4 splendid tracks here.
Laurence Day for The Line Of Best Fit:
Really though, her talent lies in her lyrical proficiency.
Diamandis has always been one for intelligent, curveball lyrics – even when dissecting tried’n’tested pop staples like relationship foibles, she’s managed to warp the viewpoint or inject a fresh take. It’s a talent that stretches all the way back to her first murmurs of noise like “I Am Not A Robot” or “Obsessions”, and on FROOT, it’s showcased to its greatest effect.
Primarily about the maelstrom of battling emotions following a breakup – she’s the ender, laced with a thousand regrets – the record sees Diamandis take that frayed thread of listlessness and conflict, and yanks it until her entire world is unravelled. This is Diamandis laid bare, exploring her own sanity and life from every angle, confused, battered and emotionally drained, but ultimately hopeful. It’s one of the most complex pop albums of recent years, and like any great steamroller mind, she can’t quite contain herself. Rampaging and ramping up with anxious ‘what if’ upon anxious ‘what if’, Diamandis quickly finds herself asking the big questions. Not simply about love anymore, FROOT swiftly becomes an anthology of astute nihilistic, existentialist discussions.
Album of the year contender, no doubt.
Iconic.
Mark Savage:
Her third album, Froot, has been sitting on top of the iTunes pre-order chart for months, thanks to her tightly-knit and on-the-ball fanbase.
Those fans - the "diamonds" of her stage name - have already received six of the tracks, which were released in monthly instalments before the full album is revealed next week.
It's an innovative release strategy - and one that was partly necessary, after the singer realised her subtle, slow-burning new material wasn't likely to feature on daytime radio.
"I actually said to the label, I don't want to have to depend on radio support, so I focused completely on the fans."
Originally, the plan was to issue "two songs a month that were polar opposites sonically, like double A-sides," says Diamandis, "but iTunes wouldn't let me do that".
"It was probably for the best, because with this strategy you still get half an album that you haven't heard yet.
"And it's been really creatively liberating," she says. "I have no commercial pressures any more. So I'm able to survive in a really weird way."
The 6 songs are definitely slow-burners but so rewarding.
I didn't like the release 'strategy' at first but it's worked. 'Froot' is out on Monday and I'm very keen to hear the remaining songs.
I've been revisiting the first couple of albums a lot recently too. Electra Heart is flawed, but stands up to repeat plays.
I posted this video last November.
I'm posting it again.
WHAT AN ALBUM.
MG Siegler, on the new MacBook:
What’s funny is that I’m wondering if there won’t be an actual upside to this trade-off beyond the usual iterative path to progress. By introducing a machine with Intel’s slower Core M chipset, might Apple also be moving us closer to a world where their own mobile chipset, the A(X) line, can step in?
As a Mac developer, I find the prospect of new, non-Intel chipsets both scary and exciting.