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Hyped as the "next big thing" of 2004, Sri Lankan-born, London-based agit-prop chanteuse Maya Arulpragasam, or M.I.A. for short,
became a sensation with
the ferocious Galang (2003) and the pro-terrorist Sunshowers (2004).
Arular (XL, 2005) offered a few more variations on that fusion of
hip-hop, reggae and pop, most effectively in
Bucky Done Gone,
while further diluting her ideology (that embraces
both the political and the sexual).
As a second-rate Public Enemy for the new century (Pull Up the People),
she doesn't fare too well, but her balance of
pan-ethnic (Amazon, Bingo) and
catchy (Hombre, 10 $)
make up for an effective marketing tool.
Half of the songs are pure filler, as customary with debut albums
by "next big things".
By the end of the album, one begins to realize that this is not the new
Jello Biafra, but the new Madonna.
Less immediate but more visceral,
Kala (Interscope, 2007) is a
giant cauldron of artificial, natural, social and musical sounds that come
from distant lands and distant contexts: Bollywood soundtracks
(Bomboo Banga),
mutant synth-pop (20 Dollar),
adolescent rap (Mango Pickle Down River), etc.
Ultimately, though, it is still her youthful exuberance that triumphs in
Bird Flu, XR2, the lush single Boyz.
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