Rising Talent #2 - Purity Ring

It was January last year when Purity Ring first wowed the blogosphere with their debut “7, Ungirthed. On the release, the bands sound was still very much in its embryonic phase; exciting but a little heavy handed and searching for a sweet spot. The Canadian duo’s mix of Corin Roddick’s production of throbbing synths, jittery Hip Hop percussion and washed out vocal samples provided an unlikely canvas for Megan James sweet but never sickly voice. The temptation to cash in on the modicum of attention that had come their way must have been intense. Indeed the normal response of bands and labels these days is to prematurely release an album. Purity Ring didn’t and it’s to their lasting credit.

Over the following seven months they dropped off the radar and apart from a few remixes very little was heard of the band. Then in September, they unleashed Belispeak on a spilt single with dream poppers Braids. This time round, Roddick’s production sounded more confident; bolder in its use of vocal samples and imparted James sugary tones with a sinister edge normally associated with Swedish electronica champions The Knife. The blogosphere went equally nuts, the buzz grew surely an album was just around the corner?

It’s taken another six months and finally Purity Ring are prepping the release of their debut album, Shrines, on July 24 via 4AD and Last Gand Records. The albums lead single, Obedear, shows that the duos incremental improvements have continued. With Roddick continuing to pair back any superfluous production, making them sound agile, lean and even more menacing than before. In taking that year to tinker instead of rushing their debut, Purity Ring’s patience has given them the chance to create an edgy pop sound, that’s equally ready for radio play and the critics pens. A combination which gives them a shot of lasting in an industry famous for eating it’s young. 

Music Festivals of 2012 #1 - Beacon’s Festival

Rising out of the wreckage of 2011’s flooding cancellation, Beacon’s Festival is back and this time bigger, better and most importantly more water resistant than ever! Having moved the site to an even more picturesque location and away from flood areas, the festival will see thousands of discerning music fans descend on the town of Carleton (near Skipton) to enjoy three days and four nights of some of the most groundbreaking musicians around.

The line up is incredible! Including [edit] radio favourites, Wild Beasts and Real Estate, who had the dubious honour of featuring in our 2011 albums of the year run down, and other artists we’ve supported such as King Krule, Willis Earl Beal and Cloud Nothings to name just a few. You can see the full line up here.

Whats even better is that this line up is available for the recession busting price of £74.50 for weekend tickets, with additional discounts available for students and for parents bringing along their children too.

To give you a flavour of the festival, which runs from 17th-19th August we’ve created a Beacon’s Spotify playlist for you to enjoy!