Ethel Cain is an artist I discovered just two years ago in my junior year of high school. The moment I listened to my first song by Ethel Cain, I was immediately captivated by her pure, raw vocals, and exceptional storytelling. The further I dove into her discography, the more astounded I became at her ability to capture such powerful emotions through instrumentals and vocals that range from warm and innocent to haunting and dramatic.
Who is Ethel Cain?
First, before analyzing my favorite of Ethel Cain’s albums, Preacher’s Daughter, let’s dive into Cain’s background. Cain is currently 26 years old and was born in Tallahassee, Florida, and raised in Perry, FL. Her family was very religious, specifically Southern Baptist. Cain’s father was a Deacon, she is the oldest of four children and was homeschooled for the majority of her youth. Musically, Cain sang in a church choir, as did her mother, and studied classical piano throughout her childhood.
Cain began experimenting with creating her own music at the age of 17. Her style is considered Southern Gothic, although it cannot be confined to simply one genre. Cain’s discography also contains rich blends of alternative pop, indie rock, and contemporary folk.
While Cain has released two other albums, Golden Age and Inbred, Preacher’s Daughter left the largest impact on me and is one of her most widely appreciated albums (although, in my opinion, Cain does not receive nearly as much recognition for any of her music as she deserves).
Cain’s real name is Hayden Silas Anhedönia. Ethel Cain is her stage name and the name of the character portrayed in Preacher’s Daughter. She began working on Preacher’s Daughter at the age of 19, and the album is closely tied to Cain herself and inspired by her life. It contains themes such as religious trauma, toxic relationships, heartbreak, and abuse.
Now that you know a bit more about Cain’s life, let’s get into analyzing each song from her album. There are 13 tracks in the Preacher’s Daughter, and each tackles a different portion of Cain’s life, progressing in chronological order.
1. “Family Tree (Intro)”
This song foreshadows events to come in Cain’s life. She explains how her destiny cannot be changed through a comparison to Jesus. She sings “Jesus can always reject his father, but he cannot escape his mother’s blood.” Cain’s fate has been sealed by generations of family members, and she is “swinging by my neck from the family tree.” This song plays an essential role in setting the tone of the album and leading listeners to wonder what exactly Cain’s destiny will be.
2. “American Teenager”
While this could be considered a pop song, the lyrics are quite dark and question the meaning of the American dream. Cain discusses how she grew up “putting too much faith in the make-believe.” This opening lyric immediately addresses Cain’s experience with religion. In the chorus, Cain speaks to God, singing “I feel you there, in the middle of the night, when the lights go out, and I’m all alone again.” She also touches on dependence on alcohol and how she’s “sorry if I seemed off, but I was probably wasted,” lives a “life full of whiskey,” and begs God to “help me handle my liquor.” Overall, this track is the most popular from her album, and I love how catchy and upbeat it is while still managing to incorporate the struggles Cain has faced. “American Teenager” represents Ethel’s initial innocence and purity before her life takes a turn for the worse.
3. “House in Nebraska”
In this song, Cain sings about a man named Willougby Tucker. This song focuses on the loss of Cain’s lover and how lonely she feels after he leaves her. She takes this incredibly hard, and claims she’d “kill myself to hold you one more time.” Cain also addresses death in the line “If we die tonight, that I’d die yours.” These lines as well as the rest of the song make it clear that Cain has a deep emotional dependence on Tucker. The song continues to discuss Cain’s abuse of alcohol to cope with her problems, and that she cries “every day and the bottles make it worse.” The instrumentals are the cherry on top of this heart-wrenching song. The electric guitar solo is incredible and my favorite moment from any of her songs. Combine this with haunting background vocals and a tragic message, and you get “A House in Nebraska.”
4. “Western Nights”
This song tackles the very serious topic of abuse that Cain has faced and how it has altered her perception of love. Cain has watched a new lover, Logan, “show his love through shades of black and blue,” and she claims she’s not going to leave him “even if you lose what’s left of your mind.” This establishes the mental state Cain is left in following the departure of her lover, foreshadowing her vulnerability in future relationships.
5. “Family Tree”
This song shares many parallels with “Family Tree (Intro),” as both songs open with the same lines. However, “Family Tree,” takes a deeper look into Cain’s guilt and family dynamic. While Cain’s mother raised her to abstain from violence, her father told her to “’shoot first, then run, and don’t look back.’” Cain feels deep regret for her sins and is blatantly honest with her audience as she sings “I’ve killed before, and I’ll kill again.” This song represents a turning point in Cain’s story, turning away temporarily from her lovers to delve into her relationship with her parents.
6. “Hard Times”
This is actually one of my favorites, although it’s not talked about nearly as much as the others in the album. “Hard Times” is particularly devastating, as it takes a closer look at how Cain’s innocence was torn apart in the first place. Listeners learn that she was abused at a very young age and henceforth had to grow up rapidly, “nine going on eighteen.” She wants to believe her father is the kind preacher most know him as, but Cain knows the dark truth. She grew up unhappy, “a little girl who needs her daddy real bad,” and while she is the preacher’s daughter, that man is no real father. We learn the preacher likely passed away, and Cain, despite the trauma inflicted upon her, misses him and continues to do “all of the things that you do, and I still do, and that scares me.”
