Cover of M.I.A.'s forthcoming album "forward slash-back slash-forward slash-back slash-forward slash-back slash-capitol 'y'-forward slash-back slash."
On May 11, pan-global pop star M.I.A. announced that her new album, “forward slash-back slash-forward slash-back slash-forward slash-back slash-capital ‘Y’-forward slash-back slash” would be released on June 29. Much has changed in the past seven weeks. The release date of “/\/\/\Y/\” has been pushed back to July 13 and, apparently, the title is actually pronounced “Maya.” The delay has allowed our heroine time to entangle herself in a web of controversy. On May 26, the New York Times published an in-depth profile in which Lynn Hirschberg explored the contradictions—some might say hypocrisy—of Maya Arulpragasam. The following day, M.I.A. retaliated for inaccuracies, going so far as to post Hirschberg’s cell phone number on Twitter. After posting audio clips from the interview on her the site for her record label, N.E.E.T., under the heading “War Crimes and French Fries,” M.I.A. won a correction. The album delay has also provided time for M.I.A. to release four singles, including “Teqkilla,” which arrived Tuesday in place of the album. If nothing else, the pronounced absence of “/\/\/\Y/\” has provided an opportunity to assess what we might expect from the album, based on the singles.
The Roman Gavras-directed video for "Born Free" depicts the gestappo-like collection and extermination of a minority group: redheads.
“Born Free” (Released April 23): The pound of a bass drum and the crack of a snare begin in tandem, slowly and steadily, then strike harder and faster until it’s a paramilitary swirl: Hard and sharp and very paranoid. Then, like sprinters at the sound of a starting gun, a fuzzed-out bass and guitar begin to gallop on cue. This, it seems, is how M.I.A. does punk. “I don’t want to live for tomorrow, gonna push my luck today,” she howls. “I’ll throw it in your face when I see you, yeah, ’cause I’ve got something to say.” She asserts the title in the choruses, a classic statement of rebellion in the face of controlling forces. So who is trying to control M.I.A.? Industry types? Expectant fans? Motherhood? Hard to say, but it’s worth noting that the Roman Gavras-directed video depicts the gestappo-like collection and extermination of a minority group: redheads.
If "Born Free" is how M.I.A. does punk, "Xxxo" is how she does pop. The track is anxious, she never allows the listener to fully relax.
“Xxxo” (Released May 11): Ambient noise rises up, initiating a hip-hop beat with a loose-ratting over top. “You want me be somebody who I’m really not,” she sings on the chorus, as shimmery keyboards twirl around the track and a Euro-house bassline pounds away. It’s a rare moment of real singing from an artist whose vocal style is often limited to chants. If “Born Free” is how M.I.A. does punk, it seems “Xxxo” is how M.I.A. does pop—Jay-Z has even added a guest verse to a remix—the track is anxious, she never allows the listener to fully relax. The sound is decidedly minor and ominous, clanging like the fall of a dungeon door. Still, it’s worth noting that Maya teamed up with Christina Aguilera, co-writing and performing on “Elastic Love” from “Bionic,” released June 8. By the end, M.I.A. seems to welcome the freedom of escaping herself: “I can be the actress, you be Tarantino.” I see a forthcoming cameo.
“Steppin’ Up” (Released June 15): Samples of power tools—drills, power saws and mechanic shop air guns—have been cobbled together in a kind of medley that forms the foundation of “Steppin’ Up.” The rest is slow-skanking hip-hop with even more nonsense lyrics than usual, based on a “rub-a-dub” construction. “Me and my speakers are speaking sub-a-sub-sub-sub-sub/You know who I am, I run this fucking club.” It’s actually classic M.I.A., conjuring all the corner-boy swagger of T.I. Imagine a loosely autobiographical crossover flick, not “ATL” but “SRI.”
“Teqkilla” (Released June 29): Hirschberg would’ve had a field day with this one. Instead of serving as a warning of the the ills of mind-altering substances as the title would suggest, “Teqkilla” seems to be a straight-up party anthem: “I got that sticky-sticky, icky-icky weed,” she squeals, her voice rising up on the last syllable. “And a shot of tequila in me.” The sound of ice cubes clinking in a glass is a recurrent theme and the slogan “down the drain” floats in and out of the mix. The rest of the track is built out of a plastic frisbee tom striking backward, alternating handclap patterns and various synths: laser squiggles, fuzzy blasts that pitch up, ticking Popoid tubes. I can’t even mention all the sounds that show up during the last two minutes (it’s 6:20 in all!), reminding me of one of the production workouts from “Major Lazer.” Could this be a Diplo track?
Of course we won’t know for sure until July 13, but a tracklist released by 7digital suggests we’ve already heard a full third of “/\/\/\Y/\” (sans a bonus track remix). One would expect a few curveballs and left-field turns, ala the presence of Willcania Mob and didgeridoo on “Kala” or the unexpected joy of texting anthem “URAQT” on “Arular.” But longtime comrade and collaborator Diplo let slip some ambiguous feelings about the album via Twitter on June 10: “just listened to mastr of the MIA album.. WOW.. my 3 trax are slammin! dunno bout the rest-sounds like skinny puppy ☹ & gives me nightmares☹.” Hard to imagine M.I.A. topping 2009. Last year saw her armed robbery anthem “Paper Planes” go global on the back of Best Picture-winning film, “Slumdog Millionaire,” and culminated in her pregnant performance at the Grammy Awards alongside Jay-Z, Kanye West, Lil Wayne and the aforementioned Clifford Joseph Harris Jr. If she comes even close, it should be fun to watch.
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