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Within this track "Miss America", audiences find themselves inside a lodging near JFK airport, as Jennifer Walton receives the devastating update that her dad has illness discovery. This Sunderland-born artist had been touring the US on her initial visit, drumming alongside indie band Kero Kero Bonito, when suddenly sadness casts a shadow, tinging everything in grey. Unsteady piano and hushed strings underscore gothic reports emanating from the road: "Rural scenes and crumbling homes / Strip-mall, drug deal, panic attacks."

Her soft vocals come across in a deadpan manner, while this album's intensity stems from her keen penmanship—mixing stories, traditional phrases, and blunt diary entries—along with surprising rich textures. Few tracks this year showcase more potent novelistic style than "Shelly", a piece that describes the death of a deer and spirals toward a petrol-laden reckoning, reminiscent of written works lit by flickers of warped cello. Tense, quiet verses featuring echoing, plucked guitar transition into expansive choruses, with her voice electronically altered to become something all-knowing and menacing.

Listeners may already know the artist as an electronic producer, disc jockey, and member to bands such as Caroline. The album's sonic turns reflect this diverse career. The opener "Sometimes" bursts in fanfare, like an ensemble taken by surprise, while "Born Again Backwards" radically increases the BPM with an intense, beautiful, repeating drum fill. Thick walls of sound, expertly produced with a long-term collaborator, seem both gnarly and spiritual, while Walton's morbid, enchanted thinking peak on highlight "Lambs", which briefly becomes a swirling jig. "I hope your existence doesn't conclude with dying," she bargains, with poignant dark comedy.