Ethel Cain Brings the Heat to Dallas
August 24, 2025 - Dallas, TX
Image via Instagram
The Willoughby Tucker Forever Tour has been steadily making its rounds through the United States, with artist Ethel Cain touring her latest album. Willoughby Tucker, I’ll Always Love You is her third album and this will be her third headlining tour. Her Dallas show at The Bomb Factory was one of many sold out shows and one of three dates in Texas. Long before Cain took the stage, dedicated fans lined the blocks around the venue, toughing out the 95 degree heat and blazing sun.
Ethel Cain is a character and stage name created by Hayden Anhedönia and her first album, Preacher’s Daughter follows Ethel as she deals with love, family trauma, and ultimately her death. Willoughby Tucker, I’ll Always Love You is a prequel to Cain’s story that centers on her lover, Willoughby Tucker and the downfall of Ethel’s relationship with him.
Opening with “Willoughby’s Theme”, Cain is engulfed in a haze of smoke while the instrumental radiates through the crowd. The stage decoration is deeply reflective of her Southern Gothic aesthetic. Layered tree branches with willowy leaves hang down from the ceiling and shrubs and flowers cover the stage floor. Cain’s microphone stand is a powerline pole that doubles as a religious cross overlooking the audience.
Although many of Cain’s songs are melancholic, she holds the crowd in rapt attention with her stunning vocals and her skilled band. Cain plays every song from Willoughby Tucker, I’ll Always Love You except for “Willoughby’s Interlude”, a seven minute ambient instrumental. “Dust Bowl”, was a highly anticipated song ever since an unreleased demo version was uploaded to Ethel Cain’s Soundcloud in 2022. “Dust Bowl” starts with slow, reverberating vocals and instrumentals, only for the second half of the song to implode with electric guitar, heavy drums, and flashing lights from the stage.
Image via Instagram
Cain breaks up her set by playing songs from her album Perverts, released earlier this year in January. Songs “Vacillator” and “Onanist” bring a dark, droning energy to her performance, aided by the red lights emitting from the stage. And soon after, the people who had been lined up in the heat paid the price, as the show had to be stopped twice for medical attention and water.
Her album closer “Waco, Texas”, a massive 15 minute song, Cain wraps up her set and Willoughby Tucker’s story. Equal parts tired from the heat and eager for the encore, the crowd cheers when Cain steps on the stage for her last three songs of the night. She leads with “House in Nebraska”, before her two most popular songs; “Crush” and “American Teenager”. The crowd is at its peak as Cain is enjoying pointing the mic at the crowd to sing her music back to her.
The unspoken dress code of camo, denim, and flowing white dresses is prominent, people reflecting Cain’s outfits and some even drawing on her forehead tattoo (though long smudged and sweated off by now). Ethel Cain has recently gained a lot of traction, and rightfully so as her dedication pours through her art and vocals.
