MIKA in US Press - 2015

[Kumazzz]

Rage Monthly Magazine

Interview on Rage Monthly Magazine

 

http://content.yudu.com/Library/A3rk30/RageMonthlyMagazineS/resources/index.htm

 

 

 

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rmm1.jpgrmm2.jpgrmm3.jpgrmm4.jpg

 

http://www.ragemonthly.com/2015/07/01/mika/

MIKA: A Man and His Music

July 1, 2015

 

Talk about making a gay man's Pride dreams come true. On the morning of Friday, June 26,The Supreme Court ruled for the legalization of gay marriage across the United States. Then... the long-awaited interview (will it happen or will it not?) with pop iconoclast and out artist MIKA arrived via the phone that same day. It was a monumental and marvelous day on all accounts.

With the release of "No Place in Heaven" in June, MIKA delivers another fresh breath of ideas and energy on his fourth CD - needless to say, once a MIKA lover, always a MIKA lover. His individual qualities as a singer/songwriter and musician are purely, one of a kind.

Here for The Rage Monthly, MIKA opens up about his "coming out" process, talks about "No Place in Heaven," while also offering thoughts on his childhood and where his music will take him next. He shares these views in a genuine, reflective and intelligent way. If there is one man who could provide an answer to, "Where have all the good/gay guys gone?" as he sings in his latest hit,"Good Guys,"Mika is living proof of being a modern gay role model.

 

Thank you so much for taking the time.

 

Oh, it's a pleasure. I haven't really slept for twenty-four hours, but I'm really happy to have the opportunity to do this. So, thank you.

 

You bet. When you look back at your childhood and teenage years, what effect or influence did this have on the musical sensibility of your work?

 

100 percent of it was formative in the kinds of music I make and the reason why I make that music. I always felt a little on the outside, looking in. I was often the recipient, especially in school, of a lot of negative energy. Instead, I processed that as my form of revenge. My form of procuring power was by writing songs or by having delusions of grandeur. Those delusions of grandeur manifested themselves in songs that made me bigger than life - songs in that moment where I was actually powerful and that my voice had a reason.

The thing that gave me the feeling of justification, for those who didn't under- stand, was melody. If you look at it, a lot of people who are outsiders who make pop music.... pop music is overwhelmingly melodic. That is why.

 

"No Place in Heaven" is not only musically invigorating, but it's intellectually stimulating. As a songwriter, how do you find that balance?

 

First, thank you. One thing that never gets boring is telling stories. It's easy to say, you want to make a singer/songwriter album, but what's that mean? I found that I wanted to make a storyteller's album. I wanted it to feel like it was made in a bubble. When you read a book, you have a beginning, middle, an end, and you enter that person's world. Right? Then, as soon as it's over, you kind of miss it.

When you listen to pop albums today, a lot of times, sometimes you step into it but don't feel like you're going from one song to the next. A lot of the time, they're written by different people and produced by different people. I wanted to make a pop album that really told a story, the same way that pop albums from the 1970s did. It's a second intimate diary for that hour the album lasts. You're really going into someone's head. That's the kind of "pop" I wanted to make on this record. I made sure that the lyrics, the stories and the melodies were the most important... far more than the instrumentation.

 

I think the most stunning song is "Ordinary Man." Lyrically and compositionally, it's one of the most beautiful songs you've written.

What is your personal reflection on writing this one?

 

I think heartbreak provokes strongly the most honestly, beautiful songs. I think that the reason for that is, when you're heartbroken, you feel completely worthless. And so, what do you do when you feel worthless? You protect yourself and you write songs in order to make yourself feel better, in order to establish a sense of worth again. What I love is, how it's like an emperor whose been punched in the stomach, it's like a little prince whose been forced to come down to earth.

On the one hand, it's touching and beautiful and whenever anyone has ever been heartbroken, they can relate to it. On the other hand, it's really pompous in the most delicious, fairy-tale way. It's like this little prince who's been bruised and licking his wounds. He just hates the fact that he's normal! I think that's the perfect way to describe being dumped or being heartbroken. Feeling normal. Which is, essentially, the one thing that every single one of us is terrified of feeling. I think as a song, I thought that this "age-old" sentiment and that mixture of really big, grand orchestration and grand opera-style melodies, with the normal and now, everyday action... opening a beer can, sitting with friends that you secretly hate, going to the toilet, making your bed... that combination. In a way is what gives it that Nat King Cole-kind of torch quality. That's definitely what I was aiming for. I
wanted this Nat King Cole torch quality, but with banality.

