At SXSW this year, I found myself wondering whether Banks was even a real person: Every time I tried to catch one of her shows, the venue was filled to capacity, with no hope of ingress. My curiosity had been piqued by a string of intriguing singles and remixes, each of which showcased a nifty juxtaposition of coolly expressive vocals and forbidding but beautiful electronics. But I left empty-handed, forced to file her name away for later exploration.
On Sept. 9, Banks will finally release her full-length debut album, Goddess — and if that feels like an interminable wait, at least we’re premiering its title track here. Produced by Lil Silva, the song functions as a perfect way to announce an album’s existence: It’s all woozy mystery, enshrouding its treat-her-right admonishments in an arrangement that often obscures her intentions. “Goddess” sounds like fodder for a thousand varyingly ominous remixes, making it an ideal introduction to an artist whose 2014 has been spent revealing herself slowly and deliberately. Now’s as good a time as any to start getting to know her.
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