Those at Grimes’ Saturday night show in Seoul a couple of weeks ago were lucky enough to be the first people to hear a few tracks from her new album Art Angels live. Grimes performed Flesh Without Blood and Butterfly, as well as a cover of Ave Maria.
Fan shot footage has allowed us to see snippets of her performances. Flesh Without Blood was performed with bright pink lights and a couple of dancers grooving along to the beat. Meanwhile, Grimes had her guitar which she used to rock out with during the song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nII52YkTLH8
It wasn’t all done without a little slip up. During Butterfly, she remarks that she “can never remember the words to this song” as she forgets some of the lyrics. But, just like a true performer, she gets on with it and finds herself back on track. The crowd didn’t seem to mind, encouraging her to continue. She dances around the stage, having what looks like the time of her life.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvddZnx_Xfc
Her Ave Maria would make Franz Schubert proud. Her angelic soprano rang through the quiet room with a beautiful tone that could make birds cry. Grimes has said via Tumblr that this “might be one of [her] all time favourite songs.” Her gorgeous cover can be heard at 9:38 in the video montage below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvFqcNmSjvU
Grimes is due to perform a couple of sideshows in Australia this month in addition to her set at Laneway Festival. Let’s hope she performs some of her new tracks for us:
Wednesday 3 February – 170 Russell, Melbourne
SOLD OUT
Wednesday 10 February – Enmore Theatre, Sydney
Tickets here
Watch her video for Kill V. Maim here.
Image: Music Feeds
At the start of each year, Forbes releases their lists of those who have officially #madeit before the ripe old age of 30. Covering 20 different sectors, the lists cover “600 of the brightest young entrepreneurs, breakout talents and change agents”, with one covering the music world.
It’s interesting to see which acts make it onto the music list each year, as it is always indicative of which genres and powerhouse artists truly had a stronghold over the year that was. It should be noted that you can only make the list once, so whilst people like Drake and Kendrick Lamar are notably absent from this year’s class, it’s only because they’ve previously killed in past years. That’s not to say that this year’s didn’t include some serious talent, with the likes of Grimes, Krewella, ScHoolboy Q, Fetty Wap, The Weeknd and more each nabbing a highly coveted spot.
DJ Snake, Rae Sremmurd, Demi Lovato, Halsey and Nick Jonas were also among the top 30, showing a nice, eclectic mix of genres across the board. What is most interesting about this list is just how much hip-hop is represented. TDE‘s president Dave Free and DJ MixedByAli are also on board, as well as Boi-1da and Metro Boomin, meaning 9 out of the 30 all have ties with hip-hop, which just goes to show just how influential the genre is becoming to a mainstream audience. As for 2016’s 30 Under 30 – well it’s anyone’s game!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEMsjeq43_U
Check the whole list out for yourself here.
This has been an immense Christmas for new music. We’ve already been gifted with new Radiohead, new Future Islands and new LCD Soundsystem. Now, Canadian artist Grimes has shared a previously unheard track, Fifteen Minutes To.
Sharing the news via her Tumblr, Grimes notes that the track had been uncovered by way of a 2010 podcast titled ‘Midnight Poutine‘. So while it’s not exactly a new track, you’ve almost certainly never heard it before.
Grimes’ recent album Art Angels is one of the most celebrated of the year (including earning a spot in Howl & Echoes’ best songs and albums of 2015 lists). It’s always fascinating to go back and listen to a much earlier incarnation of an artist popular today, so fans will no doubt get a kick out of this one.
Grimes will be in town in early 2016, to perform at St Jerome’s Laneway Festival alongside a small solo tour. Dates below:
Laneway
Friday 5 February: Harts Mill, Port Adelaide (16+)
Saturday 6 February: Brisbane Showgrounds, Brisbane (16+)
Sunday 7 February: Sydney College of the Arts, Sydney
Saturday 13 February: Footscray Community Arts Centre And The River’s Edge, Melbourne
Sunday 14 February: Esplanade Reserve and West End, Fremantle
Sideshows
Wed, 3rd February 2016 – 170 Russell, Melbourne (SOLD OUT)
Wed, 10th February 2016 – Enmore Theatre, Sydney (TICKETS)
It’s always interesting when musicians talk about other musicians. It’s even more interesting when musicians review other musicians’ work. Especially when the two artists are as stylistically disparate as you can get. Given the recent amount of hype it’s garnered in the weeks up until its release, it was only apt that Will Butler of Arcade Fire gave Grimes’ new album Art Angels a go.
