Whereas Veronica Swift's 2019 Mack Avenue Records debut, Confessions, contained songs that played out like pages from her personal diary, on this captivating follow-up, This Bitter Earth, she flips the script by crafting an ingenious song cycle that tackles sexism ["How Lovely to Be a Woman"], domestic abuse ["He Hit Me (And It Felt Like a Kiss)"], environmental issues, racism, xenophobia ["You've Got to Be Carefully Taught"] and the dangers of fake news ["The Sports Page"].