Album Review: St. Catherine's Child, This Might Affect You

Ilana Zsigmond’s debut album as St. Catherine’s Child is a powerful reflection on grief, chronicling the illness and subsequent death of her beloved father. The first half covers his diagnosis and the period leading up to his death, while the second delves into the rawness of grief.

For an album born in such sadness, This Might Affect You is wonderfully life-affirming, as Zsigmond opens herself up completely. Occasionally, it can be akin to peeking into someone’s diary, as on the heart-breaking ‘I Understand’ or the string-drenched ‘I Guess That’s Why Dying Will Do’.

On ‘Leave A Light On’, she details her father’s unwillingness to let go, while the devastating ‘I’m Not Ready Yet’ recounts her inability to move on from his passing.

Lyrically, it’s incredible. The image of her dad hauling his oxygen tank upstairs in ‘The Other Side Of Twenty Five’ is unforgettable, as she realises, “This is the last time he’ll take care of you.” The shimmering sadness of ‘Negative Space’ sees her admit, “I’m terrified the grief will make me boring, ‘cos no-one really likes it when you cry / It happens much more often when I’m drinking, and wailing at the party kills the vibe.”

The title-track is a full-on rocker, while ‘New Eden’ explores the dichotomy of meeting her partner while her father was only months from dying, as she admits, “It’s a pretty fucked up time to fall in love”.
Heartbreakingly, achingly magnificent, this is the sound of a substantial new talent, who joins the ranks of Julia Jacklin and Phoebe Bridgers in the songwriting vanguard.

• Out now.