When we covered “peacefall,” the penultimate single to Purity Ring’s new album, WOMB, out today, we questioned whether consistency in sound at the expense of growth as an artist was a positive or negative quality. All singles from the album sounded frightfully similar to past work from the duo, which was a welcome quality after such a long absence, but felt like more of the same.
Now, after listening to the full album, it’s clear that their consistency is absolutely a strength, and shows that they haven’t lost touch at all with what they stand for as a musical group in both their sound and message.
WOMB is perfectly comfortable in its skin, representing the best that Purity Ring has to offer: heavenly vocals courtesy of Megan James and dainty, airy production that gently helps everything glide softly.
Their return at Lightning in a Bottle this year, before it was unfortunately cancelled amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, would have been an otherworldly experience. Not like typical mainstage sets, but fraught with emotion, soft synths, slow, magical moments, and, likely, an overwhelming sense of peace. Surely, we need that now more than ever.
Listen to WOMB from Purity Ring below.
Photo via Carson Davis Brown