Last week Canadian electro-pop duo Purity Ring released their new album, Shrines. The presence of the album has now become more or less ubiquitous across the music blogosphere so, in the interest of fitting in, I may as well post about them as well.
On the whole, this album is very impressive. Corin Roddick creates twitchy hip-hop inspired beats with finesse. He expertly employs light glitchy hooks surrounded by layers of pulsating ambience to create dream like, atmospheric environments. Megan James sweet, innocent vocals give us the impression that she might as well be singing a nursery rhyme, so you are probably likely to do what I did, ignore the words she is singing. Don't make that mistake. The lyrics throughout these eleven tracks vary from eerie surrealism to downright creepy. One prime example is "Fireshrine", in which Megan sweetly invites us to "Get a little closer, let it fold, cut open my sternum and pull my little ribs around you". (shudder)
Purity Ring have succeeded in creating a album that is widely listenable and is also distinctly, unequivocally their own. That is something they can be proud of. They have firmly secured their place in my itunes folder, (on my shelf would've been a more engaging metaphor but it's the year 2012), alongside The Knife and Crystal Castles.
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