By Madison Kempton
Tallahassee native Hayden Silas Anhedönia, better known by her stage name, Ethel Cain, visited Gainesville's High Dive this summer on July 30. Cain performed songs from her third album, Preacher’s Daughter, on the “Freezer Bride” tour. As a huge fan of Cain, seeing her perform live in Gainesville was an incredible experience, and I wish more people knew about her.
Ethel Cain’s music reminds me of Ultraviolence-era Lana Del Rey if it were to take place in the rural “HELL IS REAL” South. Influenced by the Southern-gothic Americana aesthetic, Preacher’s Daughter explores several contrasting musical elements; “American Teenager,” the album’s hit single, feels like a fun dance-pop song laced with youthful energy. “Gibson Girl,” places the listener into a California strip club, where we are immersed in a haze of drugs, loud bass and hot skin.
Cain is undeniably one of the most talented artists of this decade, showing off her musical expertise and flexibility across any genre. She is able to maintain a story rich in religious trauma and southern charm, invoking a bittersweet sense of nostalgia for anyone who has spent time in the South.
Preacher’s Daughter is a concept album that tells the story of Ethel Cain as a character, who escapes her Southern roots and ultimately meets her demise as she is devoured by a cannibalistic lover. Placed in a fictional southern Alabama town, the story starts with “Family Tree (Intro),” a haunting gospel describing Ethel’s background as a black sheep in a deeply religious Southern community. “American Teenager” features Americana-influenced lyrics, like “crying under bleachers,” and prayers: “Jesus, if you’re there, why do I feel so alone in this room with you?” This struggle with spirituality is a very prevalent theme in Preacher’s Daughter and is important to understand the rest of the album. That being said, the story continues as follows. Cain describes a “Bonnie-and-Clyde” love affair with a man who left the South, as detailed in “A House in Nebraska” and “Western Nights.” Eventually, she meets another character under the biblical name Isaiah, thus beginning their romance in the folk-influenced “Thoroughfare”. She compares Isaiah to her father, who she has expressed resentment for in “Hard Times.”
Ethel states, “I started to see you differently, cause for the first time since I was a child, I could see a man who wasn’t angry,” as she begins to travel to the West coast with Isaiah.
This honeymoon bliss is short-lived, as the next track “Gibson Girl” has a completely different sound from the rest of the album. Ethel Cain is ripped from the southern charm of folk and line-dancing and thrown into a California strip club, where she is frequently drugged by her now pimp, Isaiah. This “hate-f**k” RnB track completely immerses the listener into the rich setting Cain has created, feeling the haze of alcohol and drugs.
“Ptolemaea,” is easily the greatest track on Preacher’s Daughter. Named after a place in hell for traitors, the song begins with fearful whispers and wails from a drugged Ethel Cain as she realizes that her lover, Isaiah, wants to murder her. The song gradually increases in intensity as Isaiah closes in on her, and Ethel’s cries for “stop” increase until the climax; a blood-curdling scream that sends chills down your spine. The scream is followed by intense guitar and vocals that sound like auditory hallucinations. Ethel Cain’s scream is incredibly haunting - anytime I listen to it I get goosebumps.
The next few tracks, “August Underground” and “Televangelism” are instrumentals that demonstrate her wasting away in Isaiah’s attic to her eventual death and ascension to Heaven. In “Sun Bleached Flies,” Ethel Cain reflects on her life and regrets leaving the comfort of her hometown while in Heaven: “What I wouldn’t give to be in church this Sunday.” The following lyric is my favorite line from the album: “God loves you, but not enough to save you.” In the final track “Strangers,” Ethel Cain is devoured by Isaiah and reflects on their relationship.
“Can I be yours? If I’m turning in your stomach and I’m making you feel sick.” The album ends with Ethel Cain’s goodbye: telling her mother that she loves her.
I would highly recommend giving Preacher’s Daughter a listen if you grew up in the Bible Belt, love indie music or just want to sit down and listen to a beautiful and haunting story.
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