Marilyn Manson - The Pale Emperor [Review]

Marilyn Manson is a musician who has constantly pushed boundaries, upsetting a great deal of conservative people, especially those of Christian faith, for over two decades now. Within the last few years, Manson has released a series of albums that have not been as shocking, and he has also worn an image that is not quite as shocking, and some fans feel drastically disappointed, feeling like the self-proclaimed "god of fuck" has lost his touch. I am a fan who has been following Manson for over a decade now, and I think that he continues to demonstrate sheer talent as a musician and as the frontman of a rock/metal band. My belief is that he has matured as a person and as a musician (he is now forty-six years old, so he isn't getting any younger, nor are any of us), and that is something that I really admire and appreciate. With that being said, however, fans who have lost appreciation for him due to their belief that he has lost his shock value more than likely find themselves devastated by the musician's newest release The Pale Emperor because both lyrically and melodically, this album may just demonstrate the tamest Marilyn Manson that we have ever seen or heard.

Incorporated into the album, especially on tracks such as the opener "Killing Strangers" and the first single "Third Day of a Seven-Day Binge," are blues and classic rock influence. "Killing Strangers" features an introductory guitar riff reminding me of The Rolling Stones or the more modern The White Stripes. The song is used to promote the video game Dying Light and is also featured in the film John Wick, so it has received considerable promotion for a non-single track. The song seems to be a critical commentary on war, sarcastically saying that we consider it acceptable to kill people whom we don't know in order to protect loved ones. Although critical (at least in my opinion), it is a reality of humanity. 30 Seconds to Mars tackled the same philosophical issue on their song "Hurricane," when they asked, "Tell me, would you kill to save a life?" The second track is "Deep Six," released as the album's lead single and the b-side to the "Third Day of a Seven-Day Binge" single. "Deep Six" is one of my favorite songs on the album, both because of its sheer electric and metallic power and also because of its clever lyrics. "You want to know what Zeus said to Narcissus?" Manson asks. He responds to his own question with, "'You better watch yourself.'" Cleverness in lyrics doesn't get much better than that.

The third track on the album is undoubtedly my favorite song on the album. "Third Day of a Seven-Day Binge" sounds like a combination of nineties and 2000s alternative rock (as it reminds me very much of "This Is the Day" by The Cranberries) and blues. It is certainly the catchiest song on the album and even makes reference to a "booth," which could be a reference to a DJ's booth at a night club. The song seems to capture the desire to get out of a toxic relationship because of the depression and the energy draining that the lover is causing. The song is appropriately followed by "The Mephistopheles of Los Angeles," and I say that the two songs being paired together is appropriate because the song is another one that has hints of nineties and 2000s alternative rock, especially because of its guitar solo at the very beginning. The Pale Emperor makes several references to ancient folklore and mythology, such as its reference to Zeus and Narcissus on "Deep Six." Here, Manson references and identifies as Mephistopheles, a figure from German folklore who can be likened to Satan. Manson refers to the criticism that he receives as a risqué artist, and he once again pulls clever lyrics out of his hat, such as when he says that "Lazarus got no dirt on me." It is also probably no coincidence that the city of Los Angeles translates to the Angels. My hope is that this track will be a single, as it is one of my favorites.

The fifth track from The Pale Emperor is "Warship My Wreck," a song that reminds me a bit of the opening track from Eat Me, Drink Me, "If I Was Your Vampire." It is a song that has grown on me because I remember not thinking too much of it the first few times that I heard it. It seems to be about demanding control of your own misery. "Slave Only Dreams to Be King" is one song that harkens back to Manson's Mechanical Animals days, as it reminds me a bit of "Rock Is Dead." The song, in a sense, touches upon the idea of the abused becoming the abuser, the oppressed becoming the oppressor. If a slave, for example, were to become king, he would likely, in one sense or another, have slaves of his own, since monarchies are typically not democracies; a king is a type of ruler. "The Devil Beneath My Feet" is another song that has a bit of a bluesy sound to it (as does the following track, "Birds of Hell Awaiting," which has a bluesy beat). The song renounces any connection to the Christian God, saying, "I don't need a motherfucker looking down on me." The song potentially makes reference to "I Have to Look Up Just to See Hell" from The High End of Low and covers (more than likely metaphorically) having to finally pay dues for deals made in the past, deals that secured power. In the meantime, however, at least he had that power.

