Duo ring changes with pop
Canadian synth-pop duo Purity Ring have crafted a poptastic second album showing off bigger hooks and cleaner production than their 2012 breakthrough, Shrines.
Producer Corin Roddick has incorporated more space and stripped back the atmospheric density of Shrines to reveal a bass-heavy sound that pushes enigmatic singer Megan James’ vocals to the front of the mix.
Despite their image as a cool indie-electronic outfit, James admits taking their sound in a pop direction was completely intentional.
“We have always attempted to make straight-up pop music,” James says from Los Angeles.
“Believe it or not Shrines was a full-on attempt at pop songs.
“It’s weird because (new album) Another Eternity just sounds more like pop music because the vocals are louder and the production has more clarity.
“That doesn’t mean that I want to be massive and on the radio — actually I would love to be on the radio.” she reconsiders with a laugh.
That isn’t to say Purity Ring are lacking in creativity, in fact the opposite is true.
One reason they tend to get grouped alongside groundbreaking electronic acts is their multifaceted live show, incorporating custom fashion designed, stitched and sewn by James, and Roddick’s bespoke, tree-shaped instrument which drives both sound and lighting.
“This time around there’s going to be a lot of clothes I make that actually interact with the lights and what’s going on in terms of the arc of the show,” James says.
“I’ve been making costumes for music videos which is fun because you can get a little bit crazy.
“I feel like I create things out of necessity. Creativity is largely involved in how I think about time and how I perceive the things around me.
“Clothing is essential – I love making clothes, I can’t not do it, otherwise I don’t know what I’d wear. I probably wouldn’t love anything enough – actually there’s a lot of things I love but it’s just too expensive. So you make it.”
James is similarly creative with her lyrics, one of the highlights of Another Eternity.
On first single Push Pull she imagines her own femininity as a landscape she is traversing with the repeated phrase: “Make a ladder of what folds and climb up in me.”
“What kind of publication are you writing for?” she laughs, hinting at the subject matter being risque. “That lyric is particularly feminine and literal for me, and I write like that a lot, so I guess take what you will from that.”
Another Eternity is released tomorrow.
