Live Report: Ethel Cain converts EP Electric Arena into plainchant perfection

Ethel Cain - the Southern Gothic alter-ego of Hayden Silas Anhedönia - is a standalone artist, evoking the seediest corners of rural America with a hymn-nostic bent.

The artist’s first EP under the moniker Ethel Cain, Carpet Bed, was released in 2019 and was followed a few months later by Golden Age. Her third EP, Inbred, came out in 2021. Yet it was the release of her critically acclaimed debut, narrative concept album Preacher’s Daughter in 2022 that transformed the singer into a household name.

Ethel Cain at Electric Picnic 2024. Copyrigt Miguel Ruiz.

Returning to Electric Picnic after a rollicking set last year, the expectations were high for the indie rock preacher's daughter. The stage decor was simple, featuring a massive screen showing brief clips and stills of Cain herself, the countryside, car parks, etc. The unadorned stage offered a perfect accompaniment to make way for Cain, the obvious focal point dressed in simple jeans, a hoodie and jacket.

Drawing from a vast palette of Gregorian chants and arena rock, her sprawling setlist is a masterclass of sonic cross-pollination: from mud-churned Southern Gothic rock songs of the highest order to slow-burn cathartic love songs.

Ethel Cain at Electric Picnic 2024. Copyrigt Miguel Ruiz.

Cain delivered nothing short of an intimate set to a packed tent. Her tender, ethereal presence alone drove the crowd wild. She serenaded her crowd of adoring fans instantly; opening with the incredible 'Dust Bowl' and then followed by the crooner 'A House In Nebraska'.  The singer introduced the slow songs as an invitation for stillness. Each served up transcendent vocals and fuzzy guitar reminiscent of her earlier work but were far less brutalist in tone than the violent plot of Preacher’s Daughter. Cain’s magnetic, crystalline vocals were met with hollers and howls from the audience, with Picnickers calling “yes mother!” and “you’re so hot” at steady intervals.

Ethel Cain at Electric Picnic 2024. Copyrigt Miguel Ruiz.

Brilliance from the gothic rocker is an expectation. Listeners were in safe hands with Ethel Cain and her album Preacher's Daughter. There is no harm in looking back if you have the right words for it. Cain has an abundance. The album was on full display throughout her 2024 Picnic return, with 'Family Tree' and 'August Underground' being exceptional stand-outs.

Ethel Cain is an unlikely pop star: her lyrics deal with exceptionally dark themes; her music resides in a place where alt-fuzz and sludge-metal entwine; and her songs are glacial giants. Yet somehow, these things have fused to create an unassuming force in music.

Cain’s 2024 Picnic set is an undeniable display of her intention to stick around – she is here to show reverence for her culture and inspirations, while setting her sights on new possibilities and endeavours. Ethel Cain is a unique figure in pop-culture, and if what we have seen already is anything to go by, there is no doubt that she will continue to strike sheer wonder into the eyes of her disciples.