The aforementioned "Birds of Hell Awaiting" is a bit groovy and reminds me a bit of "The Dope Show" from Mechanical Animals. The song is an appropriate follow-up to "The Devil Beneath My Feet," as the song is a cautionary message against being overly ambitious. Desire and death (whether literally or figuratively) are sometimes one and the same. Manson has said before that The Pale Emperor is really intended to be an expression of his dues, which must now be collected, and several songs are expressive of this theme. The following track is the penultimate "Cupid Carries a Gun," and we heard a snippet of this song quite some time ago, as it serves as the theme song of the television series Salem. The song touches upon a southern rock sound, and thematically, the title seems to be relatively self-explanatory. The lyrics make several sexual references but seem to equate love and sex with danger. During the Electra Heart era, Marina and the Diamonds released a song titled "E.V.O.L," in which she declares that love can be evil (or evol, as love would be spelled backwards), and Manson does the same on this album when, in "Deep Six," he states that "LOVE is EVOL." This seems to be an idea that pops up fairly frequently on The Pale Emperor, and I would be willing to bet that "Cupid Carries a Gun" is personally about at least one of his many past lovers, such as Evan Rachel Wood.

The final track on the album is "Odds of Even." The song begins with a cacophony of indiscernible voices shouting, and the song itself reminds me a bit of "Into the Fire" from The High End of Low. "Odds of Even" is a perfect ending to the album because it is very reflective of his career. Death is inevitable, and even though literal death is quite possibly intended here, I believe it to be much more possible that Manson is referring to the death of his career as the Antichrist Superstar. Music critics and fans alike, as aforementioned, do not believe Manson as shocking as he once was. Part of that is due to the fact that he has definitely toned down his image and his sound within the last few years, but part of this can also be attributed to ageism. Even if he were to attempt to be as shocking and as head-turning as he was in his twenties and thirties, it is unlikely that most people would take him seriously, and no one can avoid this scrutiny, especially not a celebrity. The deluxe edition of the album includes three bonus tracks, but even though they have different names ("Day 3," "Fated, Faithful, Faded," and "Fall of the House of Death"), they are really just acoustic versions of "Third Day of a Seven-Day Binge," "The Mephistopheles of Los Angeles," and "Odds of Even" (respectively). I was a bit disappointed by that, but as a Manson fan, it is still worth owning the deluxe version. Some critics have surprisingly praised The Pale Emperor as being Manson's best album in a decade or so, and while I can't agree with that (Eat Me, Drink Me remains my favorite), it is a strong album that, although tame in comparison to albums such as Antichrist Superstar and Holy Wood, rightfully earns a respected place in the Manson discography.

Madonna - Rebel Heart [Review]

Shortly after we officially got six tracks from the album ("Living for Love," "Devil Pray," "Ghosttown," "Unapologetic Bitch," "Illuminati," and "Bitch I'm Madonna"), I wrote a review of that release, considering it, I suppose, as a sampler EP. For this full review, then, I will avoid repetition by starting with the seventh track, "Hold Tight." I will do my absolute best to review the album objectively and not compare each and every song to its demo version(s), but in some cases, that will be difficult to do. Regardless of whether or not we are comfortable discussing it, demo versions did unfortunately leak, and the diehards listened. How could we not? Some of them are exceedingly better than the final album versions (in my opinion), which makes it a bit difficult to review the album objectively. "Hold Tight" is an example of a song that I think was weakened when it made its way to the final product. The song kicks off sounding like it could potentially be a song from the early part of her career but quickly becomes closer to 2015. The song is somewhat similar thematically to "Ghosttown" in that it is about love conquering chaos. The problem with this version is that it is drastically tranquilized and loses its energy and danceability. The eighth track on the album "Joan of Arc" is a very confessional track displaying a very vulnerable, broken Madonna. Lyrically, the song is about not really being as strong as you seem or pretend to be, about actually being quite vulnerable and sensitive. Madonna admits to how negative press, negative rumors, etc. actually causes damage. This is another song that I wish had not been altered as much as it was. The demo version is strictly acoustic and sounds almost like an American Life outtake. The final version adds a poppy beat that sucks the emotional power out of the song.

