Top Tracks: “American Teenager,” “Crush,” “Strangers”
Similar Artists: Chelsea Wolfe, Florence + The Machine, Nicole Dollanganger
Recent News: Released her sophomore album Perverts on January 8, 2025.
The winds have changed, and indie pop icon Ethel Cain has released her sophomore album Perverts after much anticipation from her devoted followers. Perverts is Cain’s first full-length album to be released since her 2022 debut LP Preacher’s Daughter. Continuing to emulate her signature sense of catharsis through her songwriting, Perverts conveys Cain experimenting further with her artistry, creating a project that is nothing short of haunting and beautifully disturbing.
Cain has been professionally releasing music since 2017, but 2019 was when the “American Teenager” singer first made her debut under the moniker of Ethel Cain. Since then, Cain has garnered a cult following of listeners who find an imitable sense of peace in her lyrics, which often focus on Southern Gothic themes. Having experimented with a vast array of genres throughout her career, Cain blends together classic rock, gospel and alternative pop to create an ambience that is entirely her own. Often referring to Ethel Cain as a character, the “Strangers” singer is still exploring the depths of her own musicality.
Compared to 2022’s Preacher’s Daughter, Cain’s latest album dives further into the unknown. Experimenting with white noise, instrumental tracks and incorporating vocal samples, listeners have already taken to social media to comment on the album’s off-putting sound. However, this is intended as high praise from Cain’s listeners, who no doubt find comfort in Cain’s exploration of the uncomfortable. Taking heavier sonic influences from gospel and gothic Americana tones, Perverts steers away from the more alternative pop and upbeat sounds that Cain explored within projects like Inbred (2021) and the aforementioned Preacher’s Daughter.
Perverts serves not just as a listening experience, but a visual one as well. Toying with all senses of the human mind, Perverts ultimately displays the weird and unusual fervent that Cain fans have been waiting for since the project was first announced. With a musicality that conveys an unforgettable and beautiful darkness, perhaps Ethel Cain is exactly what we need to grasp and hold onto as we enter a new era in 2025.
Stream Perverts, the new album from Ethel Cain, on Spotify and Apple Music.
Keep up with Ethel Cain: Instagram // Facebook // Spotify // YouTube // Website
Listening to Punish on the new album now. True artistry.