In this track "Miss America", listeners are placed inside a lodging close to JFK airport, where the musician receives a devastating news of her father's cancer diagnosis. The Sunderland-born performer was traveling the US for the first time, drumming with indie band Kero Kero Bonito, when suddenly grief takes over, coloring everything in grey. Unsteady keys and soft orchestration underscore dark dispatches emanating from the road: "Rural scenes and crumbling homes / Strip-mall, drug deal, panic attacks."
Her gentle singing are delivered with a deadpan style, yet the album's intensity stems from the keen writing—mixing fiction, folksy sayings, and direct diary entries—along with surprising maximalism. Few songs this year possess more potent novelistic flair compared to "Shelly", a piece that describes the death of a deer and spirals toward a petrol-laden confrontation, reminiscent of literary works illuminated with flickers of warped strings. Anxious, subdued sections with echoing, plucked guitar transition into grand choruses, and Walton's voice electronically altered to become something omniscient and sinister.
Audiences might already know Walton from her work as a music creator, disc jockey, and contributor in groups such as Caroline. The album's musical twists reflect her varied career. The first track "Sometimes" bursts with fanfare, like an ensemble taken by surprise, while "Born Again Backwards" drastically increases the BPM via an intense, stunning, repeating percussion. Thick layers of audio, skillfully mixed by a longtime collaborator, feel both gnarly and spiritual, while her dark, magical thoughts culminate on highlight "Lambs", a song that briefly becomes a twirling dance. "I hope your existence doesn't conclude with dying," Walton bargains, exuding heart-aching gallows humor.
