A little while ago, I wrote my first OMG life wouldn’t be worth living if it weren’t for music like this post, and I mentioned one of the artists I was most looking forward to in 2010.  Her name is Marina Diamandis, currently going by Marina and the Diamonds, and I can unreservedly say she’s the freshest, most imaginative, intelligent female musician to hit the airwaves in a long time.  In today’s music scene, artists like the Fergie and Lady Gaga ascend to ridiculous levels of power through radio-friendly pop packages that talk of fashion and promiscuity (I love Gaga’s music videos and “stand up for the geeks” style, don’t get me wrong, but there’s only so much credit I can give someone whose hits include lines like ‘let’s have some fun, this beat is sick, I wanna take a ride on your disco stick’).  Marina stands out in a sea of scantily-clad, generic pop princesses with her smart lyrics, atypical style, creativity, and an enormous sense of who she is.  Her album isn’t out until the 22nd, but I’ve already pre-ordered a copy from the UK, and there are 3 tracks that make this one of my most anticipated albums in a very long time.

Her first single, Hollywood, is somewhat of a shocker; an infectious reflection on “the mess that is America” that’s hands-down the best single of 2010 so far.  On her blog, she states:

“I crave America. I always have, always will. I’m embarrassed to say it as it’s strange but I think about it every single day. It is equally fascinating as it is vile and alive as it is dead.  My first trip was in 2005 and really felt like I’d entered a bubble – nothing feels real.  It’s exhilarating and confusing. As much as it completes me, it empties me. Does anyone else feel like this? Americans reading this blog – how do you feel? What is it like living in America? Why am I so obsessed.. Why do I remain addicted..?”

The lyrics make me wonder how she’ll go down stateside, and evoke memories of perhaps one of the most misinterpreted songs to date – Born in the USA was writtten to cast a shameful eye on how America treated its Vietnam veterans, yet to this day, Springsteen fans chant it as a patriotic song about American pride.  Take a look: Marina’s lyrics in her debut single are about as ballsy as they come.

American queen is the American dream
American queen is the American dream

She is a Polish girl in America
Tall, tanned hot blonde called Anya
I asked her “Why would you want to be a Hollywood wife?”
“Because I don’t wanna end up living in a dive on Vine”
Air hostesses doing gossip magazine crosswords on a flight to old LA
39 years old with a mile-high sheen
Trying to stimulate a mind that is slowly starting to decay

Hollywood infected your brain
You wanted kissing in the rain
Living in a movie scene
Puking American dreams
I’m obsessed with the mess that’s America
I’m obsessed with the mess that’s America

She continues to promote anti-conformity with a second track, I Am Not A Robot.

You’ve been acting awful tough lately
Smoking a lot of cigarettes lately
But inside, you’re just a little baby
It’s okay to say you’ve got a weak spot
You don’t always have to be on top
Better to be hated than loved, loved, loved for what you’re not

Guess what? I’m not a robot, a robot
Guess what? I’m not a robot, a robot

But my favourite track so far has to be the primal Mowgli’s Road, an eccentric number whose tribal beats and Kate Bush-esque vocals combine to reflect the lyrics perfectly.  It’s quirky and indie, yet catchy enough to hit mainstream radio, and unlike anything else in the charts today.

Ten silver spoons coming after me
One life with one dream on repeat
I’ll escape if I try hard enough
‘Til King of the Jungle calls my bluff

Oh Lord
I have been sold
I must take the unforsaken road
There’s a fork in the road
I’ll do as as I am told
And I don’t know, don’t know, don’t know, don’t know
Who I want to be

The lyrics may say otherwise, but I don’t know if I’ve seen anyone quite so sure of who she is, and what she wants to stand up for.  Crank this one up and try not to be sucked in.