MIA

if she'd gone lighter on the rhetorical grandstanding, the album's musical provocations might have been granted some leeway. the whole thing is so aggressively and intentionally challopsy, both intellectually and artistically, that a backlash reaction seems inevitable.

Great rhetorical stance there ^ xpost

Most of my friends think the album is as good or better than her previous stuff.

not yet sure what i think on that level. i like it, but i don't love it. probably put it somewhere between kala and arular.

it's a good record to mess with, sequencing-wise. can be made to work a bunch of different ways.

now that my expectations have been dashed i went back and listened again, and i kind of felt bad for the album, in the sense of "aw, it's not the worst thing in the world." there are things to enjoy but i'd still put it way behind arular and kala (or at least the half of kala that's amazing).

think that's the sense in which i've been approaching it, not so much due to collective hate, but cuz i've always been particularly fond of ambitious albums that don't quite work. they're puzzles of a sort, and they offer more room for play than those that seem perfect as is.

It's my favorite of her albums to date, but that's setting the bar really, really low. I have deliberately ignored the lyrics (and will continue to do so), because I think she's an idiot, and paying attention to what she said would probably have spoiled my enjoyment of the parts I wound up liking.

feels like an album out of time. not sure that it's a winter record, as a. bruneau suggested, but it would have played better during the adrian sherwood era (in my mind, between the pop group at one end and late primal scream at the other).

did someone mention big stick a while back?

current tracklist, 43 min, pretty solid imo:

steppin up
xxxo
believer
illygirl
born free
it takes a muscle
it iz what it iz
story to be told
tekquilla
meds & feds
space
all caps

(RATM retro...)

listening for the first time now. not nearly as bad as some are making out. 4.4 out of 10? what the fuck? that reviewers acting like shes gone from pull up the people to the cheeky girls. it does have a much more serious/belligerent tone to it, her vocals especially, and its a hell of a lot harder, more metallic and all round industrial-aggressive than before, but theres still a lot of interesting ideas here, i dont mind too much that shes not being quite as playful as before (though songs like xxoo make up for that). obv that makes it harder to swallow some of her less accurate lyrics, but ive never really taken her that seriously on that front before anyway - shes always been like a slightly more politicised missy elliot as a lyricist. not sure if shes just angrier at the moment or if shes trying to do her 'serious' album.

People are really overstating the "stupidity" of MIA's lyrics - I hear worse every day. Sure, Lovalot is an incoherent mess (it makes more sense when you learn it's from the POV of a teenage suicide bomber but still) but there's an interesting thread of self-examination here: "I'm gonna say something even if you think it's nothing" (It Iz What It Iz), "I don't wanna live for tomorrow/I'll push my luck today" (Born Free), "All I ever wanted was my story to be told" (Story to Be Told), "I could be a genius, I could be a cheat/It's a fine line and I'm fucking with it" (Believer), "I just give a damn" (Meds and Feds). She's not claiming any great authority on geopolitics but fessing up to a certain gobby recklessness. And there are some nice, quotable couplets: "Yeah I hate it when people ask me hello girl whats up?/ I say age tax cost of living yeah boy aint that enough?" (Tell Me Why) and "I need to spend some time with you/There's nothing new on the news" (Space). You might not want to put any of these lyrics on a T-shirt but they're not as moronic as people seem to be saying.

ha I want to talk about inconsistency in lyrical analysis between M.I.A. and other artists but there's no way to do it without looking like I am specifically picking on Lex

Her failing to me is one of expectations. It's not that her lyrics are poor or incoherent, it just seems like she can do ... better. Back when PE name-dropped Louis F. or Minutemen talked about U.S. meddling in Central American, those subjects took more than a mere 5 second google search to explore. Hence: introduction. But given how easy it is to research Sri Lanken politics (for example), I wish MIA would use her position of purported knowledge and experience to give forceful direction to said google searches rather than be so vague and/or blithe.

or, in other words, she is the ambassador to all things Sri Lankan and ergo must be a reliable narrator for all of the curious white people

plus theyre usually buried reasonably deep in her lyrics alongside lines which are actually just fine. as is often usual in yknow, rap music. not saying she shouldnt be called out for it, but you win some, you lose some. i think the tone of her voice is what people are zooming in on the most. almost like a how dare she try and take herself seriously (not that i necessarly like that kind of austerity, but she just sounds more weary to me than haughty/self important on here). kind of a 'stay in your little place ok? we prefer you there' move.

im putting the general bad press this is getting down to the unfortunate nature of internet collectivism. and people who dont seem to really pay attention to lyrics suddenly jumping on the bandwagon.

