The Debut Record "Daughters" Explores Grief and Style

Within this song "Miss America", listeners find themselves inside a lodging near JFK airfield, where the musician receives the heartbreaking update of her father's cancer diagnosis. The UK-raised performer had been touring America on her initial visit, drumming with group Kero Kero Bonito, when suddenly sadness takes over, tinging everything with melancholy. Unsteady keys and hushed strings underscore dark dispatches emanating from the road: "Cattle farm and broke down shack / Shopping centers, illicit trades, anxious moments."

Her gentle singing are delivered with a deadpan style, while this album's intensity arises from her keen penmanship—mixing fiction, traditional phrases, and blunt diary entries—coupled with surprising rich textures. Few tracks this year showcase more potent storytelling flair compared to "Shelly", a piece that describes the death of a deer and descends into a petrol-laden confrontation, evoking literary works illuminated with glimpses of distorted cello. Tense, subdued sections with resonating, plucked guitar move to grand choruses, and Walton's voice electronically altered into something omniscient and menacing.

Listeners may previously know Walton as an electronic producer, DJ, and contributor to bands like Caroline. Daughters' musical twists reflect her varied background. The opener "Sometimes" bursts in fanfare, like a string band caught by surprise, while "Born Again Backwards" radically ups the tempo via an intense, beautiful, looping percussion. Thick layers of audio, expertly mixed with a long-term partner, seem both gnarly and spiritual, while Walton's dark, magical thoughts peak in highlight "Lambs", a song that briefly becomes a twirling dance. "I hope your existence doesn't conclude with dying," she pleads, exuding heart-aching dark comedy.