Writing for The Talkhouse, a website where musicians write about other musicians, Butler begins with a point about how reiterative pop music is, saying, “Pop traditionally tries to recreate the world the listener already lives in, just with bigger cartoon eyes and soft corners on the tables.”
He then goes onto say that Art Angels comes from the world of 2000s pop, but personally I don’t really think Art Angels sounds too reminiscent of the noughties at all. Butler then says that he is ‘prejudiced’ against the music of the 00’s before admitting he actually admires Art Angels. Favourite track? Scream ft. Aristophanes, a Taiwanese rapper rapping in Mandarin.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUe9rnucPoU&w=560&h=315]
Butler even goes so far as to call Grimes’ production charismatic. “The work is divine and human. I think of the RZA alone back in the ’90s, sampling and nudging and piecing together technology,” he says.
However, he then goes on a weird tangent about Elijah and the priests of Baal, quoting indecipherable nonsense in an attempt to sound cultured.
It doesn’t stop there. He THEN goes on to question whether he really likes Grimes’ new album at all, saying, “I just keep wondering if the funkiness is justified. There’s no reason for my doubt — it’s prejudicial.” He draws comparisons with Bob Dylan, Bob Marley and Prince, seeming to insinuate that he almost had to force himself to like these revered artists, a point he seems to be making with Grimes’ new album
At one point he basically accuses Grimes of being a massive, self-pandering egotist, quoting the line “Can’t you see the enemy just isn’t me tonight?” out of track Butterfly, calling it a “classic Prince move – talking about himself”.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tv9YoYCKNoE&w=560&h=315]
However, Butler does admit at the end that “Grimes is a genuine world builder” in deference to her creativity on the album, saying that, “it feels cold to stand outside her creation and judge it. It’s like watching the Big Bang from a different dimension.”
The whole interview sounds incredibly discordant and scattered. It’s not quite clear where exactly Butler stands on Grimes, but he seems to be slightly disdainful of her new album in tone.
Butler had better watch out though, as Grimes revealed on SiriusXMU that she wrote song California as a hate song for music website Pitchfork.
“It’s actually like a hate track for Pitchfork. Not for California, for like the music industry,” said Grimes when asked if the song was an ode to the state.
The hate song was written to express Grimes’ frustration at how the press handled the release of her song Go.
Who knows, maybe Grimes’ next song could include a hate song about Butler?
Art Angels is out now via 4AD. Buy it right here.
It’s been a week since Grimes dropped follow up LP Art Angels, and fan hysteria is yet to cease even slightly- I challenge you to scroll down your news feed without finding something pertaining to Grimes’ new release. Understandable, considering the three year gap between it and it’s predecessor, the much loved Visions. Somewhere in the midst of all this frenzy, Grimes kicked off her Rhinestone Cowgirls tour, which will see her tour the U.S and Europe until finally making a stop down under for Laneway Festival. Last night, she blessed Atlanta with some fresh material straight from Art Angels, as well as including a very special guest, Janelle Monáe.
The tracklist for Art Angels only names two guests, one of them being Monáe, who worked with Grimes on track Venus Fly. While Grimes may not be a fan of utilising mass amounts of guest artists in her work, the move to include Monáe was a clever one. Besides from their talent, both women are similar in their breaking of any pre-conceived notions their audiences might have about what goes into creating a ‘good’ pop song. While sonically, they may sound vastly different, when working in conjunction with one another it creates something incredible.
Given that both women are also intensely superb performers, it’s no wonder that the video below is truly a sight to behold. If you’re like me, and have neglected to purchase a ticket to Laneway- I’d start saving now, and fast.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddFkIF5rY0Q&w=560&h=315]
You can purchase tickets to Laneway here, and listen to Art Angels here.