"But given how easy it is to research Sri Lanken politics (for example), I wish MIA would use her position of purported knowledge and experience to give forceful direction to said google searches rather than be so vague and/or blithe."

what do you want? hyperlinks? google it yourself. shes not the be and end all of south asian politics. shes just there to make you aware of whats going on. shes never said shes the bible on whats going on.

PE should be a lesson in how artists - esp rappers - being more random (up to a point) in their lyrical associations is often better than them getting all dogmatic and ultra 'focused'.

sorry, first parag was in response to dorians last post.

x-post Huh? No. But she could be, if she wanted to.

xpost to Josh. That's a criticism I can live with. What I'm saying by quoting those lyrics in my previous point is that I like the fact she's so aware that she can't articulate these points as well as she'd like to - that becomes part of her narrative. Lovalot has the same intent as Steve Earle's John Walker's Blues but because she does it in this condensed, confusingly inflammatory way none of this comes across.

She doesn't have to be the bible, but it's such a big part of who she is as an artist that I wish she'd either step up or step back.

xpost to Titchy. There's no consistency to the attacks on her at all - she's not being accorded the same leeway as another political songwriter OR another rapper. People are applying absurdly high standards that they don't apply to anyone else. If you want really idiotic political lyrics go to XTRMNTR (which I still love anyway).

Well, she is/has been a little more strident than most. And she does seem to like the attention. And she does seem to *react* to the attention. So it's not just dumb or incoherent lyrics, it's those combined with a degree of "look at me." Lady Gaga is full of shit, too, but she's not talking suicide bombers and insurrection. Yet.

I guess I'd like the detractors to quote some examples of her allegedly terribly lyrics. Going back to Kala, I think stuff like Paper Planes, Bamboo Banga, $20 and Bird Flu is fantastically rich, funny and insightful on the subject of developing world aspiration. She writes about that far more than she writes about the Tamil Tigers.

"She doesn't have to be the bible, but it's such a big part of who she is as an artist that I wish she'd either step up or step back."

shes a musician. not a campaigner. nor an activist. she highlights the issues for other people to take notice. which is more than most artists do these days. if you want to learn more about it, listen to bbc world service, google some articles on it. all the criticsm about her not being equipped with enough knowledge is basically a bunch of elitist, snarky people on the net who know fuck all about it anyway who seem to be saying 'oh just stop talking about it, you dont know enough about it, as i - someone who knows even less - am obviously in a good position to judge and quantify'. all very smug and self satisfied.

xpost. Of course she's "look at me". She's a fucking pop star!

re d.levskey: agreed. the lyrics only become "moronic" when you decide you need to argue them down. otherwise they're no worse than most pop.

otoh, the fact that she likes to at least flirt with big statements and serious issues does tend to invite those argumentative responses, you know? of course she doesn't owe her audience a meaningful education in the realities of the sri lankan political situation, but she's the one making an issue of it. maya seems to revel in the attention that her "radical" political provocations earn her, so it's not like she doesn't earn the criticism she gets.

i'm not personally engaged with her political persona, so the whole debate seems a little silly to me. i'm mainly interested in the music and the vocal delivery, and in the lyrics only as a distinctive pop style.

xpost - yeah, she can actually be a great writer at times.

tell me why on the album is sublime btw.

i kinda like it in 128 bit rate lol.

its flawed, but still one of the albums of the year, btw.

and quite easily.

People are applying absurdly high standards that they don't apply to anyone else. If you want really idiotic political lyrics go to XTRMNTR (which I still love anyway).

I think stuff like Paper Planes, Bamboo Banga, $20 and Bird Flu is fantastically rich, funny and insightful on the subject of developing world aspiration. She writes about that far more than she writes about the Tamil Tigers.

Of course she's "look at me". She's a fucking pop star!

― Haunted Clocks For Sale (Dorianlynskey), Wednesday, July 14, 2010 10:50 AM (51 seconds ago) Bookmark

O.T.F.M. especially wr2 "the subject of developing world aspirations".

i.e. paper planes, which is brilliant

Hmm, I actually think she's the elitist but not acting like it. Like, I don't expect most pop stars to be able to back up their politics, but I do expect that from her, since she's smart and savvy. I suppose that's not fair on my part. With all these "she's a pop star!' defenses, I guess I just need to lower my expectations. Which is sad.

what pop/rock/rap stars do you know/like who really back up their politics flawlessly? Im not sure I even know politicians who back up their politics flawlessly.

The only egs I can think of are Billy Bragg and Michael Franti, both of whom routinely dismissed as "worthy". Good luck to anyone trying to find that middleground between worthy-but-dull and fun-but-irresponsible in the current debate.

Dorian OTM throughout here...

