Gracie Abrams released her third studio album, Daughter from Hell. Produced by the National’s Aaron Dessner, who also produced Abrams’ first two albums Good Riddance and The Secret of Us, the record features a title track serving as an apology to her mother and a collaboration with actor Paul Mescal on the song Imaginary Friend.
The album marks a sonic departure for the 26-year-old singer, who first gained significant momentum with her 2023 debut Good Riddance. That year, she supported Taylor Swift on the Eras tour and won a Grammy nomination for best new artist. While her previous work relied on whispery bedroom vocals and muted instrumentation, some reports state that Daughter from Hell experiments with a broader range, including fuzzed-out guitars and soaring vocals that echo Adele on the track Men Like You.
The Title Track and Family Friction
Abrams described the title track, Daughter from Hell, as a love letter and a decades overdue apology to her mother, according to Yahoo. The song addresses her rebellious teenage years and the friction that comes with growing into a defiant person. The album title itself is a reference to those rebellious teenage years.
This reflection on her youth extends to her father, filmmaker J.J. Abrams. The singer has acknowledged the friction of being a child and growing into a defiant person, noting that it can be turbulent.
Paul Mescal and the Writing of ‘Imaginary Friend’
The 12th track on the album, Imaginary Friend, was co-written with Abrams’ boyfriend, Oscar-nominated actor Paul Mescal. The collaboration was not a planned event but occurred when Abrams realized she lacked strummers on the album, leading the pair to trade lines back and forth, The Cut reports. Mescal is noted as a Phoebe Bridgers disciple, and his own younger sister, Nell, is also a rising folk musician.
For more on this story, see Gracie Abrams Gets Candid on ‘Daughter from Hell’ and Facing Criticism.
The resulting song is a stripped-down acoustic piece about the absence of a past lover, featuring lyrics such as: I talk to you, you don’t talk back / ’Cause you’re a figment of my imagination / Man, I fucking hate it. Abrams told the New York Times’ Popcast that while she values privacy, she didn’t want the feeling of hiding the collaboration. She dismissed concerns about critical reception or trolling, stating that the happiness found in the creative process outweighs external hate.
Addressing the ‘Nepo Baby’ Narrative
As the daughter of J.J. Abrams and producer Katie McGrath, the singer has faced recurring nepo baby criticisms. Rather than refuting the label, Abrams has acknowledged the specific advantages her background provided.
Critical Reception and Sonic Shifts
Critical reactions to the album’s sound are divided. Some praise the record as her best yet, highlighting 16 tracks that sparkle with angst and a level of songwriting wisdom that belies her age.
Conversely, other reviews describe the record as inconsequential,
arguing that despite a few outliers like Cold Goodbyes, the music remains largely whisper-soft, self-interrogating, floaty and inconsequential. The critique mentioned the production for keeping the orchestra buried and the drums sounding as if they were being played next door.
The album, released via Interscope, explores the angst, insecurity and confusion of being a woman in her mid-20s. In a Spotify interview with Olivia Rodrigo, Abrams explained her approach to the lyrics: I think I was careful about writing about conflict and pain from less of a place of pointing fingers and more so of having been on both sides. There’s songs about tough friendships or, you know, kind of a breakup, and it’s like, I’ve now lived long enough to have been both the unreliable friend and both the person who’s been dumped.
The record utilizes recurring imagery of blades to describe pain. The word “knife” appears four different times across the album, in addition to a piano ballad titled “The Knife.” Lyrics include, I’m living with a knife in my side/I’m gonna take it for a joy ride,
and They’re daring me to pull it out / I’ll probably keep it for a lifetime.
This follows our earlier report, Gracie Abrams and Olivia Rodrigo on Friendship, Fame, and ‘Daughter from Hell.
Tour Dates and Performance Schedule
Abrams recently made her television debut of the song “Minibar” on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, performing against a brilliant red backdrop. During the appearance, she told Fallon the album is a reflection of how she was a child. Since unveiling the album in May, she has also released two upbeat singles about crashing out: “Hit the Wall” and Look at My Life,
the latter of which became an instant fan-favorite. This follows anticipation that began last year when she performed “Death Wish” and “Cold Goodbyes” on tour.
This performance precedes her upcoming Look at My Life Tour.
| Tour Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Tour Kickoff | Denver, Colorado | Dec. 2 |
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