New Album from Four (cough) Weeks Ago: Visions by Grimes

Wow, I have really gotten behind on my posts. I am really sorry. So prepare yourself for a flurry of catch up posts! I will do my best to do them all justice. Aight, let’s kick off this jam!

I simply cannot wait to be 21; my desire is so bad that I have started to count down the days prematurely (368 to be exact). I didn’t really care when I turned 16 because I didn’t want to drive, I didn’t care about turning 18 because I missed the election cycle, despise tobacco, and know what the internet is. But my god, I cannot wait for my 21^st birthday because that is the day that I can go to any concert I want to. Oh, did you think I was going to say legally drink? That’s hilarious.

So why am I telling you about my burning desire to be three times as old as a third-grader besides to provide the usual anecdote that leads into my album review? Well, my age recently came close to making me miss out on a concert. Being in Philly, I always lament the shows that go on at Kung Fu Necktie or Johnnie Brenda’s because I am no allowed to go. Usually I don’t care that much because the bands I love usually play either First Unitarian, Union Transfer, or the Electric Factory. But recently Grimes was scheduled to come to town, and she was going to play Johnny Brendas. I was pissed, I really digged her single Oblivion and wanted to catch her set.

Fortunately for me, the show sold out, fast. So they moved her to the larger (and more importantly under-21 friendly) venue, First Unitarian. Knowing they were gonna sell out fast, I camped out online and refresh spammed the website when the tickets were supposed to go on sale months in advance. I got the tickets. Knowing that I was going to see Grimes live, I picked up her newish album Visions exactly three weeks before the show. That way I could write this article having just seen her live.

So several Thursdays ago, Steve and I stepped down those stone steps and into the familiar rec room. This time however, the church was sold out. We were packed in like sardines and before long the room was boiling. After an awesome warm-up by Born Gold (I picked up their album the next day), Grimes took the stage. The first thing she said was that sick. Oh no…. I thought. After a bit of a rough start, she got her footing and her voice sounded fantastic. Yet by the time we really got into it, she started to falter again. Once she started rocking again and the crowed really went nuts, she suddenly stopped. The set was ridiculously short, it was over by 10:45. In comparison, Neon Indian played a normal length set last night (I go to a lot of concerts) and they finished at 11:30. Normally I would have been furious but I was just extremely happy to get out of the heat.

Grimes’s Visions really reflects the concert. Parts of the album, like Oblivion and Genesis, are really great tunes that catch your attention and make you jam out. However most of the rest of it feels formless, it slips between your fingers. It is impossible to pay attention to. I have listened to this album at least 10 times and I cannot tell you how a majority of it goes. I have said before that there is ambient music and music that is meant to be listened to. As I pointed out, both are fine forms of music unless an album attempts to be one type and fails, slipping into the other. The first section of Visions establishes that the album is very jam worthy. Yet somewhere along the line it falls apart.

Moving beyond the previous criticism, Visions has a fantastic sound. The songs can best be described as a sort of electro-goth-pop. The music is perky and bubbles in the most wonderful way. Yet it is not too sweet, it feels a bit heavy and complex; it is more than just bubble pop. Her voice is absolutely fantastic. It is extremely ethereal, like an angel or more likely, a ghost. The sweet with a hint of darkness is reflected oppositely in the album art; the art is very gothy yet contains messages like “I love” in Russian (I can’t read whatever other languages are present). Here there is a little bit of sweet hidden among the darkness. The art really fits well with the music (which is why I bought a shirt).

Though I don’t like Visions that much as an album, I really enjoy Grimes as an artist. Her hits are really catchy and fun. I highly recommend picking up a few of her singles, though you might not want to grab the whole album unless you’re really into what you hear.

One down, two to go…