'WOMB' Album Review: Purity Ring's new LP is an atmospheric antidote to your pandemic blues
In need of some refreshing news amid all the jarring stories of the coronavirus pandemic? 'WOMB' may just be the breath of fresh air you are looking for. Canadian electronic pop duo Purity Ring announced its dreamy third studio album with a scheduled release date of April 3 via 4AD. It is also the band's first record in five years. The band shared the last track from the new LP, titled 'Stardew' on February 18.
Purity Ring consists of Megan James and Corin Roddick who wrote, recorded, produced and mixed the new album. 'WOMB' follows their LP 'Another Eternity' which released in 2015. Since then, Purity Ring released the single 'Asido' in 2017 and even collaborated with Katy Perry in a remix of her song 'Rise', as well as writing several tracks from her 2017 LP 'Witness' and accompanying her on tour.
At the opening of the album, the first track 'Rubyinsides' gives us an intro to the high levels of electronic themes and instrumentation we can expect to hear further in. With an eerie mix of instruments playing in reverse as if unfolding pieces of time, or better; the diary of Purity Ring while James sings in hazy fantasy soprano, "If I could I would let you see through me. Hold our skin over the light to hold the heat. Flood the halls with ruby insides till we spill. Wonder what it feels like. If I could I would let you see through me".
"Into, into the light. Into, into the light"; Purity Ring emits an enchantment spell of music on listeners at the chorus with 'Peacefall'. The third track reveals the album's pop-inclinations (albeit not glorified pop) with a softened hip-hop beat before the reverberating harmonious chorus where Roddick provides beautiful backing vocals.
Moment to moment 'WOMB' plays in cybernetic, dystopian fields and in tracks like 'Femia' and the following song 'sinew', we get good examples of such themes. 'Femia' opens in warm dystopian synth before leading to a rich ambient chorus. In aqua-fused echoes and sweeping melody, James chants "The sound of longing. Pouring out your mouth. We're drowning". 'Sinew' opens with similar dystopian synth instrumentation, but with pulsing and expansive synth strings while the vocals carry a softer pop ballad in similar resonance to artist Lights.
'Silkspun' immediately breaks out in a dance-pop rhythm with mild clapping and snapping in the percussion and James sings "If there were a creature who'd sail over us would they see. The future in blackness above on the edge where I'll be. If there were a creature who dug deep enough would they see. The future in blackness beneath in the end where I keep".
'Almanac' features as probably the dreamiest track on 'WOMB'. With breathy vocals and trickling synth, it plays out like a death scene from the 1984 film 'The Neverending Story'. The song comes off as a pain escape using strong texture and themes of fantasy to displace oneself in a musical refuge while looking at pain from the outside; a sort of out-of-body experience if you will.
'Stardew' opens in pretty clock instrumentation before driving forward in light, sweet and romantically-spirited music. "How you move. How you knew. Hold me down. Hold me true. How you move. How you knew. Your ever beating heart. Nothing seems so far" sings James in the perfect light-hearted track to end off a powerfully rich and ethereal album".
'WOMB' comes highly recommended if you like all things electronic, dreamy, fantasy, as well as escapism and outer observations of pain from another universe. Also recommended if you like Grimes, Chvrches, Lights and Crystal Castles.
Listen to 'Stardew' here.
