Ethel Cain self-released her fourth album, “Perverts,” through her record label Daughters of Cain on Jan. 8. Clocking in at nearly an hour and a half, the project is one of Cain’s most experimental works to date, making it a stand-out in her career. The album was entirely written, recorded and produced by Cain herself.
“Perverts” is a nine-track dark ambient studio recording featuring five disorienting ‘instrumental’ slowcore tracks. This marks a stark departure from Cain’s previously milder work. In an interview with Kiernan Shipka for Interview Magazine, Cain explained that the production of “Perverts” allowed her to push her sound further, saying she was “excited to push it farther into the direction that I’ve always wanted to go, which is 10- to 20-minute songs just drenched in reverb, so slow, and super repetitive.”
Cain is known for her passionate ‘cult’ following online, who are captivated by her Southern Gothic imagery and unique style. Many of Cain’s long-time fans were surprised by the album’s bold direction, finding its less-accessible tone unsettling. Compared to her 2022 release, “Preacher’s Daughter,” “Perverts” represents a radical departure, embracing a daring and rare style within the contemporary alternative scene.
The album opens with an eerie hymn laced with heavy distortion, followed by faint white noise and filtered voice overs in a self-titled 12-minute track, immediately plunging the listener into Cain’s nightmarish project. Much of the album is built around lengthy, droning atmospheric tracks, weaving a haunting atmosphere throughout the project.
“Punish,” the album’s only single released on Nov. 1, 2024, is the second track on the album. Cain’s gentle yet sorrowful lyrics are accompanied by distant, drone-like sounds that convey themes of guilt and trauma. The track gradually builds up, with dramatic strums of distorted bass leading to a climactic peak before tapering off. Cain’s raw delivery speaks to a deeply personal connection to the song.
Opening with humming and a hypnotizing drum beat, “Vacillator” evolves into one of the strongest tracks on the album. Cain’s hauntingly powerless voice contrasts with the track’s intensely steady rhythm, capturing the emotional indecision and avoidant attachment style of a vacillator. Repeating the phrase “If you love me, keep it to yourself” over the slowcore-like guitar picking, Cain evokes a deep sense of unrestrained tension.
The ambient noise in “Etienne” resembles the sound of a car driving at night in the rain, with the delicate pattering of rain and light percussion much like the soothing rhythm of windshield wipers. The track stands out as one of the strongest instrumentals on the album, particularly when the acoustic guitar is introduced and softly played four minutes in.
The final track, “Amber Waves,” is an 11-minute opus that’s as bitterly slow as it is beautiful. With a chorus that repeats “I’ll be alright,” it feels as if the culmination of Cain’s journey through remorse and self-discovery. Featuring Madeline Johnston of Midwife on guitar, the track fades out from a gentle instrumental of comforting acoustic guitar, only for Cain’s isolated voice to abruptly reemerge, saying “I can’t feel anything.”
Throughout the album, Cain strips away the traditional layers of her music and exposes her raw and unfiltered emotions at their core, accentuating her voice as the channel of her passion. Her vulnerability in this release is deeply intense between the haunting repetition of lyrics and the drowning reverb in the atmospheric instrumentals. The album is more than just a musical experience, but also a personal and intimate exploration of Cain’s inner turmoil.
Overall, “Perverts” is a disorienting yet stunning exploration of shame, fear and isolation. The lasting sense of mental isolation and longing permeates in each track, with Cain’s raw vulnerability intensifying the vulnerable ambiance. Through powerful instrumentals, unforgettable spoken word segments and her fragile vocal delivery, Cain’s broad emotional range crafts a chilling narrative of trauma and perversion.
As of now, Cain has yet to announce a tour or share further details about upcoming projects following the release of “Perverts.”
Crissy Saucier can be reached at [email protected].
