The lyrical genius of Ethel Cain’s ‘Ptolemaea’

Haunting audio distortion growing louder and louder in the intro. The eerie, nightmarish scream of ‘stop!’. The heavy electric guitar interludes a monologue of hellish fate. 

‘Ptolemaea’ by Ethel Cain is a song of genius: listening to it will make you grateful that there are artists like her who can articulate a story in such a uniquely thrilling form. The distorted sound and complex lyricism might be dismissed as just a spooky song, though it is so much more. 

On the weekend I listened to Hayden Silas Anhedönia’s (the person behind the stage name Ethel Cain) 2022 concept album, Preacher’s Daughter, and like always, track nine, ‘Ptolemaea’ stood out. The 6 minute and 23 second song is a thrashing and soul-stirring journey, taking the listener through the story of Ethel Cain being misguided and attacked whilst under the influence of her lover Isaiah’s drugs. 

Before analysing the song itself, the context of Ethel Cain as an artist and the album as a total body of work is integral in understanding the significance and meaning of the song. 

Preacher’s Daughter is a conceptual album which explores the chronological journey of a teenage Ethel Cain escaping a life of abuse from the hands of her father. On her quest she encounters substance abuse, violent sex work, and dangerous relationships. The crux of the album is her relationship with a man she meets while pursuing the American dream, Isaiah, who ends up kidnapping, murdering, and cannibalising Ethel. Themes of generational and religious trauma are interwoven throughout the southern gothic and spiritual feel of the album.

On ‘Ptolemaea’, the title refers to Dante’s ‘Inferno’ and derives from the idea of the four concentric rings in the ninth circle of hell. Dante says that ‘Ptolemy’, the ring for betrayal, takes an individual’s living body and is to possess it by demons, binding their souls to hell. It should also be noted that Ethel Cain’s stage name derives from the biblical figure Cain, who murdered his brother and was cursed by God. This acts as a possible explanation for Ethel Cain's fate, a reference to her running away from her family and faith, only to be met with her horrific demise. 

‘Ptolemaea’ begins with Isaiah, Ethel’s toxic lover possessed by the devil, prompting the beginning of the end for Ethel: 

“I invited you in 

Twice, I did 

You love blood too much 

But not like I do”

Speaking under demonic possession, Isaiah explains that twice he invited Ethel to join him: first escaping from her home to go west, explored in the seventh track, ‘Thoroughfare’, and secondly to his residence in California. The opening lines also reference Ethel’s Christian upbringing, in saying that she loves blood, referring to that of Jesus; however, the possessed Isaiah loves blood too, but not in the metaphysical sense of Christianity. He means it in the literal sense. 

The song continues with a distorted, ominous ambiance, possibly reflecting the possessed mind of Isaiah and hallucinated perspective of Ethel whilst under the influence of Isaiah’s drugs. The foreboding sense of evil is not lost on Ethel as she sings, 

“What fear a man like you brings upon (show me your face) 

A woman like me

Please don't look at me 

I can see it in your eyes 

He keeps looking at me 

Tell me, what have you done” 

Isaiah begins to attack Ethel as she routinely repeats “stop, stop, stop, make it stop”, crying out for a slice of divine intervention. The climax of the song and, arguably, the entire album, comes when the build up peaks in Ethel projecting a blood-curdling shriek of “stop!”. It was quite jarring going into this song not expecting the scream: it is genuinely disturbing, freakishly realistic to what one can imagine being attacked would sound like. An instrumental ensues, with heavy industrial-rock drums and electric guitars drowning out faint shrieks. Softly, Ethel sings “I am the face of love’s rage”, a testament to her life of suffering. I interpret this to mean that in all her life, the people who claim to love her, from her father, to Isaiah, are the people that inflict the most rage and violence on her. 

The song ends with the intermittent ring of an electric guitar accompanying a distorted, tortuous monologue spoken from the perspective of the possessed Isaiah. These are some of the most interpretive and honestly scariest lyrics on the album, as themes of death and endless torture from hell are evident. 

Blessed be the Daughters of Cain, bound to suffering eternal through the sins of their fathers committed long before their conception 

This line in the monologue calls back to the story of Cain (biblical) which was discussed earlier. It also reflects the intergenerational trauma that Ethel faces as a result of her family’s woes, as she was at a disadvantage before she was even born, similar to the daughters of Cain (biblical). 

“Blessed be you, girl 

promised to me by a man 

who can only feel hatred and contempt towards you” 

This is the standout line in the monologue for me. It explores how Isaiah views Ethel as his from the beginning – it was his destiny to be promised to Ethel. The tagline for the whole album, “God loves you, but not enough to save you” is reflected in this line, as Ethel is a devout Christian, yet God promises her to a man, her father, who despises her existence. Due to this, the ‘man’ referred to in the line is neither God nor Ethel’s father, but rather the spirit and will of God personified in her father. 

The song ends with the voice of death. It speaks through Isaiah, highlighting that neither Ethel, nor you and I, can escape its inevitability. 

“I am no good nor evil, simply I am, and I have come to take what is mine 

I was there in the dark when you spilled your first blood 

I am here now as you run from me still 

Run then, child 

You can't hide from me forever” 

This song is a true testament to the power, skill, and intelligence that songwriters hold. Its deep literary and biblical references show the true might of Anhedönia’s songwriting capabilities, and mixed with the gothically fantastical subject matter, the creative force is palpable. The music and instrumentals in the song are highly reflective of the mental and physical processes Ethel Cain undergoes throughout the course of the song, and in perfect synchrony, form one of the most explorative and fulfilling songs for listeners. 

The full song is available via the Spotify link below. 

https://open.spotify.com/track/29LsI5izZL8txZEJhegSBs?si=e510960e6f9b440b