Portland – When a goddess descends from the heavens, the men of Earth tremble. She could rain fire from the skies and collide vast oceans at a whim; and yet, her true menace lies in her intoxicating allure, the way she builds a knowing and sensual trust before crushing everything you love. She is a wild, spirited force with a mind for dangerous games, and you’re a wisp of smoke before you even know she’s targeted you. Therein lies the theatrical persona of one Jillian Rose Banks, a devilishly perplexing singer-songwriter from Los Angeles. She’s spent half of her career making sure the world knows she’s dangerous. After delving into her debut record, aptly titled Goddess, I’d say there’s no doubting that.

Banks began honing her skills in the dark art of R&B at the young age of 15, and for years idled quietly in the shadows of obscurity. That is, until last year: Banks tore through the nigh-impenetrable career barrier that is Soundcloud based on sheer resolve and word-of-mouth alone. She’s released a string of hot-blooded singles ever since, often allowing barely a month to pass before the next Banks track was hot in your inbox. Two successful EPs earned her accolades from Spotify and fuse.tv, as well as a dedicated following for her live shows.

Now 26, the result of such steadfast market precision for this indie artist has paid off in the form of Goddess, a hefty 14-track record (on Harvest) that combines her previously released EP material with a vibrant mix of new tracks. Banks’ fragile, bitter attitude and precise lyricism are carried by a voice that is delicately beautiful at one moment, and fiercely predatory the next. The album is an important entry in a powerful new movement occurring in pop music today: that of the smart girl, who is cunning and bitter in her mysterious ways.

My first experience with Goddess was on a midnight walk through Portland’s Waterfront Park. In retrospect, it was the perfect time to delve into this record’s murky depths. Each song is a nocturnal affair, deadly and sexy and obscured by darkness. “Drowning” is a confrontation of an irresolvable nature, doomed to end in a bleak watery demise. Banks admits to her own confusing disposition in “Begging For Thread” before embracing the sexy nature of such instability: “You should have known, secretly I think you knew.” If she were any more self-destructive she’d be a lady Morrissey. Still, Banks’ charm comes from that irresolute and often rash decision-making that leaves her to ponder what could have been.

What makes Goddess such a force of nature is its twisted sense of comfort. Each layered synth is tempered and humorless, often evoking the circular feeling of spinning freely with reckless abandon. The shadows creep in subtly in waves, but it’s not all treacherous: “Warm Water” is like a steamy hot spring under a full moon, swirling as amorphous synths and mellow clicks lull you into a hazy dream. The best moments on Goddess are those times when you become a distant visitor to Banks’ misfortunes, those too raw and personal that you’d dare not get any closer to them.

For fans of intelligent pop like Lorde and Sky Ferreira, you can’t go wrong with Banks. She is otherworldly at times, drifting in and out of songs like a specter who’s lost its way to the other side. Her words are biting at times, while at others they are purely seductive tools of menace. She is a force to be reckoned with, and ensures that all are hypnotized by her magnetic demeanor. Goddess. Here’s she’s spread her divine wings and shown the world what that ancient word truly means.

Banks is currently touring North America, with some European and UK dates in November.