Edmonton-hailing electronic pop duo Purity Ring have returned with a stellar two-part single, "many lives" and "part ii." This is the first taste of new music from the pair since the 2023 song "Shines" — the result of an experimental collab with Toronto's own noise pop duo Black Dresses. The new tracks arrive self-released via Purity Ring's label, the Fellowship.
"In a lot of ways, 'many lives + part ii' is the epicenter of things we've been working on recently," said the Alberta duo of their new release. "It's like the sun we've been orbiting around for the past few years. It feels pitch black and impossible, but also has in it all the things we can make out of that. We're just really excited about making music at this point in our career and we felt a kind of vastness and possibility when making this."
"many lives" evokes a digital soundscape as expansive and immersive as the RPG-inspired music video accompanying the single. Designed and animated by Mike Sunday and Steve Teeps, the dreamlike video centres two characters standing at the threshold of an adventure — stand-ins for Purity Ring's own Corin Roddick and Megan James. Echoey keyboards and angelic choirs flow into "part ii," before classical guitar plays the track out and the whimsical dream comes to an end.
Listen to "many lives" and "part ii" and watch the video below.