The road leading up to Banks’ first full-length album has been a whirlwind one. With the help of producers SOHN, Shlohmo, Al Shux, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, and Lil Silva, she’s veritably jumped in the carpool lane and sped past any R&B naysayers. They watched enviously as we cheered her on, greedily gobbling up the singles she threw our way.
Oh, and how sweet they tasted. So sweet, in fact, that many of the songs featured on Goddess have already been heard (and praised) as either independently released singles or on one of her previous EPs. That’s why I was a little disappointed when I finally heard the full-length, which seems to have the length of an epic poem and about just as many ups and downs.
At her best, Banks’ haunting vocals swoop from reedy to velvet, floating above pounding synths and reaching deep into your gut and pulling. Her darkly-tinged apathy comes off as a valid response to emotional pain, which runs through the album like a fog. These gems come in the form of bangers like “Beggin for Thread” and “Goddess,” as well as slower tracks like “Drowning,” “Fuck Em Only We Know,” and the ever-incredible “Waiting Game.”
At her worst, Banks’ listless sneer comes off as dull and forced. Several of her tracks reach for the emotional rawness we saw on last year’s London EP, but simply fall a little short (see “This is What It Feels Like” and “You Should Know Where I’m Coming From.”) Her carpool lane may have gotten her to the front of the line, but it left her with an unsavory aura of fatigue. However, Banks has an incredible range, a penchant for perfect beats, and friends in all the right places—I’ll bet she hasn’t reached the end of the road yet.
Goddess