Grace DeVine's New EP Is One Dreamy Hit After Another

While Taylor Swift established herself as queen of the mainstream with her Eras Tour, Denver has its own pop royalty in local artist Grace DeVine. The singer-songwriter has been tantalizing the city with her dreamy art pop and relatable lyrics since she released her first singles in 2020, and she'll serve up new music on Friday, September 15, with her third EP, Taste of Heaven, which she'll celebrate with a concert at Globe Hall that same night.

Even with her clear talent, DeVine is humble. Like most artists, she is her own greatest critic. "It's so weird, because I went to college and have a degree in music business," says DeVine, who graduated from the University of Colorado Denver last year. "And I've been writing songs since I was thirteen. But every now and then I feel like, 'Oh, my gosh, I have the best bandmates; I don't deserve this; they're gonna find out I'm a fraud.'"

Such struggles are addressed throughout Taste of Heaven, which ultimately shows that DeVine really has nothing to worry about when it comes to her musicianship. If anything, listeners should be the grateful ones: The EP flows seamlessly, treating fans to just over thirteen minutes of art-pop ballads whose lyricism, supplemented by DeVine's powerfully evocative vocals, adds emotional depth to catchy beats.

Each song seems to build on the previous one, and DeVine accurately describes Taste of Heaven as similar to a "chapter in a book." She decided to compile the EP from singles she had already released — "Mangoes," from August 2022, and "Just Around the Corner," from this past April — as well as a couple of new ones, "Mirage" and "Taste of Heaven," when she discovered the songs' similarities in both theme and sonic content. "The songs came together naturally," she says.

"The songs highlight ups and downs, specifically with what comes with being an artist, and 'Taste of Heaven' homes in on that," she continues. "Because as a whole, artists experience loss, we experience highs and lows, but they're just so extreme. I don't know if everyone experiences life like this, but everything feels like song material, everything feels dramatic. And so when things are going well and you're inspired, you're like, 'I'm on top of the world; I'm in heaven right now' — pun intended. And when things are going bad, when you're losing something or you're not inspired, or you have imposter syndrome, which is what 'Mirage' is about, it's just very dark."

Social media only reinforces imposter syndrome, she adds. And the fact that such platforms as Instagram or Facebook and TikTok are almost a necessary evil in promoting music, especially for up-and-coming artists just adds to anxieties. "Being an artist, a lot of us have this side we put on Instagram and portray publicly, but it's very different from who we are in our normal lives," DeVine explains. "And if other people don't have this vision and idea of us, then we have this idea of ourselves as artists, and it's just shiny and happy. But the imposter syndrome comes in because we know that that's not entirely true."

Amid light, earworm beats, "Mirage" reflects the intrusive thoughts that anxious artistic minds impose. "Wait ’til you see right through me," DeVine sings, later asking, "Do you see me as an oasis? A shiny vision you'll forever be chasing?"

It's DeVine's ethereal voice, both airy and powerful, that breathes life into these existential, soaring tracks. While some may think her signature buoyant soundscapes belie such complex emotions, DeVine has achieved the opposite effect: The juxtaposition of lyrical content and sound only adds to the meaning.

Taste of Heaven is a comprehensive archetype of DeVine's sound and message as a whole, showcasing her conceptual proclivities as well as her curatorial and lyrical talent, but the musician notes that her July single, "Gifted Child," is more of "a peek into the next era" of her style. She's since been working on new music aligned to that single, which she says is "a satirical song. I think it's funny. I hope people think it's funny, too. But what I'm working on right now is kind of just fun art-pop songs that are about different subjects that people talk about but there's not really a lot of songs written about." That includes writing songs as a character, such as a "Florida woman" that she and her friend came up with.

In the meantime, DeVine has her release show to look forward to with her bandmates, Forrest Raup (drums), Kyle Leoffler (bass) and Greg Laut (synth and guitar). She has a new instrument in her repertoire, a theremin, and is excited to share her new music and skills at Globe Hall, as well as her openers: Alana Mars, whom she met at CU Denver, and Sophie Gray, with whom she shares management.

"The Denver music scene is unique because everyone here is so friendly," DeVine says. "When I moved here from Miami, Florida, I had a bit of culture shock just because of how nice people were. I love that people show up to each other's shows. I've never really felt a competitive nature within the Denver music scene. I feel like we're all friends who want to see each other do well, because if someone from the Denver music scene is doing really well, then that's good for all of us."

And if her new EP signals anything, DeVine is bringing a lot of good.

Grace DeVine, 7 p.m. Friday, September 15, Globe Hall, 4483 Logan Street. Tickets are $15.