Electra Heart

So you know how there are visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners? I took the test today, and despite how I’m a photographer, it turns out that my learning style is actually a combo of auditory and kinesthetic! Not visual! How shocking.

I guess this explains why I pay more attention to song lyrics than, you know, how the song actually sounds. Of course, this doesn’t mean that all the singers that I like are awful. However, it does mean that I regularly and passionately exclaim to my friends that “(insert singer here) is such a terrible singer but I can’t stop listening to (insert album here)..!!!”

And at the risk of inviting a fangirl-incited murder, this also brings us to our topic for the day – Marina Diamandis, more commonly known as…

Long story short, I discovered her one day while watching Graham Norton. I thought it was such an awful live performance, what with the strange falsetto and faux-operatic voice, so naturally… I started watching her videos and falling in love with all her songs. Yup, TRUST MY TASTE IN MUSIC.

I remember friends telling me in the past that I’d like her cause I love Florence Welch, and after listening to Marina myself… I totally cannot comprehend how that assumption was formed lolol.

Marina’s latest album Electra Heart revolves around its fictional namesake, and the popular American female archetypes that she represents: the primadonna, the stepford wife, the homewrecker, the prom queen and so on. She’s stated in the past that although these are the very stereotypes that she can relate to, she’s also afraid that she’ll eventually lose herself to these personalities.

The album itself is an “ode to dysfunctional love”, and with that being a subject that I can frankly relate to, the idea of a cold ruthless female with no weaknesses speaks volumes to me. Any girl hurt in love would probably tell you that Electra Heart is the very character that they’d aspire to be – and I can honestly tell you that this invulnerable girl doesn’t exist.

But it doesn’t matter, because this album is a self-indulgent fantasy and I love the concept behind it. It’s a collection of (slightly campy) pop anthems for anyone who’s faced rejection and shame. Style-wise, it’s inspired by The Valley of the Dolls. I haven’t seen it and the reviews are terrible, but I guess it’s worth checking out for the visuals!

There’s also been a lot comparisons between the Marina and Lana del Rey because of their 50s’-esque style choices. It’s really unfortunate that the release date for Electra Heart was postponed – I do feel that the album’s release was overshadowed by the Lana del Rey craze last year as a result.

As for the songs itself – you should definitely check out the music videos in order. Strangely enough, some of the most popular hits aren’t actually in the album itself. I read somewhere that she came up with the concept and art direction herself, and I find it pretty interesting that she used the videos as a promotional tool for her album concept, rather than the actual content of the album.

Question: Would you have felt cheated if you bought the album, only to find that half of the singles aren’t even part of it?

I really admire her devotion to the character – she hasn’t been seen without the heart on her cheek ever since the video for How To Be A Heartbreaker was released (it’s my favourite by the way!) but I miss the old Marina as well. Besides the fact that she looks even more adorable with black hair, the songs have more emotional depth as well. I get that the songs for Electra Heart is meant to be vacuous, almost, but when you compare the tracks to her earlier stuff, it sounds like two completely different singers. If you’re planning to check out her debut album The Family Jewels, I’d strongly recommend I Am Not A Robot, Obsessions, Hollywood and Oh No!

If this post has piqued your interest in the very lovely Marina and the Diamonds, do check out her stuff on Youtube! Then get the album on iTunes! And get the deluxe edition so that you can have.. most of the singles at least.