Perverts - Ethel Cain: Review
Ethel Cain is a singer-songwriter who broke through a few years ago on the back of Preacher's Daughter, her lengthy debut album. The record trafficked in a Southern Gothic style that often reached harrowing climaxes and featured lyrical content darker than many of her contemporaries, yet Cain managed to become a breakout star on the back of the record regardless. Now 3 years later she's back with a sophomore album that seems deliberately designed to leave much of that audience behind. Trading out her more conventional styles of songwriting and production form a grueling droning 90-minute follow-up that will put anyone's commitment to her style to the test. The first taste of the controversy that would eventually befall this record came on its lead single "Punish." I liked the song, though I wasn't head over heels for its format as a long, plodding durge with dreary vocals singing creaky refrains. It's better within the context of the album where the song...