during its initial come-up. While I thought her 2018 record Clean was a step in the right direction I wasn't blown away by it and the distinction came to a head a few years later on Color Theory. Despite the record's mass of fans and critical praise I just didn't connect with it at all. While there is still a lot of love for Sophia in the indie scene, moderate praise for this record and even a few singles I enjoyed there is really one big reason why I wanted to cover this project. In one of the more random collaborations you're likely to hear in 2022, this album features wall-to-wall production from Oneohtrix Point Never, a talent who I will likely never pass up the chance to cover. The way they handled blending their two styles together is interesting but MUCH more noticeable on the record's darker cuts which I generally like far more than their more conventional indie counterparts. The one exception to that rule is probably the lead single Shotgun which is a pretty conventional indie cut by most standards but pulls off a really satisfying build-up to an insanely catchy hook. But beyond that the darker and more isolated tracks here like Unholy Affliction and Darkness Forever are much much better than the rest of the tracklist on average. Unlike previous Soccer Mommy albums though I think this record mostly avoids any total disasters. Even though there are tracks that fall head first into dime a dozen singer-songwriter sounds and themes there is a heaviness to the instrumentation and a density to the production that prevent them from bottoming out. This record isn't great but I suppose in some sense it's an improvement. I don't think I like it as much as Clean but I certainly enjoyed it more and have much more to say about it than Color Theory. While I wish there was a stronger OPN influence across the album I have to admit that what Sophia does is clearly working for her fans and maybe it'll just never fully translate with me. 5.5/10
