Album review: Ethel Cain – Perverts

Whether you’re still hiding under the covers after watching Nosferatu or staring out into the icy darkness that is the January weather, the new project from Ethel Cain (real name Hayden Anhedönia) wholeheartedly matches the moment. Although Perverts – a standalone, gargantuan 89-minute ‘EP’ – is one of the first records of the new year to sink your teeth into, it might already be a contender for the most terrifying of them all.

Enigmatic and captivating, the goth-pop enigma rapidly amassed a devoted cult following after the release of 2022 debut album Preacher’s Daughter, which mashed up Southern Gothic, Christian and alternative influences, centred around the character of ‘Ethel Cain’. The alt.pop adjacent American Teenager – an “anti-war, anti-patriotism” cut – hilariously even made Barack Obama’s end of year list. On Perverts, however, you’ll find nothing that sounds remotely close.

A barrage of ambient nothingness with muffled vocals, its 12-minute opening title-track warns us of the journey ahead – if you can stomach this first hurdle. It’s followed by Punish, the project’s eerie, solitary single where Hayden masks none of her despair, over four hollow chords: ‘Nature chews on me / Little death like lead / Poisonous and heavy.’ Its crescendo towards impending doom, accentuated by her spine-tingling vocals, is probably the only common trait that’s discernible across Perverts.

What comes after is not for the faint-hearted. Pulldrone is effectively 15 minutes of torture, sounding like an executioner’s chainsaw nearing closer and closer, while the disturbing wails of Thatorchia feel unsettling and sometimes too random. However, the haunting undercurrent to Perverts feels very much like a one-and-done experience, wearing off significantly after the first listen – perhaps only augmenting the ‘standalone’ nature of this project.

Dragging out its bleak moodiness, Perverts requires a lot of perseverance and patience. It’s not an easy listen, in both an emotional and sonic sense. But, as an individual experience, it’s hard to ignore the boldness with which Hayden realises her vision, and the terrifying impact that such unfiltered, uncomfortable ambience can hold.

Verdict: 3/5

For fans of: Chelsea Wolfe, Wisp, Deftones

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