{"id":672558,"date":"2026-11-02T10:24:07","date_gmt":"2026-11-02T10:24:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/672558\/"},"modified":"2026-11-02T10:24:07","modified_gmt":"2026-11-02T10:24:07","slug":"daine-in-endless-awe-agony-review-a-modern-emo-gothic-painted-in-sugary-pop-pastels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/672558\/","title":{"rendered":"Daine \u2013 \u2018In Endless Awe & Agony\u2019 review: a modern emo gothic painted in sugary pop pastels"},"content":{"rendered":"

Confessing the neuroses of stardom, Daine<\/a> cashes in on today\u2019s most lucrative pop culture currency: bearing all. The 23-year-old Filipino-Australian artist\u2019s debut album \u2018In Endless Awe & Agony\u2019 has a clear thesis statement: \u201cI\u2019m not really a person\u201d, they wail on jangly screamo cut \u2018P.O.P\u2019, \u201cI\u2019m a product of profit\u201d. Wielding irony like current contemporary heavyweights (pop stars breaking the fourth wall, namely Tinashe<\/a>, Underscores<\/a> and Charli XCX<\/a>), Australia\u2019s \u201cnext proper breakout star\u201d<\/a> vocalises affected indifference, taking wry aim at a parasocial, voyeuristic audience over preppy indie-rock-pop amalgamates.<\/p>\n

Following a six-year stint \u201cflopping\u201d across a string of EPs spanning digitally ethereal trap-pop (\u00e0 la Ericdoa<\/a>, a once-collaborator<\/a>) and celestial hyperpop, \u2018In Endless Awe & Agony\u2019 reintroduces a grounded Daine sans-autotune, fresh out the simulation, as a raw and unreserved prodigy of emo pop. Narratively, Daine portrays the debut as a Jungian individuation arc, a merging with the shadow self in search of healing. Bubblegummy career highlight \u2018PQC\u2019 sees Daine sardonically berate themself in sprightly anticipation of failure and scrutiny, but importantly self-acceptance: \u201cYou\u2019re plastic! \/ You\u2019re tragic! \/ Overly romantic! [\u2026] I\u2019m wrapped in the passion \/ Hopelessly attaching to this weapon I\u2019m casting!\u201d<\/p>\n

In an era where audiences seek overly earnest authenticity even if it demands intrusive insight, Daine obliges accordingly. \u201cThey all want me dead \/ But I still care about them\u201d, they confide elsewhere on \u2018PQC\u2019; later, they sing \u201cI see their blue eyes at the front of the battle scene\u201d on thumping slow-dance cut \u2018Supervillain\u2019; and on \u2018P.O.P\u2019, \u201cThe crowd just wants to see you drop\u201d. Driven by grief, financial struggles, a major label axe<\/a> and a severe mental health crisis, this confessional debut marks Daine\u2019s ecstatic martyrdom under pressure: \u201cTo yearn, to suffer, be a freak, lose your mind and do it publicly\u2026 what a thrill,\u201d they told NME.<\/p>\n

Cynical yet motivationally poptimistic, the result is a surreal sugar high from being chewed up and spat out by the vampiric industry at large. Take \u2018Love Love (Love Love)\u2019, a solid and wistful indie-pop feat; the jangle-pop wide-eyed hope of \u2018Wishing Well\u2019; or \u2018White Collar\u2019, huge and anthemic with its chic drawl, a statement of it-kid status, albeit one ready to admit they care too much: \u201cI don\u2019t think I wanna play the game of who cares less\u201d.<\/p>\n

Drawing obvious comparisons to MGMT<\/a>, Sleigh Bells<\/a> or something found in Skins<\/a>-era television, \u2018In Endless Awe & Agony\u2019 is trendy, gritty and hyperactive, a freeform pastiche of genres (spanning indietronica to Midwest emo to noise pop to folk) that never feels out-of-date. Top-lining the fizzy throwback earworminess are sinewy depictions of bruised knees on magazines, cannibalism, guns, money, celebrity, infatuation, naivety and death \u2013 a modern gothic painted in sugary pop pastels and grungey celebrity. Darkly confrontational yet childlike in its exuberance, Daine\u2019s debut is a refreshing, compelling and sickly-sweet rebrand.<\/p>\n

Details<\/p>\n

\"Daine<\/p>\n

Record label: Pack. Records
\nRelease date: November 6, 2026<\/p>\n