Ethel Cain’s Chilling Sophomore Album ‘Perverts’ Is An Immersive Experience Not For The Weak of Heart

Hayden Silas Anhedonia, better known by her stage name Ethel Cain, has shared her long-awaited and hauntingly unique new album, ‘Perverts’, released on January 8th of this year. Ethel Cain is known for her dark Southern Gothic themes and indie rock music style.

The album starts with its titular track, ‘Perverts’, a cinematic introduction to our immersive journey ahead. We begin with what sounds like an old radio, or an animatronic, slowly running out of energy. The track is opened with a lo-fi rendition of ‘Nearer, my God, To Thee’, a Christian hymn from the 19th century written by Sarah Flower Adams. 

 Cain shared on her Tumblr that this hymn was “always her favorite by a long shot” and she wanted to “emulate listening to it on the tiny tape player in that little library (she worked in)”. 

We transition into an 11-minute soundscape of low buzzing vintage static. This is the haunting atmosphere we as the listener walk through, like waiting for a jump scare. Ethel Cain’s distorted voice occasionally delivers cryptic lines like “Heaven has forsaken the masturbator” and ends the track with her long-teased quote “It’s happening to everybody.” The refrain of the word “heaven” feels more like a threat than the ethereal place the word represents. It sets the stage for the album’s narrative of hatred and self-gratification. 

Following the first haunt is ‘Punish’. A slow, mournful piano builds up to a distorted, growling, and blown out electric guitar as the tone of “I am punished by love” is being set by Cain’s singing. The audio features creaking sounds of a swing set recorded by Cain at an abandoned town. Cain notes on her Tumblr that she “wondered what it must feel like, to live (there) alone on what felt like the edge of the earth with the most shame you could possibly carry as a human being”. ‘Punish’ is heavy and overwhelming, forcing the listener to come face to face with guilt. 

‘Housofpsychoticwomn’, however, has no words except for “I love you” being repeated over and over on top of a mechanical buzz or refrigerator hum. “I love you” feels threatening, eerie, and like a curse is being thrust upon you. The second longest on the album, this track is over 13 minutes long.

‘Vacillator’ introduces a dreamy ballad underscored by faint drums and Cain’s soft, ethereal vocals. Beneath the track’s beauty lies an edge of manipulation, reflecting the titular vacillator—an indecisive figure torn between emotional connection and self-protection. It is dreamy, yes, but upon further listening, her voice is apathetic. Our narrator is towing the line of tenderness by using her love as a tool to control. 

‘Onanist’ is restless and jittery, with buzzing industrial noise and eerie silences. The unpredictable shifts in sound create tension. Immediately following is ‘Pulldrone’, which delves into the concept of simulacrum—a copy without an original (Jean Baudrillard). The track layers a push and a pull of drone noise with distorted strings as Cain cryptically narrates her own simulacrum. Its relentless repetition amplifies the existential weight of faith and identity. It is exhausting, the longest on the album clocking in at just over 15 minutes long.

After the exhaustion of several tracks in a row of distorted sounds, ‘Etienne’ offers a fragile piano melody that swells into a monologue about rediscovering the will to live. Inspired by 18th-century French architect Étienne-Louis Boullée, Cain notes in her Tumblr, “I imagine him as the first to conceptualize the temple of simulacrum’s architecture. I imagine he must have felt so lonely, like Noah building the ark. That song was my ode to him.” ‘Etienne’ is a gentle softness surrounded by fear.

Nearing the grand finale, ‘Thatorchia’ erupts with chaotic, distorted noise that contrasts sharply with Cain’s usual style. ‘Amber Waves’ concludes the album with a mournful tone. The narrator, consumed by despair, is left feeling nothing. Cain describes the track on her Tumblr as “about throwing your life away to get high,” blending sorrow with an unsettling sense of peace.

Overall, ‘Perverts’ is a listening experience unlike any other. While tracks like ‘Punish’, ‘Vacillator’ and ‘Amber Waves’ could be listened to individually, together the cohesiveness of the album’s dark and twisted story is where the true impact lies. Cain creates an unknown atmosphere and deep dives into the creepy and fascinating and untold stories of human emotion and self-perception. 

Molly Spencer

@mollyspencr

Image: 'Perverts Official Album Cover'

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