Lizzy McAlpine is leaning into the rawer side of heartbreak with Ugly things, the latest single from her upcoming fourth studio album, Angel, accompanied by a deeply personal official video that she directed and filmed herself.
Rather than creating a polished, high concept production, McAlpine shot the video inside her own home using a camcorder, giving the visual an intentionally intimate and unfiltered quality. The approach reflects the emotional core of the song, which explores the loneliness that follows the end of a relationship and the difficult reality of watching someone you once knew become a stranger.
McAlpine described the video as an attempt to capture “loneliness and heartbreak,” explaining that Ugly things comes from the experience of seeing someone she thought she knew move through the world in a way that feels completely foreign. That perspective gives the song its emotional tension, balancing lingering love with the pain of seeing a relationship change beyond recognition.
Musically, Ugly things is an atmospheric and vulnerable addition to McAlpine’s growing catalog. Written and produced by McAlpine alongside longtime collaborators Mason Stoops and Taylor Mackall, the song builds its emotional weight through restrained production and her intimate vocal delivery.
The single serves as the second preview of Angel, following The light in the painting. The forthcoming album is scheduled for release Sept. 18 through Indigo Blue and RCA Records and is expected to expand McAlpine’s sound with influences ranging from 1970s Laurel Canyon folk to contemporary indie.
Visually, the self directed clip complements that musical intimacy. The home video aesthetic makes the experience feel less like a traditional music video and more like a private collection of memories, reinforcing the song’s themes of distance, longing and the inability to completely let go.
With Ugly things, Lizzy McAlpine continues to build anticipation for Angel while offering one of her most vulnerable releases yet. The combination of confessional songwriting and deliberately personal visuals gives the track a sense of immediacy that makes its heartbreak feel close to home.