"Iconic" is one of my favorite tracks from Rebel Heart. I remember reading that Madonna would be pushing limits and boundaries on the new record, and I think that this song is a perfect example of how she did just that. The song does not sound like a song that would normally be on a Madonna record; it sounds like a really intense remix, and I don't think that the song shows an interest in charting. The song is chaotic and noisy in a really epic way, and it has a dark, industrial sound to it. The song features a spoken intro by Mike Tyson and a rap verse by Chance the Rapper, the latter of which I could do without, but overall, as I said, this song is definitely one of Rebel Heart's highlights. "HeartBreakCity" is a soft piano ballad that expresses anger toward an ex-lover for making promises that he eventually broke, breaking her heart in the process. The song has an interesting marching beat added to it, which I love; it adds a really emotionally compelling element to it. The eleventh track is titled "Body Shop" and is a track that seems to make me a black sheep of the Madonna family. Many reviewers highly praise this track, citing it as a highlight, but this is a weak spot on the album in my opinion, with weak lyrics of car metaphors acting as sexual innuendo and a terribly simple melody. The folky sounding song admittedly makes interesting use of what sounds like it might be a ukulele, but overall, the song really doesn't do much for me.

"Holy Water" was co-written with Natalia Kills, which I think is quite obvious. It follows Natalia's typical style and reminds me of her track "Controversy." The song's hook "Bitch, get off my pole" reminds me considerably of the line "Hey, get off my cloud" from Gwen Stefani's new track "Spark the Fire," although that is mere coincidence. The song is groovy and industrial and samples Madonna's classic hit "Vogue." Thematically, the song accomplishes little, as it is merely about having cunnilingus performed on her, with the rhetorical question (asked to assure her lover that he is not committing a sin), "Don't it taste like holy water?" By the end of the song, I find myself wishing that he would answer already so that she would stop asking. "Inside Out" is one of my favorites from the album, but this is another one that I cannot refrain from comparing to the demo version because I find the demo version to be far superior. The demo version is dark and industrial with a beat begging to be danced to; the dark danceable nature of the track reminds me a bit of Madonna's 2005 Confessions on a Dance Floor album. Had the demo version been used, "Inside Out" would certainly be another example of a boundary-pushing track on the album, but the album version is considerably quieted down and made a bit more generic sounding. I do like both versions but prefer the demo version. Regardless of which version is being discussed, however, the song has a sweet message to it, as it suggests that love should be about being vulnerable to each other, confiding in each other, and not keeping secrets from each other. "You're beautiful when you're broken down" is arguably the most telling lyric of the song.

"Wash All Over Me" closes the standard version of the album, and while I do believe that it makes an excellent conclusion, both lyrically ("If this is the end, then let it come...") and melodically, it is nearly blasphemous that the title track is left over as an extra on the supplemental editions. "Wash All Over Me" is a track that has multiple versions, as in addition to the final album version, there are four demo versions. This is a case, however, of actually preferring the album version over all others. "Wash All Over Me" is a beautiful song that (perhaps unintentionally) samples a few lyrics from the unreleased track "Liquid Love," and it is about coming to terms with your surroundings and accepting things the way that they are rather than try to perfect everything. It is atmospheric and features piano, another marching beat, and a very light, ambient electric guitar. It is a wonderful song and is one of my favorites, but the deluxe edition continues with what is certainly my least favorite song on the album - "Best Night." "Best Night" starts on a very interesting note - electronically altered chanting voices over a fluctuating electronic sound, but the song continues with a very generic beat and simple lyrics about a one night stand. Over a rather annoying buzzing accompaniment, the song's chorus monotonously and repetitively says, "I'll make this the best night of your life." That's quite honestly the most that I can reasonably say about this track; it is, in my opinion, one of the weakest tracks that Madonna has ever released throughout her career, but perhaps the song's one highlight is the break near the end of the song when Madonna uses a spoken word verse deeply reminiscent of her "Justify My Love" 1990 hit.