I looked at a lot of those songs from that "golden age" of songwriting in America, especially in the 1950s. I realized how often the lyrics talked about such everyday things. Yet, the melodies and the orchestrations were cinematic. If I had to tell you my main ambition for my next album, what I would love to do is to really make an album that absolutely explores that kind of cinematic and almost fantasy-formic style of songwriting. Everyday life is turned into something much, much larger and much bigger. That would be the next record I'd like to make. That's why I left the last song on the album because that's where I want to go next.

 

I really admire the fact that you took your own tempo in coming out and not wanting to be labeled.

When it comes down to it, it's a very personal subject. Was it harder to address because of being in the public eye?

 

I think in general, Bill, I did something that most writers do. They write about their life, their lust, they write about sexuality and do it quite publicly. However, as a result, it took a long time for my kind of private life to catch up with my public life. Until I went through all the steps of addressing all the different issues in my private life... from my parents to my siblings and my personal relationships. Only when I felt secure was it something that I could address with full candor, with full honesty, with full transparency, which meant that I was solid. In that, my basis of talking about my own sexuality and the politics of sexuality would be built upon a very solid foundation. That was the most important thing.

The idea of looking at it in terms of"tempo,"as you say, is really a kind of genius way of describing it. Everyone has his or her own rhythm. It doesn't mean you don't have to talk about sexuality. It doesn't mean that you don't have to be sexually active. It doesn't mean that you don't have to have a normal life, in all its different stages and transitions. It just means that you have to address one thing at a time. I had already taken my writing and addressed it publicly, rather than privately. I had to deal with the consequences of that. Though, in the long-term scheme of things, looking at a lifetime... really, that gap in bridging the gap of four years, is really not very much.

 

You're so right. Besides singing and songwriting, what would you say is the most enjoyable aspect of your life right now?

 

I'm free and I have nothing to hide. I've managed to take steps toward that very aggressively. From the age of 30, I decided to confront all of those things that would lead me to "not" being free. Therefore, I can find pleasure from the biggest challenges to the most banal moments. That is something also, that I really want to protect as much as I possibly can. I think you know it's quite remarkable when putting it in the context of the recent [supreme Court] ruling. I just feel the one thing that truly makes someone happy is feeling like they have options, and that they have the same options as everyone else. That's why I think the ruling is so phenomenal. It procures positivity, which in turn will procure tolerance.

In terms of my life, the one thing that makes me truly happy, apart from the ruling and all that stuff, the one thing that I want is, to kind of stay free and to stay hungry... to keep my heart light and my brain serious. I think if you do that, you can stay happy. Of course, it's a challenge presented to all of us. That is our number one challenge, as we move on from day to day.

 

Edited July 18, 2015 by Kumazzz

[Kumazzz]

OUT magazine

 

http://www.out.com/perfect-day/2015/7/13/mikas-paris

OUT magazine

 

MIKA posts it to the facebook

https://www.facebook.com/mikasounds/photos/a.10150417790488040.363530.6006248039/10153105109163040/?type=1&theater

 

"Mika talks to Out Magazine about his favourite places in Paris  "

 

Mika's Paris

 

Mika’s Paris

 

Since releasing his debut album, Life in Cartoon Motion, in 2007, Grammy nominee Mika has gone on to mentor aspiring pop stars as a judge on X Factor Italy and as a coach on The Voice France. The Lebanese-British singer (né Michael Holbrook Penniman) has also been trying his hand at fashion, having recently teamed up with Swatch to craft new designs for the watch brand. It’s suitable, then, that as he promotes his latest record, No Place in Heaven, the au courant crooner is giving us a guided tour of one of the most stylish cities in the world: Paris.

 

CAFÉ DU TROCADÉRO

“I start off with breakfast here before my morning run towards the riverbank of the Seine.” 8 Place du Trocadéro

 

PONT ALEXANDRE III
“One of the world’s most beautiful bridges. Cross the Seine and then go back down to the riverside and exercise on the open-air trapeze bars and jungle gym.”

 

MUSÉE DE LA CHASSE ET DE LA NATURE
“My favorite museum is full of natural artifacts and taxidermy, all in a stunning Haussmann building. It’s like the palace of the rich uncle you wish you had.” 62 Rue des Archives; ChasseNature.org

 

 

 

 

DEYROLLE
“This taxidermy shop is pretty amazing. It’s where they filmed a lot of movies, including Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris.” 46 Rue du Bac; Deyrolle.com

 

 

 

MA COCOTTE
“For lunch, go to this hip restaurant in the heart of the antique market. It’s eclectic, and full of people who work and trade in the market. It’s not just another tourist trap.” 106 Rue des Rosiers, Saint-Ouen; MaCocotte-LesPuces.com

 

 

 

PALAIS-ROYAL AND CHANTAL THOMASS
“Check out the miniatures shop at the Palais-Royal and then the Chantal Thomass boutique. It’s a magical place.” 211 Rue Saint-Honoré; ChantalThomass.com

 

 

AU PLAT D’ETAIN
“It’s in the 6ème—one of the best areas of Paris—and it’s among the most beautiful tiny-toy-soldier shops in the world.” 16 Rue Guisarde; AuPlatdEtain.com.

