Lindsey Stirling has been a mainstay now for about a decade. She first broke out in 2010 with her quarter-finalist finish in America’s Got Talent,1 then proceeded to prove each and every one of the judges wrong2 with her rapid ascent to popularity over the next four years with the releases of her first two albums: Lindsey Stirling (2012) and Shatter Me (2014).3
Stirling’s story is inspiring. The amount of disrespect she endured is both enraging and hilarious. Regardless of whether you’re into a fusion of Neoclassical and EDM which can lean towards either Pop or Rock, but frequently lacks vocals — you have to admit that it is impressive as fuck that somebody can dance while playing the violin without missing a beat on either. And her music is generally gorgeous and fun, and there’s no other act doing what she does. The closest is probably Apocalyptica, though they also have a couple of less-popular clone acts.
Duality is Stirling’s fifth full-length album, excluding her two Christmas albums. Her last (non-holiday) outing, 2019’s Artemis, felt like it was clearly a step above the rest, and I remember saying at the time that it was her best album to-date. The real improvement there was the increased depth of her songs — Artemis saw more clever and impressive use of electronic elements, and an enriched approach to song structure. And while I haven’t listened to that album straight-through in a long while, I definitely notice when one of those songs comes up in any of my playlists, as opposed to her earlier work.
Duality does carry a bit of that enhanced, deeper structure forward, but it is frequently for only a portion of the song, when it builds big toward the end. This leaves several songs feeling, on the whole, less impressive because they feel a bit more thin. Duality is also nearly ten minutes shorter than Artemis, though it’s still an acceptable 43 minutes, overall.
Stirling has also tried to get two featured artists on each album to add vocals. Artemis saw Amy Lee in one of these two slots, a name who immediately catches attention, and Blues Rock and Alt-Country artist Elle King.
Duality does not bring any features with the name recognition of an Amy Lee, but Indie/Electropop artist Royal and the Serpent manages to help push a lively, electrifying track on “Inner Gold”. Canadian Indie Pop band Walk Off the Earth collaborated on “Survive”, an interpolation of Gloria Gaynor’s legendary “I Will Survive”, and the Disco and Soul vibes are brought for that.
Overall, the album is good, but it feels like a half-step back from what Stirling gave us five years ago with Artemis. It’s definitely a good listen, and each of these will end up on various playlists of mine, but they also don’t quite scratch the itch.
Rating: Green.
It is wild to me that this show has been ongoing for nearly 20 years now, when it just seemed like an American Idol clone at its outset in 2006.
“You're not untalented, but you're not good enough, I don't think, to get away with flying through the air and trying to play the violin at the same time.” — Piers Morgan
"You need to be in a group. ... What you're doing is not enough to fill a theater in Vegas." —Sharon Osbourne
I also have to point out the names of the top four from that season: Michael Grimm, Jackie Evancho, Fighting Gravity, and Prince Poppycock. Never heard of them? Neither have I.
I may just get a tiny bit offended on Stirling’s behalf when people try to dismiss her. Just a touch.
While her debut album had no featured artists, Shatter Me pulled in Lzzy Hale, who had recently become a big name in the Hard Rock scene, for the title track — which subsequently got a lot of radio play. That song is still incredible.