Visions is Grimes third album released in 2012. I heard ‘Oblivion’ around that time and liked it so I kept tabs on what she was doing. It wasn’t until 2014 that I bought the album and I wish I had it two years earlier!! Subsequently, my girlfriend and I went mad for Grimes, and we got to see her live in 2015. The album is synth-pop, art-pop and very experimental. She was only 24 at the time and it is an incredible effort,so much so you’d think she had the whole game figured out at the time of release. The album received rave reviews upon release after both previous albums had also been received well.
The album was like nothing I had bought before. It’s very weird, but good weird. Like mixing cereals together. Or a David Lynch film. I’ve read on a very well known website while checking the year of release, lets call it ‘Mikipedia’, that the album was recorded over three weeks in her garage using ‘GarageBand’, which is incredible once you hear the album. I find with some albums that towards the end the sound can kind of change, like the artist uses the last 3/4 songs to experiment, maybe with the idea of testing the waters for the next album. However, in the case of ‘Visions‘, when I listen to it the album plays right through and I’m left waiting for that feeling of change and ‘oh god when is this gonna go wrong’. But it doesn’t. NOT.EVEN.ONCE. There are so many stand out tracks, ‘Genesis’, Oblivion’, ‘Nightmusic’, ‘Circumambient’ and ‘Eight’ to name a few. Though that’s probably unfair on the other tacks.
‘Oblivion’ and ‘Genesis’ are two of Grimes best known songs and for good reason. Both steller electronica numbers that sound like they came from the future. It was perhaps ‘Oblivion’ that put Grimes on the map, but the album is about just one track. ‘Eight’ is as weird as it will get, some robot in the background saying what I think might be ‘twice’ and a very auto-tuned Grimes singing, with some scratching beats and drums taking us through a very catchy track. ‘Circumambient’ is next up in a more clean effort. That’s not to say its not far out, but its more well laid out. Her talent for putting together a well constructed electronica song is unreal, it’s like controlled chaos. It’s actually my favorite track from the album. It’ll really get you twisting and turning and it was savage live! After two more subtle efforts in ‘Vowels=Space and Time’ and ‘Visiting Statue’, ‘Be A Body’ returns to the mayhem. What make this one stand out for me is the way the track changes twice into a song you didn’t see coming. Changing as drastically as it does and making it work is very hard, it can often go wrong. But Grimes had a sound she felt suited the song, and mixed it in perfectly to make one of the most creative songs on the album.
‘Nighmusic’ is another super experimental song that first time listeners would pick up right away. Like I said earlier, the album can play right though and keep you listening, and she saves this beauty for the closing end of the album. ‘Skin’ is one of the ‘nicer’ songs on the album, finding Grimes much more at peace. Not to say it hasn’t got her usually bit of a quirky sound, with some guitar coming in at times to brighten it up.
If you come across the album in store or online don’t be afraid to take a chance on it. It’s worth it, fuck it I paid about $25 for my copy! You’ll get an insight into one of the most creative minds in music at the moment. She’s also an act worth chasing a ticket for because artists like this don’t come around too often. She puts on a great show and knows how to work the crowd. Some A/C fans kept blowing up her skirt at the gig, so she said fuck it and flashed the crowd her underwear, granny pants! That’s right, Granny pants. So expect a spectacle!
G.M
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