Art Angels, the fourth album by Grimes, will be released tomorrow (Friday, 6th November) and the opening track of the album has been released today.
laughing and not being normal immediately distinguishes this album from her prior work, opening with a string overture.
Hyped as Grimes’ crossover opportunity, the album features less of Grimes’ high pitched and heavily reverbed vocals, nor does her ethereal synth-pop sound remain.
Art Angels leaked earlier this week to a mostly positive reception. 4AD will release the album physically on December 11.
The lead single, Flesh Without Blood, features pop rock instrumentation and strong hooks.
The more vibrant sound of Art Angels is due partly to the more enjoyable circumstances of its conception, as opposed to the sleep-deprived, drug-fuelled process of Visions: “I was a much weaker person when I wrote Visions. It was a sad record – cathartic, but victim-y. During this album I’ve got control of my music. It feels more developed. On Visions I was still in school, mentally. Since then, I’ve wanted to make something strong and aggressive because it’s more reflective of me,” she told Q.
Grimes employs a new arsenal of instruments, including the violin and the ukulele, in this departure from her distinct brand of electropop. More prominent beats signal the transition into commercial pop territory.
After scrapping an album’s worth of material last year, Grimes has produced 14 tracks, including collaborations with soul singer Janelle Monae and female Taiwanese rapper Aristophanes. Art Angels also includes REALiTi, originally released as a demo from the lost album in March of this year.
Art Angels officially comes out this Friday November 6 via 4AD/Remote Control. Purchase it here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tv9YoYCKNoE
The long wait for new material from Grimes is FINALLY over! After attempting to sate our thirsts with REALiTi earlier this year, she is now well and truly back with her newest video.
Announcing her new forthcoming album Art Angels just last week, real name Claire Boucher has now released not just the tracklisting for her new record, but an incredible double video to go along with it. Written, directed, edited, coloured, and art-directed by the lady herself, Grimes has now shared a double video for two tracks off Art Angels, Flesh without Blood and Life in the Vivid Dream.
She said her new stuff would be “super different” and now we know she wasn’t kidding around. Amping up her pop leanings more than a few levels, the two new tracks are starkly different but now both have a clip with a LOT going on. Divided into two “acts”, Grimes takes us on a slightly terrifying journey in which she and some pals are having a great time in a mansion of sorts. Starting off with Flesh without Blood for Act One, Boucher is seen in a series of costumes including a Marie Antoinette outfit, angel wings, white contacts, a cowboy hat and more, whilst she jumps on the bed and plays tennis with her friends. However, things get pretty morbid pretty quickly in Act Two, Life in the Vivid Dream. Grimes gets stabbed and stumbles around, covered in fake blood. Looking positively menacing perched in a tree in her angel get up, Act Two is more solemn and downtempo, leaving it open-ended for what is to come next.
Both tracks show a very different side to Grimes in her 2012, Visions era. Clearly no longer caring what you or anyone else has to say, she’s doing whatever the fuck she wants and it’s exciting and refreshing to see. Grimes is one of the pioneering voices of music in the 2010-onwards scene, possessing one of the most loyal fan bases and one of the more defining albums of this decade with Visions. Now she seems set to do it all again with Art Angels – described as her “most ambitious album to date” – and we cannot physically wait for what else she’s got in store.
Grimes will be in the country for St Jerome’s Laneway Festival next year, and has also announced two sideshows for Melbourne and Sydney. Art Angels will be released digitally November 6 and physically December 11 via 4AD/Remote Control Records. Check the tracklisting for Art Angels below!
Grimes – Art Angels
1. laughing and not being normal
2. California
3. SCREAM ft. Aristophanes
4. Flesh without Blood
5. Belly of the beat
6. Kill V. Maim
7. Artangels
8. Easily
9. Pin
10. Realiti
11. World Princess part II
12. Venus Fly ft. Janelle Monáe
13. Life in the Vivid Dream
14. Butterfly
Grimes sideshows (Tickets to the General Public on sale 10am local time, Friday 30 October):
Wednesday 3 February – 170 Russell, Melbourne
BUY TICKETS
Wednesday 10 February – Metro Theatre, Sydney
BUY TICKETS