I did not like "Veni Vidi Vici" (Latin for "I came, I saw, I conquered," which is the song's main hook) at first, but it grew on me a bit. I honestly still consider it to be one of the weaker tracks on Rebel Heart, though, especially since it is such a Madonna-centric song that should not feature a guest artist addressing his own biography. This song would be so much stronger without Nas's unnecessary vocals. What is so great about this song, though, is that it is a reflection on Madonna's career, using lyrics that reference some of Madonna's hits over the years (including "Holiday," "Into the Groove," "Express Yourself," "Like a Virgin," "Borderline," "Vogue," "Justify My Love," "Like a Prayer," "Open Your Heart," "The Power of Good-Bye," "Ray of Light," and "Music"). It is a decent pop track but does not need Nas's rap; his rap is specific to his career and doesn't belong on her album. The seventeenth track is titled "S.E.X." and is about precisely what the title suggests - sex. The song is basically a Sex 101 class directed toward a lover, fearlessly referencing many sex elements and acts such as handcuffs, blindfolds, leather mask, perfume, underwear, fishnets, satin sheets, candle light, leather belt, golden shower, latex thong, etc. I find the reference to golden showers to be unnecessarily bawdy, but overall, I like the song, which has a hip-hop beat and haunting piano chords. 

The eighteenth track is "Messiah" and is definitely a highlight. It is a track that should have been included on the standard edition of the album. The song is piano-driven (which I love) and also features several Pagan references (which I also love). The Pagan references are to the sun god and the moon goddess and to casting a spell to help someone realize that he loves you. It is quite possible that "cast a spell" is meant to be taken figuratively, not literally, but I truly believe that Madonna was trying to capture a Pagan theme here, especially in conjunction with the reference to the sun god and the mood goddess. Like "Wash All Over Me," the song sounds like it could be a good conclusion to the album, but the song ends with the sound of a heartbeat, leading in to the title track. This is another one that I hate having to compare to a demo version, but it most certainly cannot be avoided in this case because the song was destroyed. The first demo of the song that leaked was Madonna at her absolute best, a powerful, feel good pop/rock track that made Madonna more human than she had possibly ever been. What we get on the album is stripped of its epic power, as it is acoustic and backed with a painfully generic beat that I am pretty sure was supplied with a drum machine. Gone are the beautiful "rebel heart" chants found in the original demo, and this version is so weak in comparison. It makes me sad when I listen to it, but at least the far superior version is available to us. "Rebel Heart" should be included on the standard edition of the album, especially since it is the title track, but it is not. I am not sure what shaped that decision.

"Rebel Heart" closes the deluxe version of the album, but Madonna fans were treated to an even more enhanced version of the album, the super deluxe version of the album, which includes four bonus tracks and two remixes of "Living for Love." The physical edition features a second disc with these six tracks included. The disc opens with "Beautiful Scars," a very lighthearted, poppy song pleading with a lover to accept her for who she is, flaws and all. It is a really decent pop song, but I don't mind it having been scrapped from the standard edition and the deluxe edition. Next is "Borrowed Time," which is another song that was unfortunately ruined. The first demo version that we heard of this song was absolutely epic in its electronic power, and the electronic break found in the original demo version is stripped from the album version. Lyrically, the strength of the song still stands, as it is a song about avoiding hatred, violence, prejudice, and so forth, because all of us are going to die someday and are living on borrowed time; we should therefore make the best of the time that we have. Musically, however, it is essentially ruined. Following that is "Addicted," quite possibly my all-time favorite song from this era. The song sounds like a Confessions song, sounding deeply reminiscent to me of "Hung Up." The song is full of energy and is one of my favorite songs to which to dance. Lyrically, the song covers not being able to give up on someone even though he continually hurts you. The "Living for Love" remixes notwithstanding, the super deluxe version of the album closes with "Graffiti Heart," a summery Owl City-esque song comparing love to art. It fits with the Rebel Heart theme well and consequently probably should have been included on more than just the super deluxe version.