7. “Thoroughfare”
The seventh track is a nearly 10-minute-long masterpiece of a song that leads up to the climax of the album. Ethel is now with a man named Isaiah. She’s entranced by him and believes he’s different from the other men she’s dated. This song takes on a similar beat to “American Teenager,” but something is different this time, and not in a good way, as is the case with Isaiah. Isaiah promises Cain he will take her anywhere. Cain, confused and alone, interprets this as an endearing gesture. She quickly falls for Isaiah because she believes he is everything her father and past lovers were not; “a man who wasn’t angry.” They travel across the states in his pickup truck, and the song ends with passionate, euphoric cries. It seems that all is well, but Cain’s story isn’t over just yet.
8. “Gibson Girl”
In the eighth track of the album, it is revealed that Isaiah kidnapped Cain, luring her in and using her desire for love and companionship against her. She’s prostituted, and Isaiah, as well as the other men abusing Cain, “wanna get my clothes off and hurt me.” Now, Cain realizes that these men are “all the same.” This song is devastating, completely dashing Cain’s hope for a brighter future and drowning it in drugs and sex. The same repeated words of the men around her become integrated into her brain “If it feels good, then it can’t be bad.” The song ends with “You wanna love me, love me, you wanna-”, cutting her off before she can finish her sentence. To me, this is the moment when Cain loses not only her words but herself.
9. “Ptolemaea”
“Ptolemaea,” is the climax of the album. It’s a terrifying track that opens with a male voice taunting Cain and the sounds of flies buzzing. This song is intertwined with religious parallels. It represents the ninth circle of hell described in Dante’s Inferno, a piece of literature describing a man’s journey through nine circles until he reaches hell’s center. The ninth circle is where Satan resides and symbolizes treachery. This circle is divided into smaller circles, one in which Caina, named after Cain from the bible, murdered his brother. Therefore, there is an evident personal connection present between Ethel Cain and the final circle of hell. Ptolemaea is the third division within the ninth circle. Ptolemy, the son of Abubus, is most known for inviting several men to dinner and killing them. This is unfortunately what happens to Cain. She is brutally murdered and cannot escape Isaiah, screaming one last blood-curdling and bone-chilling “stop” before the listener can only assume Satan, possessing Isaiah, has killed her. Those who commit the sin of betrayal are punished far worse if they betray someone who has willingly entered a relationship with them. In “Thoroughfare,” Cain makes the choice to travel across the United States with Isaiah with no knowledge of the danger that lies ahead. One line that especially stands out to me is “There is nothing you can do. It’s already been done.” This returns to the themes present in “Family Tree (Intro);”
Cain cannot escape her fate and is “bound to suffering eternal through the sins of their fathers committed long before their conception.” Not only will Isaiah go to Hell, but one can assume Cain will join him.
“Ptolemaea” is not the only song referencing the nine circles of hell. I believe that each song represents a circle with each sin worsening as the tracks and story progresses. Therefore, below is what each song would represent. Each is up to interpretation, but this is what makes the most sense to me.
- Circle One LIMBO – “Family Tree (Intro)”
- Circle Two LUST – “American Teenager”
- Circle Three GLUTTONY – “House in Nebraska”
- Circle Four GREED – “Western Nights”
- Circle Five ANGER – “Family Tree”
- Circle Six HERESY – “Hard Times”
- Circle Seven VIOLENCE – “Thoroughfare”
- Circle Eight FRAUD – “Gibson Girl”
- Circle Nine TREACHERY – “Ptolemaea”
10. “August Underground”
I think tracks 10 and 11, both instrumental, symbolize Cain’s transition from the mortal world into the afterlife. I think that track 10, “August Underground,” is meant to represent Cain’s death on Earth, and perhaps a temporary descent into hell.
11. “Televangelism”
I think track 11, “Televangelism,” and its beautiful piano accompaniment represent her ascent into heaven. While many lyrics suggest Cain will go to hell, the uplifting chord progression of “Televangelism” makes me think twice about this conclusion.
12. “Sun Bleached Flies”
The twelfth song of the album is called “Sun Bleached Flies” and is one of my favorites. It makes me think back to “Ptolemaea,” and the flies that buzz intensely in the opening of the song. I think perhaps they died along with Cain. In the first opening lines, Cain reflects back on her religion. She sings “God loves you, but not enough to save you,” and expresses how she would give anything “to be in church this Sunday.” She also mentions her father and how he tells her that, if someone struck once, she’d “just hit ’em twice as hard.” I think this song is symbolic of how Cain processes her death through reflection upon the largest parts of her life. Despite everything, Cain sings in the final lyrics that she’s “still waiting for that House in Nebraska.” This is proof that she still holds her beliefs true after passing, proving just how important they are to her now and have been all along.
13. “Strangers”
The thirteenth and final track of the album is “Strangers.” This is another beautiful song with disturbing lyrics that describe cannibalism. One standout lyric to me is “You devour like smoke bovine hide, how funny, I never considered myself tough.” Cain is not only referring to the toughness of her character but also the literal toughness upon consuming her; it is disgusting, I know. One lyric she repeats is “Tell me I’m yours if I’m turning in your stomach and I’m making you feel sick. Am I making you feel sick?” Cain searches for answers and connection even in the great beyond, and perhaps always will.
That concludes my analysis of Preacher’s Daughter. I learned so much about this album and Cain’s real-life connections to its themes, representation of religion, and each song’s role in establishing Cain’s story and character.
So What’s Next for Cain?
Cain is actually releasing a new album, called Perverts, coming out on Jan. 8, 2025. Make sure to tune in and stream her new song “Punish” from Perverts, out now!