By Kavit Sumud | February 2nd, 2013
So, Purity Ring’s Shrines wasn’t for everyone — anytime you focus on the convergence of aesthetics and machines to simulate a roller coaster of emotions, you’re going to find yourself in a bit of a niche market. Especially when the project is seen in full and not just in luscious singles like “Belispeak” and “Lofticries.” But, for me, it was the very essence of their project completed — fully defining their aesthetic as a band — that blew me away in 2012.
And from that album, “Grandloves“ was my favorite ‘new’ track for reasons our remix artist du jour can explain better than I. His remix of the track was done to:
“…try to capture and reflect upon a certain feeling — the one when you realize that your life is so wildly out of control, so much more than you had ever thought; but you come to peace with it and accept the world for what it is: Grandloves.”
And I think his remix captured those exact feelings in abundance. Speeding up the track in a subtle (but definitely over 130bpm) way and adding wet reverb, snares, vocal chopping, and a few electric piano bridges, the song becomes a consuming affair. It feels like every two seconds the song pulls you in to embrace you and then throws you back out to an isolating cold. It’s that icy warmth that Purity Ring mastered so well in their aesthetic improved on in ways I didn’t think anyone could.
Remixing Purity Ring is really something best left to the artists themselves, because it can be quite messy. So, kudos to DJ Darkgrey for pulling it off so spectacularly. Give him some love at his Facebook and Soundcloud if you like this track, and grab a free download.