Other tracks that are technically included on the album are "Autotune Baby" and "Queen." "Autotune Baby" is included on some editions of the album, but I hardly feel slighted by the fact that the United States edition excludes "Autotune Baby" because it is a very weak track in my opinion. The song opens with the sound of a baby crying and the sound of a rattle; the baby's cries soon become sing-songy as they are autotuned (on par, of course, with the song's title). The autotuned cries of the baby serve as a primary factor of the song during the verses (which I find to be quite annoying) whereas the accompaniment of the chorus sounds almost like a sixties girl group pop song. Thematically, the song captures an adult's desire to be infantilized by a lover, something that I actually believe to be quite common; some of us enjoy feeling safe and secure with another human being, similar to how a baby feels safe with its parent(s). "Queen" is a wonderfully beautiful song that was included in a twenty-five track leak of the super deluxe leak of the album (which included "Autotune Baby" and "Queen" in place of the two "Living for Love" remixes), but I don't think that "Queen" ended up making any cut of the album, which is unfortunate because it is one of my favorites. It sounds like the perfect conclusion to the album and really should have been the closing track to Rebel Heart.

Several songs on Rebel Heart had me worried that the album was Madonna's farewell piece. Songs such as the title track, "Wash All Over Me," "Veni Vidi Vici," and "Queen" sounded very much like farewell songs. The title track is a deeply confessional track that may, in fact, be the most confessional track that she has ever released, and it looks back on her life, proud of all that she has achieved even though she had to make mistakes along the way. There has been no announcement, however, of the album being her final album, nor has there been any announcement that the Rebel Heart Tour (which I will be attending in Brooklyn in September) will be her final tour, so I don't think that rebel hearts have anything to fear as far as that is concerned. Rebel Heart is quite eclectic; unlike most of Madonna's albums, it doesn't have a centralized sound and is all over the place musically. To some people, the album comes off as convoluted and messy, and to some extent, I can agree with that. I just wish that some of the weaker songs such as "Best Night" had been switched out with some of the strong songs such as "Never Let You Go" (another song that sounds like a Confessions outtake), "Alone with You," "Trust No Bitch," and "Heaven." I also wish that the title of the album had been accentuated more with some of the thematically appropriate songs like "Freedom" and "God Is Love," as opposed to the flux of sexual songs that we get. (See my edition of the album here, which I consider to be far superior.) All in all, however, Rebel Heart is a huge improvement over 2012's MDNA and is full of fun energy and boundary-pushing sounds that possibly make the album one of Madonna's best. If only some of the better versions had been chosen over the ones that were chosen, I would be certain of that.

Björk - Vulnicura [Review]

Björk is a musician to whom I once paid little attention, but I am so glad that I gave her the chance that she rightfully deserved when I found myself attracted to the beauty of the Biophilia album cover and gave it a listen (sometimes, I guess that you can judge something by its cover). I immediately fell in love with the sheer beauty of songs like "Moon" and "Cosmogony" and came to love the energy of "Mutual Core." The rest of her discography didn't disappoint, either, as countless songs put me in a trance and practically took me to another world full of beautiful waterfalls and pastoral fields full of fairies and unicorns. Vulnicura is quite different than Biophilia in that it lacks the high-end production and variety of instruments and replaces it with more simplicity - mainly strings. Vulnicura is quite possibly the most personal project that Björk has ever delivered, as the entire album chronicles the breakup with her longtime partner (American artist Matthew Barney). The album title itself means "cure for wounds," and it tells the story of a woman with a broken heart who eventually heals. Every "you" on the album is replaceable with her partner, and the album, as it should, sounds raw and painfully tragic. Especially through the heart-wrenching lyrics, one can hear a person in real pain, and Björk has even choked up a few times in interviews when she begins to touch upon the subject matter.

"Stonemilker" is one of my favorites from the album, opening the album with beautiful but very morose strings that sound almost like they are weeping. Björk's first words on the album are "a juxtapositioning fate, find our mutual coordinate." It is clear that the song is set before the breakup, as  the lyrics suggest that even though she is fearful that it is not possible (hence the title of the song, as a stone cannot be milked), she longs for her and her lover to feel the same way about each other and be honest with each other, hence her demand, "Show me emotional respect." I just can't get over the strings on this song; the song is so tragically beautiful and is one of the most beautiful songs that Björk has ever released. The second track on the album is "Lionsong" (which features an interest music video that is in keeping with the cover art). The beginning of the song features Björk's vocals in multiple layers, reminding me very much of her 2004 album Medúlla, which is an album that features vocals at the forefront of the production, so much so that the album is nearly entirely a cappella. "Lionsong" reminds me of that production style, especially because of its introduction, and the song seems almost like the bargaining stage of the grieving process: "Maybe, he will come out of this loving me."

