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Within the song "Miss America", listeners find themselves inside a hotel room near JFK airfield, where the musician learns the heartbreaking update that her dad has cancer diagnosis. This UK-raised artist had been traveling the US on her initial visit, drumming alongside group Kero Kero Bonito, when abruptly sadness takes over, tinging all with melancholy. Faltering keys and soft orchestration underscore dark reports from the road: "Cattle farm and broke down shack / Shopping centers, illicit trades, anxious moments."

Her gentle singing are delivered in a flat style, while this record's tension arises from her sharp writing—mixing stories, traditional phrases, and blunt diary entries—coupled with surprising maximalism. Few tracks this year showcase stronger novelistic flair compared to "Shelly", a piece that describes the killing of an animal and spirals into a fuel-soaked confrontation, evoking written works illuminated by glimpses of warped cello. Tense, quiet sections with resonating, strummed guitar move to grand choruses, and her voice digitally manipulated into a presence omniscient and sinister.

Listeners might previously know the artist from her work as an electronic producer, disc jockey, and member in groups like Caroline. The album's sonic turns draw on her varied career. The opener "Sometimes" bursts with fanfare, like a string band caught by surprise, while "Born Again Backwards" radically ups the BPM via a punishing, beautiful, repeating drum fill. Dense layers of audio, expertly mixed by a long-term collaborator, feel both gnarly and ethereal, and Walton's morbid, enchanted thoughts peak in highlight "Lambs", which momentarily transforms into a twirling jig. "I hope your existence doesn't conclude with dying," Walton bargains, with heart-aching dark comedy.