That last statement is totally OTM, Dorian. Perhaps this album is a stepping stone toward being as radical or revolutionary as she wants to be. Or maybe the next one will be her Stuart Price collaboration.

xpost - right.

franti = great in interviews, less great to listen to.

Like, I don't expect most pop stars to be able to back up their politics, but I do expect that from her, since she's smart and savvy. I suppose that's not fair on my part. With all these "she's a pop star!' defenses, I guess I just need to lower my expectations. Which is sad.

there's a weird break in the thinking here (no offense). it's like, "i want her to be extremely smart and savvy, so i feel disappointed when she turns out to be less smart and savvy than i'd imagined." the real-world maya is always gonna come up short relative to an idealized image. but maybe it's unfair to blame her audience for the discontinuity. she worked hard to create the persona that she's having trouble living up to.

I don't think she's any less smart and savvy than she's ever been, but I think the intrusion of fame/wealth/parenthood/marriage cannot be ruled out as a distraction.

The odd thing is that this album contains far fewer references to guns/bombs/radical chic than the previous two but because the music's so divisive it's getting all the flak that sceptics have been holding back until now. So she already is moving away from the posturing and foregrounding the personal. But I think she'll have to raise her lyrical game significantly to overcome the backlash, justified or not.

only had it since this afternoon but id say this album is a lot more intimate. the last two songs seem particularly touching and sweet in a way ive not heard from her before, almost as if she was thinking of music of hers that she could or might like to play to her child (not really heard the lyrics on these two properly yet though).

i don't hate m.i.a.'s lyrics! i mean i haven't paid attention to the ones on the latest, and i doubt i will given that i don't intend to listen to it again. the thing i rail against is those lyrics being seen as radical, revolutionary or even all that politically substantive, by her and by those talking about her. some of her lyrics are dumb but she's good at a) nonsense but evocative missy-esque wordplay ("bamboo banga" and "galang"), b) character studies of, yes, displaced people ("10 dollar" and "hussel").

but the thing with the label of "radical activist" is that it works as a kind of free crit pass (until the ~backlash~ i guess, which would appear to be now) not available to artists without it - talking about politics is automatically a Good Thing (regardless of how well or coherently it's done) whereas talking about love or sex isn't seen to be (no matter how well it's done). i don't like it when people judge based on what something is rather than how that thing is done.

to refine what i was saying earlier:

you can attract public attention with bold political provocations, but you risks harsh criticism when you do so. these things are a matched set, and everyone understands the way the relationship works. maya has made an obvious attempt to be politically provocative from day one, and it's worked for her, providing her musical career with a narrative and an aura of significance. it's disingenuous to pretend that she's done this accidentally or without regard to the ways in which others will receive her messages. and it's equally disingenuous to pretend that the negative attention she receives when her political persona shows cracks is somehow more unfair than the (largely) positive attention that she initially received from her faux-radical steez. two sides of the same coin. not saying she deserves the abuse, but it's a natural consequence of the game she's been playing.

i don't like it when people judge based on what something is rather than how that thing is done.

― لوووووووووووووووووووول (lex pretend), Wednesday, July 14, 2010 1:50 PM (2 hours ago) Bookmark Suggest

This.

Plato vs Aristotle.

Argument between contenderizer, titchy, lex and dorian on mia...some kind of nightmare

if only you could wake up

I admit seeing MIA live in Brussels shortly after the London 2005

*waves at Ned* :-)

Hi there! Nath was indeed at said show too.

I don't know why, but I kind of figured the Born Free/NYT article/XXXO series of gestures was MIA clearing room to make her big pop move, using her increased visibility to actually try to reach a lot of the people she had heretofore only sang about. This necessarily means an adjustment in songwriting types--instead of selling the Third World to the indie-rati, she would be selling pop music to the Third World, a pop music of course that would be remade in its image, whcih to me explained the sudden emergence of the massive ego and the equally sudden willingness to paint in broad strokes, and make sweeping generalizations. As far as the affluence angle goes, it may seem jarring to us but it remains to be seen whether it becomes a problem with her "intended audience" (scare quotes bcz I'm not sure whether this is really her intentions or what I'm projecting onto her) (What is known: she definitely is very aware of the dichotomy of advocating for the poor and dispossessed while lounging in luxury--the idiosyncratic album name is due to the fact that it is spelled out in gold bars.)

(of course the fact that she's taking cues from Skinny Puppy kind of undercuts my whole conceit, so...who knows!)

change 'adjustment in songwriting types' to 'shift in lyrical focus'--I really should write my posts out in rough drafts.

if only you could wake up

― da croupier, Wednesday, July 14, 2010 5:30 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

if u suggest ban me ill be one step closer...

well keep it up, you're well on your way with this new budget-Jess act