This is the first in my series of “Tugboat Hauls,” which I’m envisioning as quick little listicles about what’s currently catching my eye in the music and pop culture landscape. Think of them as slightly more longform versions of tweets. This week: Ethel Cain, Lingua Ignota, and other stuff that’s been sticking in my craw. Enjoy!
Ethel Cain
The currently-in-vogue spooky aesthetic of pop and alternative really interests me (thank you Phoebe Bridgers, I guess), and I’ll admit that when I first heard about Ethel Cain’s “backwoods cult leader” persona I was worried it was a little too good to be true. That was before I listened to “Crush,” off her new EP Inbred. Cain has a penchant for these aching, yearning lyrics laced with sharp edges (“I owe you a black eye and two kisses,” “can you read my mind, I’ve been watching you”), and her bone-rattling alto reminds me of the days before Lana Del Rey got so exhausting. It’s sad-girl music with a mean streak, both an exultation and an exorcism of femininity, and I can’t get enough of it. The album’s eight-minute sprawl “God’s Country” is a big risk that pays off, and its feature from witch house/“misery club” act Wicca Phase Springs Eternal only adds to the ambiance.
Lingua Ignota’s cover of “Jolene”
God knows I love weird covers, and ever since I discovered Kristen Hayter’s Hildegard von Bingen-named industrial/liturgical project, as well as her absolutely unhinged version of this Dolly Parton classic, I have been searching for a void to scream into about it. Hayter is a classically-trained musician specializing in the music of the medieval, baroque, and Renaissance periods. Her work as Lingua Ignota forces a reckoning with the phallocentricism of the noise music scene, and reclaims the righteous anger and extreme imagery of metal as tools for healing from trauma. This cover is part of a series that so far includes versions of “Kim” by Eminem and “Wicked Game” by Chris Isaak, and it sounds like what you would play in the background while you and Jolene hex your man for pitting the two of you against each other.
This TikTok of a guy hardcore two-stepping to “Chattahoochee”
Every so often, people seem to rediscover how time signatures work and be utterly shocked — the Dancing Spider-Man meme is plenty of proof. Yes, this video falls under that general purview, but the zeal with which @elder_ham finds the rhythm of this ‘90s country anthem in his one-man backyard pit is a treat. His gleeful exclamation that Alan Jackson “shouldn’t be two-stepped to, but it works so well” is what I’m really drawn to, though. In just under a minute, this guy is doing more to question and deconstruct the barriers between punk and country than some cowpunk bands are. Of course, quite a few grunge and punk artists are country fans, and Sturgill Simpson’s cover of “In Bloom” (plus Nirvana’s cover of “Where Did You Sleep Last Night,” Girl in a Coma’s cover of “Walkin’ After Midnight,” etc etc) should be enough to suggest the acres of common ground between the two. I’ll be releasing a video of me line dancing to Fugazi in response.
My May Playlist ;)
If you’re subscribed to this, you’re probably at least a little interested in what I’m up to, so here’s the (quickly-growing) general list of what I’ve been listening to lately. Some of these artists might make appearances in future Tugboat Hauls — keep an eye out!