Kill V. Maim

Album: Art Angels (2015)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Grimes immersed herself in gangster movies while penning the Art Angels album. She told Q magazine this song, "is written from the perspective of Al Pacino in The Godfather Pt 2. Except he's a vampire who can switch gender and travel through space."
  • Grimes told NME this is her favorite song on Art Angels. She explained: "It's my strongest work as a producer and it probably reflects my personality more than most of my music. It's the song I've always wanted to make, and I finally made it."
  • According to an interview on the Song Exploder podcast, Grimes' vocals for this song were inspired by comics villain Harley Quinn. "When you're making a record and you're never talking to anybody you just start [thinking], 'Oh, I'm gonna try to write in the voice of…something.' Like with [this song, it has] a Harley Quinn kind of vibe — like just sort of this Joker-y, scary demon chorus," she said

    "I hate singing. It's just not something I identify with at all," Grimes added. "I'm pretty much always pretending to be someone else when I'm singing."

    Harley Quinn is an adversary of the superhero Batman and commonly appears as the Joker's accomplice and lover.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Frankie Valli

Frankie ValliSong Writing

An interview with Frankie Valli, who talks about why his songs - both solo and with The Four Seasons - have endured, and reflects on his time as Rusty Millio on The Sopranos.

Rush: Album by Album - A Conversation With Martin Popoff

Rush: Album by Album - A Conversation With Martin PopoffSong Writing

A talk with Martin Popoff about his latest book on Rush and how he assessed the thousands of albums he reviewed.

The Girl in That Song

The Girl in That SongFact or Fiction

Billie Jean, Delilah, Sara, Laura and Sharona - do you know who the girls in the songs really are?

90s Metal

90s MetalFact or Fiction

Test your metal - Priest, Maiden, and Beavis and Butt-head show up in this one.

Women Who Rock

Women Who RockSong Writing

Evelyn McDonnell, editor of the book Women Who Rock, on why the Supremes are just as important as Bob Dylan.

Michael W. Smith

Michael W. SmithSongwriter Interviews

Smith breaks down some of his worship tracks as well as his mainstream hits, including "I Will Be Here For You" and "A Place In This World."