The official second LP from Ethel Cain is here (the previous Perverts has since been categorized as “other studio recordings”) it’s a spiritual offering chocked full of beauty, melancholy and themes of love and loss. The record shows growth artistically, sonically and continues the Ethel Cain storyline perfectly.
Willoughby Tucker, I’ll Always Love You combines the grandiose scope of Cains debut, Preachers Daughter with some of the more experimental aspects that populated Perverts to make a solid album. For example, the track “F**k Me Eyes” balances lush synthesizers with the story of a woman growing up in small town America and the tribulations that come with it. It’s an epic track that is best enjoyed on a good sound system.
The album has a few instrumental interludes spread throughout that evoke rural spaces — a backcountry road, a sprawling open field, driving a pickup truck in the middle of the night to outrun inescapable problems. Those interludes worked well on Perverts, but here add a different layer of “secret sauce” to the overall listening journey. If you choose to skip them, you're doing yourself a disservice of the overall journey of the album.
Slow burns are prevalent on this album, but stick with them. Many of the tracks crescendo into full-blown band showcases, with Cain giving impressive vocal performances throughout. See "Dust Bowl," "Nettles" and "Tempest" for prime examples of this.
Chances are, if you're already an Ethel Cain fan you’re going to really like this release. If you don’t know who Ethel Cain is but are a fan of the works of Mazzy Star, Phoebe Bridgers or Lana Del Rey give this record a listen, you might find a new favorite artist.
When Willoughby Tucker, I’ll Always Love You comes to an end with "Waco, Texas," it’s a high note and is sure to bring tears to your eyes. This was my favorite track on the album. It's a very beautiful piece of songwriting to end a melancholy album.
Ethel Cain, AKA Hayden Anhedönia, has shared that this will be her last record under the “Ethel Cain” persona and that she now has to “go out and get more life experience.” If this is the end of Ethel Cain, it was a journey worth taking and one worth revisiting. Where will Anhedönia go from here? Only time will tell.
