M.I.A. "MATA" (2022)

MATA

release date: Oct. 14, 2022

format: digital (13 x File, FLAC)

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,65]

producer: various

label: Island Records - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 2. "F.I.A.S.O.M. Pt. 2" - 4. "Beep" - 5. "Energy Freq" - 6. "The One" - 8. "Time Traveller" - 9. "Popular" - 11. "K.T.P. (Keep the Peace)" - 13. "Marigold"

6th studio album by M.I.A. following six years after AIM (Sep. 2016) is M.I.A.'s first album to only be issued in digital format. AIM had initially been released as her final studio album but the desire to release new material made her change her decision. MATA is a typical M.I.A. title - instead of refering to an individual, the title is an ironic pun hinted at the change of the name of Facebook to Meta. Furthermore, the front cover depicts a Christian cross in the writing of MATA in vertical letters, and M.I.A. has been outspoken in finding a meaningful life after turning to Christianity, and then, when pronounced in 'working-class' British, 'MATA' becomes 'matter' - meaning this is the / what 'MATA[r]'s. The album consists of thirteen tracks of which none is longer than 3:36 minutes and three tracks are below two minutes making it a relative short full-length album with a total running time under 33 minutes.

MATA is in many ways a typical album from M.I.A. with lyrics touching on social and political awareness. It's music about her role, about being parents, and about living at a current age where global issues demand our full attention.

M.I.A. is confrontatory in her very approach, and that has made her both extremely unpopular but also the opposite, and she's been perfectly aware of this from the very beginning of her career. The song "Popular" says everything about being just that, and that's just very much the very essence of her narrative. "F.I.A.S.O.M. Pt. 1" and "F.I.A.S.O.M. Pt. 2" are other neat examples of her gift with words to elaborate on issues of concern. Here, it's an abbreviation for 'Freedom Is A State Of Mind' ('whatcha gonna do with mine?'), which she uses to deal with exactly what it implies, and at the same time it cleverly refers to being 'Fearsome'. She speaks her mind of the things that she encounters - there's no hiding behind a public image or a media persona, and at the same time, that also reveals her conflicts of trying to be herself in a world where the media image is out of your own control. She rides along, reacts to issues and accusations and no matter what always find herself in the middle of a conflict she never asked for. And the fact that she never writes a song just to make it sound like a good hook or rhyme, but starts off by having something on her mind, and then makes a song about it incorporating rhymes, hooks, and beats is something extremely rare these days.

Anyway, MATA is another fine album from M.I.A., although, its not really among her absolute best, but in this case, much less will do, 'cause she's always right there in the midst of war zones reporting about actual human issues and not really caring about being [TaylorSwift-Reehannah-and-the-like-radio-friendly]-pop-ulaaar!

Recommended.

[ allmusic.com, Slant Magazine 4 / 5 stars ]

M.I.A. "AIM" (2016)

AIM
release date: Sep. 9, 2016
format: digital (Deluxe - 17 x File, FLAC)
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,60]
producer: M.I.A., various
label: Interscope - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Borders" - 2. "Go Off" - 3. "Bird Song (Blaqstarr Remix)" - 5. "Freedun (feat. Zayn)" (4 / 5) - 6. "Foreign Friend (feat. Dexta Daps)" - 7. "Finally" - 10. "Visa" - 12. "Survivor"

5th studio album by M.I.A. is like the predecessor Matangi (2013) a collection of songs written and produced by M.I.A. in collaboration with many others, including Diplo, Skrillex, and Blaqstarr to mention just a few. The standard album contains twelve tracks, the Deluxe version 17 tracks.

The style and her choice of narratives are more or less the same as on her 2013 album, and without just being a copy of that, I think she still contributes with some fine compositions that is more than just danceable music.

AIM was met by luke-warm reviews, some stating she has released a bunch of lesser and unfocused songs instead of creating what she's capable of. I honestly think, it betters Matangi, although, it doesn't quite reach the level of /\/\ /\ Y /\ (2010) nor her best album, Kala (2007). Track #2 and especially track #5 are some of her best songs ever but the consistency is not the biggest asset here, although, it's by no means a minor release.

As always, M.I.A makes music with contemporary concern and her narratives are always a recommended listen.

[ allmusic.com 3,5 / 5, The Guardian, Rolling Stone 3 / 5, NME 4 / 5 stars ]

M.I.A. "Matangi" (2013)

Matangi
release date: Nov. 5, 2013
format: cd
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,58]
producer: various
label: N.E.E.T. Recordings - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 2. "MATANGI" - 3. "Only 1 U" - 4. "Warriors" - 5. "Come Walk with Me" - 6. "aTENTion" - 8. "Bad Girls" (4 / 5) - 10. "Double Bubble Trouble" - 12. "Bring the Noize" - 15. "Sexodus" (feat. The Weeknd)

4th studio album by M.I.A. following the 2010 release of M/\Y/\. The album is released on her own label N.E.E.T. through Interscope Records and as usual with a long list of exclusive producers to put their mark on the single tracks. The title is like her 2010 album a variant of her real name (Mathangi Arulpragasam), which also refers to the Hindu goddess, Matangi.

The album sounds more like a return to her style from before M/\Y/\ with more pop-founded compositions built on the uk hip-hop and electropop she is associated with.

It's fine, almost on par with her previous album, and it has some great tracks, but it also contains a number of compositions of lesser quality without being poor, I think.

