ethel cain - preacher's daughter [album]

disclaimer: im not sure if this is more lore or music so im going to put it in BOTH so sorry for the repeat but i will be telling you the story about ethel cain

preacher's daughter is a concept album about the life of ethel cain, im gonna go thru the songs and share a bit about her story, spoiler alert: it gets crazy. for each song, ill include a brief description and lyrical highlight

song 1: family tree (intro)

jesus can always reject his father / but he cannot escape his mother's blood

so this first song really sets the scene for the album, we learn about ethel cain who grew up in shady grove, alabama in the 1990s. it establishes the strong religious themes of this album. the singer, hayden, herself had an extremely religious upbringing and this album connects a bit to that.

song 2: american teenager

say what you want / but say it like you mean it / with your fists for once / a long cold war with your kids at the front / just give it one more day and you're done

a song so good obama (or one of his interns) put it on his year end list. this is the most accessible and conventional song of the album by far and i'd recommend it to anyone interested in her music. this doesn't add too much to the lore, but is a fantastic song

song 3: a house in nebraska

and i found photographs of our school on the day we met / i thought that you were so beautiful, it was love, i guess

this is such a beautiful song about ethel's relationship with willoughby, her ex. it's a sad song that details the dream the two had to live together in this abandoned house in nebraska

song 4: western nights

trouble's always gonna find you baby / but so will i

ethel's not with willoughby, but her new man logan. logan is not a good guy, at all. but ethel cannot escape her love for him. logan is also a criminal and has roped ethel into that lifestype

song 5: family tree

take me down to the river and bathe me clean / put me on the back of your white horse to ride / all the way to the chapel, let you wash all over me

uh oh! logan the criminal has died in a police shootout :c, ethel is on the run (this is according to genius btw #citeyoursources), and ethel reflects on her family, a super similar song to track 1 (on purpose ofc)

song 6: hard times

i was too young to notice / that some types of love could be bad

ethel reflects on her upbringing and her relationship with her father, a pastor. i'm not going to go too in depth on this blog but she talks about the incredibly troubled relationship the two had, but ethel doesn't like this story because she doesn't want to be a victim

song 7: thoroughfare

you turned to me and stared into me deep / and said "well maybe not 'cause look at what i've got / you might not be my love, but baby, i doubt it"

the second act of the album begins! ethel has met a new man named isaiah, and they drive away and escape home together. ethel falls in love with isaiah. ethel's status as an unreliable narrator begins to blossom here. (more on that soon!)

so we're gonna take a small pause here, and say that yay! ethel is falling in love and everythings going well. uh oh! it's not. news reports from ethel's home say she's been abducted, and ethel is telling us (the audience) a different story than the truth... what's gonna happen?

song 8: gibson girl

and if it feels good / then it can't be bad

in california (or wherever they are), isaiah has introduced ethel into a much darker life, one that is not the most appropriate for this blog. but isaiah has influenced ethel to use drugs and she is sadly starting to lose touch with reality

we're taking another lore break! ethel has now woken up with hallucinations and has been lured by isaiah away. she's trapped.

song 9: ptolemaea

even the iron still fears the rot / hiding from something i cannot stop / walking on shadows, i can't lead him back

make it stop

isaiah has trapped ethel, she tries to escape but cannot, there is a shocking part of this song which i won't spoil because you should listen to this song and skip to the 3 minute mark and wait for the "make it stop" line to happen because it WILL shock you. but ethel is in a terrible place right now.

song 10: august underground

*gunshot*

in the first of two instrumental songs, ethel is locked away with isaiah, he's revealed his true nature (at the end of ptolemaea) and ethel has accepted her fate. :c

song 11: televangelism

*ascending to heaven*

the second instrumental is a piano song which apparently ethel did in ONE TAKE which i find incredibly hard to believe because this song is amazing. it's ethereal. it's beautiful. it makes me feel like i'm ascending to heaven. but sadly, that IS what is actually happening to ethel. near the end of the song, it fades away like a broken record, reminding us of ethel's situation.

lore break again! so sadly ethel has died. but the last two songs are amazing so keep reading, hope you're doing well!

song 12: sun bleached flies

god loves you / but not enough to save you

my favourite song on this album by far, it's just incredible. ethel talks about her upbringing, her life, and really just reflects. words do not do this song justice, it's so beautiful and a song i constantly finding myself listening to when i'm feeling down

song 13: strangers

when my mother sees me on the side / of a milk carton in winn-dixie's dairy aisle / she'll cry and wait up for me

another beautiful song, this is ethel's goodbye to the world and to her family. isaiah has continued to be weird (again, this is a family blog so maybe listen to the song to find out). this is such a beautiful ending to the album and this and sun bleached flies really work to end ethel's journey

so this album is fantastic and i hope i've convinced you to listen! now its a pretty long album so if you're gonna listen to some songs i'd suggest american teenager and sun bleached flies, but also the instrumental televangelism (esp past the first minute) is so beautiful. @indigo i really hope you learn it on piano one day (please)