The third track is titled "History of Touches" and is one of the most emotional tracks on the record. The song opens with synths, making it sound almost like a ballad from the eighties. The lyrics are what makes the song one of the most emotional, such as "I wake you up in night feeling this is our last time together" and "every single fuck we had together is in a wondrous time lapse..." While most of the tracks on Vulnicura have rather long running times (with the longest coming in at 10:09), "History of Touches" is the shortest with a running time of only three minutes. The song is then followed by the longest track on the record, "Black Lake." "Black Lake" is probably the saddest song on the album, relying very heavily on mournfully wining strings and Björk's vulnerable and weeping vocals. Most of the song is very quiet, but it does pick up the noise a bit as it progresses and the strings get louder and more intense. The song is also joined by a light, almost tribal sounding beat. Standout lyrics on the song are Björk asking the painful question "Did I love you too much?" and also her assertive, almost angry statement that "family was always our sacred mutual mission, which you abandoned." These types of lyrics are brutally honest and are why I say that Vulnicura is quite possibly the barest that Björk has ever been as a musician.

"Family" is the fifth track on the album and is, in my opinion, one of the few tracks on the album that are a bit weaker. The track starts on a very dark, eerie string note quickly followed by bulleted beats and dissonant ambience that reminds me of the introduction to "Cosmogony" from Biophilia. The song is a good follow-up to "Black Lake" because it follows up on some of what "Black Lake" has to say about family. She points out that she needs to grieve because "there is the mother and the child; then, there is the father and the child but no man and a woman, no triangle of love." On this track, Björk is not just mourning the loss of her significant other but the death of her titular family. The sixth track is titled "Notget" and is one of the first tracks that caught my attention on the album, mainly because of its interesting circusy instrumental. Some of my favorite's lyrics from the album are in this song: "If I regret us, I'm denying my soul to grow. Don't remove my pain; it is my chance to heal." I love this song because of its production and its strong lyrics and melody. Björk creatively (because creative is what she does best) makes up the word notget to stand in for that which has happened to her. She states, "I will not forget this notget." In other words, because she is no longer loved, she no longer gets what she wants and needs out of life, something that she will carry with her for the rest of her life.

"Atom Dance" is where Vulnicura's story starts to turn towards healing. Beautifully plucked strings lead into swirling strings that, in combination, call for some sort of Pagan dance. Lyrics such as "Let this ugly wound breathe" and "Most hearts fear their own home" show a broken heart finally seeking to be healed. The song features guest vocals by Antony Hegarty, frontman of the band Antony and the Johnsons, who has collaborated with Björk twice in the past on her Volta album. The eighth track is "Mouth Mantra," a song that instrumentally sounds like a dark classical piece with a light modern beat. Lyrically, the song speaks of pain silencing you and taking away your voice but finally taking it back. I don't know for sure, but I wonder if the song hints at Björk feeling reluctant to document something so painful and personal on this record because I would imagine that in a lot of ways, her music is her voice. Vulnicura closes with "Quicksand," another shorter song in comparison to most of the album's songs. The song is one of the more energetic tracks on the record, more beat-driven than most of the other tracks. It doesn't, to me, sound like a proper conclusion to the album. When I get to the end of the song, my reaction tends to be somewhere along the lines of, "Where's the rest of the album?" However, the song does reference the earlier track "Black Lake" and also speaks of reaching the healing stage: "Hackle this darkness up to the light..." "When I'm broken, I am whole, and when I'm whole, I'm broken" is perhaps my favorite line from the song.

Vulnicura is, overall, one of Björk's best albums to date, mainly because of how real and emotionally raw that it is. If you are a Björk fan, then this is one that you might find yourself listening to on repeat. In my case, I find myself addicted to the album not only because of how good that it is objectively but also because its subject matter is quite close to my heart, and the album has really been a crutch for me on a personal level. It could quite possibly be considered a concept album because from start to finish, it tells a story, a very tragic but human story of what leads up to a broken heart and then the aftermath of it, the eventual healing process. The album's message makes it clear that as a person, Björk will never again be the same because of all that she has lost but that she has been able to and will continue to find ways of moving forward and living with her pain. Once a brokenhearted listener gets to the end of the album, one concept stands out above all else - hope. As Björk has said herself, "...hopefully the songs could be a crutch to others and prove how biological this process is: the wound and the healing of the wound. Psychologically and physically. It has a stubborn clock attached to it." She is absolutely right, and I know that for me personally, the album has proven a lot to me, and it has really helped me heal and evolve. Björk is a truly special musician to me.