[ allmusic.com 3 / 5, Rolling Stone, Slant 3,5 / 5, The Guardian 4 / 5, The Independent 5 / 5 stars ]

M.I.A. "/\/\ /\ Y /\" (2010)

/\/\ /\ Y /\
release date: Jul. 13, 2010
format: cd (XLCD 497)
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,70]
producer: various
label: XL Recordings - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 2. "Steppin Up" - 3. "XXXO" - 4. "Teqkilla" - 7. "It Takes a Muscle" (4 / 5) - 8. "It Iz What It Iz" - 9. "Born Free" - 11. "Tell Me Why"

3rd studio album by M.I.A. released on her own label N.E.E.T. through XL Recordings and Interscope Records. The album is named after herself, Mathangi Arulpragasam, or just "Maya", which is also the correct way to pronounce her artist name, M.I.A.

I find the album more complex than the fine Kala (2007), and initially found this a lesser album, but it really contains some fine tracks. Stylistically, this is not like her 2007 album, but more electronically-founded with glitch pop, electroclash, and what may be identified as industrial - some also call it synth punk or noise pop. Anyway, it is more 'noisy' and probably less mainstream oriented, and I think of it as her second best album. It really makes sense that it's more complex - giving the fact that it's about herself. It reflects her life, her struggles with identity, the Sri-Lankan (violent) background, and her view and feelings about love and politics, which is a bit of a mouthful. And therefore it can only be complex, and anything but polished.

[ allmusic.com, The Guardian, Slant 3 / 5, Rolling Stone 4 / 5, Spin 4,5 / 5 stars ]

M.I.A. "Kala" (2007)

Kala
release date: Aug. 21, 2007
format: cd
[single rate: 4 / 5] [4,08]
producer: various
label: XL Recordings - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Bamboo Banga" - 2. "Bird Flu" (4 / 5) - 3. "Boyz" (4 / 5) - 4. "Jimmy" - 5. "Hussel" (feat. Afrikan Boy) - 8. "World Town" - 10. "XR2" - 11. "Paper Planes" (4 / 5) - 12. "Come Around" (feat. Timbaland)

2nd studio album by M.I.A. Her debut album Arular (2005) was with reference to her father, and this is dedicated her mother, named Kala. Her third album /\/\ /\ Y /\ (aka 'Maya') (2010), succeeding this one, is literally her own.

I first came across her in 2008 after she had released the single "Paper Planes" taken from this very album. The track is (like most of her music) great uk hip hop dance-pop electropop fused with grime (making it very different from American hip hop) and some glitch pop, and then that track is very cleverly sampled from the song "Straight to Hell" by The Clash. Her style is unique, and then she utilizes her music to speak openly about Sri Lanka vs. India vs. England vs. how the world ignores the impotent political situation in her parents' foster land. Other great tracks from the album are "Bird Flu" and "Boyz", which were both composed, recorded, and arranged in the process of travelling. M.I.A. had laid the foundation of the songs at home, then left to various parts of the world and each new place she rearranged bits, wrote new stuff and added new instrumentation to the individual song making them real world tunes.

In my mind, this is her best album and also one of the most interesting releases in 2007, although, she's really a great singles artist, as her albums are more than just interesting but also lack consistency or homogeneity.

The album ended up on many best of lists including number #1 on Rolling Stone's best albums of the year. And quite deservedly, the album is enlisted in "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die".

[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5 stars ]

M.I.A. "Arular" (2005)

Arular [debut]
release date: Mar. 22, 2005
format: cd (XLCD 186)
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,62]
producer: various
label: XL Recordings - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 2. "Pull up the People" - 3. "Bucky Done Gun" - 4. "Sunshowers" - 8. "Bingo" - 9. "Hombre" - 13. "Galang"

Studio debut album by M.I.A. [birthname: Mathangi Arulpragasam] produced by Paul Byrne, Cavemen, Diplo, KW Griff, Richard X, Switch, Anthony Whiting, and Wizard. Before this, she was involved in documentary as a way of expression, and she was hired by Elastica - through her friendship with guitarist and vocalist Justine Frischmann - to cover the band's live tour in 2001. It was then Frischmann who let M.I.A. play with a Roland MC-505 sequencer on which she recorded several demoes that was eventually used to pursuade XL Recordings to invite her in to record some of her own music.

M.I.A. is both a reference to her birth name - often shortened to Maya - and to the abbreviation for Missing in Action. I didn't come across this album until around 2010, and only regret not to have heard it when it was released. Her following two albums are named after her parents. This one has its name after her father's political code name in the Eelam Revolutionary Organisation of Students (EROS, a resistance group fighting for a free state, Tamil Eelam, in Sri Lanka).

I really enjoy her aggressive style, sometimes making me think of a more contemporary Lil' Kim, but with more sophisticated lyrics and music. The sampling and glitch pop tone is just another positive element and fusioned with electropop and grime, it's a nice and original cocktail. What's really impressive about M.I.A. is her involvement in her own music. She hasn't got a bunch of songwriters and composers but basically makes everything herself. The story is, she send a demo tape to several labels with XL Recordings being the only label to invite her in. Alledgedly, she knew from the very beginning exactly what she wanted and was so lucky to actually have it her own way. She also did her own cover art.

[ allmusic.com 5 / 5, The Guardian, The Independent, Rolling Stone 4 / 5 stars ]