GRACIE ABRAMS

Daughter From Hell (Interscope)

Vulnerable and introspective, Gracie Abrams’ third studio album encapsulates the restlessness and uncertainty of relationships and identity in your twenties. In Daughter From Hell, we gain a glimpse into the emotional world of Abrams through a mature, cohesive coming-of-age record.

It feels like a seamless continuation from her previous album The Secret Of Us, with similar wispy ballads and confessional lyrics that amplify Abrams’ delicate, distinct vocals. While the album is textured and well-developed, its title promises something darker than it ultimately delivers: conversational and reflective, Daughter… paints a vivid picture of a variety of relationships, exploring themes with more balance and perspective than her previous albums.

The juxtaposition within the album feels symbolic of the complexities of this period of her life, shifting from themes of heartbreak to gratitude. Good Reason, where Abrams takes ownership and responsibility for her side of a relationship, is positioned alongside Men Like You, about being betrayed by a friend. The intermingling of themes reflects the stage of life she is in, with emotion heightened through strings and piano.

The album begins with a cry of exhaustion in Hit A Wall, singing – with self-awareness – of self-doubt and the pressure to perform a role (“face to face with every girl I tried to play”). This motif of a shaky sense of self is a constant here: “my facade crumbling”, goes Look At My Life, continuing “slowly morphed into a poser, barely know her”. Abrams sings of the vulnerable uncertainty of one’s twenties thoughtfully and effortlessly, and though Daughter… is fuelled by personal and musical growth, it retains her popular and familiar style. 

If this album is lyrically developed, it could have taken more musical risks. The title track stands out with its grungier, darker sound; exploring Abrams’ relationship with her mother and the complexities of a parent-child relationship, she sings of her gratitude towards her mother and signs off, “Daughter from hell, but I came around / I’ll try and become you now.” Self-aware and textured, it’s what I’d hoped the album would be full of: a risk amongst otherwise fairly familiar-feeling songs maintaining Abrams’ signature conversational-ballad formula.

Reading like a series of diary entries, Daughter From Hell will lyrically resonate with Gracie Abrams’ young adult audience – but when she gently strays away from solely romantic heartbreak songs, it places her at a crossroads, allowing the possibility her next body of work may take on various forms.

words MEGAN PHILIP