MARINA - FROOT [Review]

After about three years, pop/rock sensation Marina and the Diamonds (who is not a band), one of my absolute favorite musicians, returns with her third studio album, FROOT. Diamandis is well-known for creating concept albums. The sophomore album, Electra Heart, was written primarily from the perspective of a fictional female celebrity, Electra Heart, who embodied four different female archetypes - the Homewrecker, the Primadonna, the Teen Idle, and the Housewife (or the Su-Barbie-A). Although not quite as much of a concept album, the début, The Family Jewels, had central themes of self-loathing, depression, ambition, and so forth. The third record, FROOT, tries to embody freshness (like that of fruit, or the intentional misspelling, froot) and becoming a new person while reflecting on past mistakes. It stands much closer to the first album thematically and conceptually than it does to Electra Heart, as it is a lot less radio-friendly than the electropop sounds of Electra Heart and a lot more indie sounding, but Diamandis, as usual, combines hauntingly emotional vocals with catchy hooks and clever, tongue-in-cheek lyrics to show that she is not just your average pop star. Like froot, she is fresh.

FROOT already seems to break some conventions by opening with the song "Happy," a slow, beautiful, and confessional ballad that sounds much more like a conclusion than it does an opening. Lyrically, the song touches upon finding happiness within yourself. What's cool is that the first track of the first album ("Are You Satisfied?") features the lyric "...it's my problem that I never am happy..." It could be coincidental but is interesting because I think that Marina's music really shows how she develops as a person, perhaps even more so than any other musician of whom I know.

The second track is the title track and is the first song that was premiered from the album. Marina did a really cool campaign for the album called Froot of the Month. Starting in November, she released one song per month. The plan had been to do that for six months until the album's release in April, but she only ended up releasing five Froots of the Month ("FROOT" "Happy," "Immortal," "I'm a Ruin," and "Forget") because the album was released about three weeks early due to it leaking. It is not clear as to whether or not there will be a sixth music video next month in keeping with the pattern. "FROOT" is groovy and funky, sounding reminiscent of late '70s disco. It is one of the strongest songs on the album melodically and, to me, is about saving your virginity for someone special.

"I'm a Ruin" is the third track and is also my favorite music video so far (it undoubtedly takes inspiration from Madonna's "Frozen" music video). The song is a mid-tempo pop/rock song about wrestling with the decision to end a relationship due to feeling like you're only going to destroy the person if you don't. It, in a way, returns to Marina's tendency to write about self-loathing, believing yourself to be terrible to someone about whom you care. Marina's swaying vocals add so much power to the song, a power ballad in its own right.

"Blue" is definitely the closest that the album gets to Electra Heart, as it sounds a bit like an outtake from it. Marina even said herself that it is one of the poppiest-sounding tracks on the album. "This is one of the most pop-sounding tracks on the record. It's quite electronic." The hook "gimme love, gimme dreams, gimme a good self-esteem" is sang in an innocent, lilting voice reminding me of Electra Heart songs such as "Primadonna." It is an upbeat, poppy song about wanting contact with someone with whom she has broken up because she doesn't want to be alone or, as the title of the song indicates, blue. I think that "Blue" would be great as a single. The sticker on the CD that I have even mentions it.

The fifth FROOT track is "Forget," which is the most recent Froot of the Month. "Forget" is powerful and rich, with a catchy melody screaming to be sang along to. Although the song is upbeat and positive, it is laden with emotion, and parts of it mind remind one of the downtempo "Teen Idle" from Electra Heart. Lyrics such as "I'm gonna leave the past behind. I've had enough; I'm breaking free." demonstrate how empowering that the song is, as it is about learning to let go of your difficult history and move forward. "Gold" is a track that, for some reason, I have seen a lot of fans say that they don't much like. It is easily one of my favorites from the album; it is so beautiful and sort of has an '80s synth sound to it. The lyrics convey moving on from the Primadonna girl and caring about non-materialistic aspects of life.

