No matter the genre, assigning adjectives to an artist’s work can be a linguistic game of Go Fish, particularly in the world of music. Pondering such quandaries, three cougars bobbed heads debating whether the dance party being held before them was “meditative…?” or “dancey?” before settling on "Just crystal!! Pure crystalline!” as the perfect terminology to sum up their Saturday night spent listening to Grimes performance at Soda Bar.
Now well known for her synthpop baby-breath beats, much has changed for the Canadian native since her first San Diego appearance in February. No longer subject to the shaky verdict of whatever hazy terminology was attempting to describe her amphetamine-fueled, catchy but cardiac arrest-inducing music, Grimes (aka Claire Boucher) has grown up; moving from a relatively unknown presence in the electro-pop scene with her debut album Geidi Primes in 2010 to a central presence in the big leagues of indie.
Now an “it girl,” Grimes has remained popular for her penchant for oddity (see her self-directed video “Genesis,” off her third album Visions, for a feast of freaky visuals) and her consistent ability to perfect the elusive genre of music that’s part space age, part '80s pop and results in tunes that fuse cult classic cool with a touch of nouveau.
Garnering comparisons to a modern-day Enya (but with a MacBook), Grimes will return to San Diego next Thursday, Oct. 11 at Porter’s Pub. Joined by dream-pop blogsphere favorites Elite Gymnastics and fellow Vancouver band and female duo MYTHS, Grimes will headline the night for a rare all-ages performance in the "Mythical Gymnastics Tour,” which features a trifecta of rising Canadian electro phenomenas not to be missed.
