AN ‘80S HORROR FILM FOR THE EARS: INSIDE CALEB L’ETOILE’S DARLING PT. 2
A horror anthology in song form, “Darling Pt. 2”, written by Caleb L’Etoile, sets the tone for his annual Halloween release by treating every track like it's a singular eerie short film. It is a rewrite of his unreleased acoustic piece “Darling”; however, this version drags the ghost of that earlier song into a darker, louder world, where distortion and emotion blur together.
From the opening scream, sampled from a Mia Goth interview, to its final fadeout, “Darling Pt. 2” feels like a lost relic of an older rock era, dug up and reanimated. The guitars grind with chainsaw-like ferocity, while a driving rhythm keeps them balanced, giving the track a pulse as steady as a heartbeat. L’Etoile’s vocals hover between tenderness and tension, delivering the “missing person/serial killer” narrative through the eyes of the lover left behind. It perfectly illustrates the chilling horror film spirit intended. The song’s dropout near the end, one of L’Etoile’s favorite moments, feels like a breath before the final scare. It serves as a reminder to us, as listeners, that silence can be just as powerful as noise.
One of my favorite aspects of lyricism has always been the art of storytelling. The way a song can build an entire world in just a few minutes, drawing you into its atmosphere and emotions. L’Etoile captures that wonderfully in “Darling Pt. 2.” The storytelling isn’t just lyrical; it’s cinematic. Every guitar swell, every note, every lyrical fragment feels like a scene from a haunting short film. The song’s narrative of a missing person story told through the grief and obsession of the lover left behind lingers. It’s chilling without being overt, more psychological than literal, and that subtle, ghostly tension makes it even more haunting. L’Etoile’s “Darling Pt. 2” is an embodiment of horror through its sound and structure, turning his storytelling into something alive, unsettling, and strangely captivating. His ability to merge narrative with emotion is precisely why I love this piece so much.
L’Etoile cites bands like mewithoutYou as inspiration for revisiting and rewriting his own material, and that lineage shows. There’s reverence here in honoring these bands as inspiration, but also evolution in creation and innovation. “Darling Pt. 2” bridges his past and present sensibilities, merging rock intensity with pop structure and narrative ambition.
Ultimately, “Darling Pt . 2” stands as a haunting example of L’Etoile’s gift for melding horror, heart, and nostalgia into a singular unforgettable song.