"Can't Pin Me Down" is one of the few songs on the album that could easily confuse non-fans or casual fans who don't know better and make them think that Marina and the Diamonds is a band. The song sounds like an indie rock track that you might hear in an Apple or Google commercial, reminding me quite a bit of Foster the People. Lyrically, the song is a response to many of the reviews that were written about Electra Heart, which compared Marina to popular artists such as Lady Gaga and Katy Perry. On this track, Marina is essentially saying, "I may have made a radio-friendly electropop record, but you don't know me, so don't pigeon-hold me."

The eighth track is titled "Solitaire." I believe this song to be similar thematically to "Can't Pin Me Down" (which is one reason why I like that they are back to back on the album). "Solitaire" is similar to "Happy" in that it is very stripped down. There isn't a lot of production like other tracks on the album like "Blue" and "Savages." "Solitaire" is also arguably the darkest-sounding song on the record, with a broody melody and broody lyrics such as "I see people and cars covered in gold, and I'm happy to be on my own." I think that the song is about wanting to stand apart and be an anomaly in the music business rather than be compared to popular artists such as Katy Perry, as evidenced by lyrics such as "I don't want to be compared, yeah, with that cheap shimmer and glitter" and "...and all the other jewels around me, they astounded me at first." Perhaps the most expressive and assertive lyric of the song is the following: "...and all the fakes, they called me cursed, but I'm not cursed."

The next track on FROOT is titled "Better than That" is definitely the most spiteful track on the album, as admitted by Marina herself. This is another one like "Can't Pin Me Down" in that it sounds a bit indie rockish and makes Marina sound more like a band than a solo artist, a sound that Marina has said that she was actually trying to create. Many fans have strongly speculated that the song is about Marina's friendship with fellow recording artist Ellie Goulding falling apart due to Ellie's behavior. This is actually strongly evidenced by the fact that a lyric, "...like all the boys before..." is a lyric repeated several times in Ellie Goulding's song "Under the Sheets." Another line taken from Ellie is: "I guess it's just what humans do," which is similar to "I guess we thought that's just what humans do" from Ellie's "Anything Could Happen" hit.

The tenth track is titled "Weeds" and is the track that actually took the longest to grow on me. Even now, even though I appreciate the song a lot more than I did when I first heard it, it's probably my least favorite song on the album, and that is probably because the message of the song, which is slow and wistful, hits close to home for me (which sometimes works for me and sometimes doesn't). The song is essentially an apology to a current lover for not being over a past lover, for still wanting to be with the person from your past. "Savages" (as many fans seem to agree) may just be my favorite song from the album. This is another rocky-sounding one, and it is ridiculously catchy. It is the one track on the album that, to me, sounds the most like the first album The Family Jewels, and thematically, it is about human nature and about how we all have a touch of evil and savagery within us, which is why murder, rape, etc. happen on a daily basis. It's dark, but you fall in love with it quickly.

The final track on the album is "Immortal," and this song is absolutely beautiful and precious. It is ironic, though, because it is preceded by "Savages," which is basically about the dark side of human nature, while "Immortal," in a lot of ways, displays what sets us apart from other species - our ability to make and leave behind memories that keep us alive. Lyrics that I would consider to be highlights are "that's what we do it for, to reserve a place; it's just another part of the human race," "there'll be just one survivor - the memory that I was yours, and you were mine," and "when you love somebody, they'll always leave too soon..." I think that the song also hints at Marina wanting her music to make her immortal, as evidenced by the lyrics "I wanna mean something to somebody else, feel a significance in the real world. It's not enough to live out a lucky life..." It's a beautiful song about how even though, in the end, we all die, there are ways that we can leave our marks on the world.

FROOT is apparently leaving its mark even in the United States and is already on its way to becoming Marina's most financially successful work so far, which is crucially important considering the fact that it is not quite as radio-friendly and as pop-sounding as Electra Heart is. When "How to Be a Heartbreaker" premiered in the U.S., I thought for sure that she would soon explode here, but the closest that she really got to that happening was the track being covered on the television series Glee. FROOT is quite eclectic while still maintaining composure and is definitely something fresh and original. By Marina's own admission, you may need to spend a little bit more time with it than you did Electra Heart, but once you do, it's truly something special. I will always look forward to what idea Marina has up her sleeve next.