 

 

  PASSAGE DES PANORAMAS
“Truly remarkable in the evening. It used to have a few bad restaurants and a dingy-looking gay sauna/bathhouse. The bathhouse is still there, but also an Aladdin’s cave of bars and hangouts. It has one of the best restaurants in Paris, Passage 53, where a young chef makes the finest French food with Japanese influence.” 11 Boulevard Montmartre; PassageDesPanoramas.fr

 

 

LA RÉSERVE
“If you can, sleep here. It’s designed by Jacques Garcia, and in Pierre Cardin’s former residence. It’s expensive, but pretty amazing.” 42 Avenue Gabriel; LaReserve-Paris.com

 

[BiaIchihara]

NEXT Magazine NY June 12, 2015Issue 22.51

 

http://issuu.com/nextmagazine.com/docs/next_issue_22.51/1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of the good guys

 

With a new album, a world tour, and a gig judging Italy’s version of The Voice, MIKA is ready to join the pantheon of gay pop star royalty.

 

Mika is unusually husky-voiced over the phone from the U.K. ‘’I had to cancel the last part of my Asian tour!’’ he says. ‘’They sent me back to London. I’ve spent the day in doctors’ offices. It’s all bulls**t.’’

 

Still, you can hear the quirky, cartoon-colorful pop star that the world has come to love shining through: a wryness, a natural showman-ship, a sense that he’s up for a bit of a laugh and that he's about to let you in on the joke. Anyone lucky enough to have seen his recent show at Webster Hall will know what I'm talking about. Onstage, he's a ringleader on the microphone, giving the parked house permission to let loose; a gifted musician who's comfortable enough in his craft to actually have fun with it.

 

Since bursting onto the scene eight years ago with his jubilant debut album, ‘’Life In Cartoon Motion’’, the Lebanese-born Brit has become an international star. He’s currently wrapping up a world tour and joining Italy’s version of The Voice as a judge. Once maddeningly evasive about his sexuality, since coming out publicly as gay in 2012, the 31-year-old singer-songwriter has been more open about his private life. His new album, ‘’No Place In Heaven’’ (out June 16), is his most personal to date. While maintaining the sunny pop arrangements and structure that have made Mika a star the new album explores darker lyrical territory, like familial acceptance (‘’All She Wants’’,  alienation from religion (‘’No Place in Heaven’’), and the lack of gay visibility in mainstream media ‘’Good Guys’’). Next recently chatted with Mika to talk about the new album, what gay pride means to him as an out musician, and what it was really like to work with Ariana Grande.

 

So, ‘’Talk About You’’ the first single from your new album, is a really exuberant love song. Did you write it to anyone in particular?

It’s about a crush - nothing to do with love! The two things are totally different. Love is when it gets painful and complicated and realistic; the crush is when it's just fantasy and lust and projection of what could be without having to face the consequences. That’s why it’s so joyful. If you look at love songs, you realize that the ones that are truest and deepest are the saddest. And the ones that are about infatuation or crushes are the most joyful - and that’s what ‘’Talk About You’’ is. In a way I think it’s about a fantasy crush. I think it’s better to write about things you're dreaming about having than about the reality of things.

 

When I saw you at Webster Hall recently, you had the packed house jumping in unison. How do you create such a joyous experience for your audience?

I don't know! I'm in it with them. In a place like Webster Hall, with the demographic of my audience-when they walk in they can look pretty tough, and you can think it's going to be a pretty tough thing to crack. But by the time you’re halfway through the gig and you see peoples defenses totally broken down, I’m as stupefied as they are, I call it ‘’Crazy People Church’’ and I mean that in the most positive sense you ever could say it. Being onstage for me is quite cathartic, as is writing songs. It’s when I’m really free. It’s the kind of meditative aspect of it, really freeing yourself by making an alternate reality, The shows are an extension of that. But it’s not a form of escapism. If you look at my lyrics they're often quite dark and real. That contrast is at odds with the joyfulness of the music. The music makes me feel better about real life situations that I find myself in, the music makes it easier to process real life, and when I do it on stage it’s an extension of that.

 

Freddie Mercury is, of course, one of your muses. Tell me about that.

I discovered the music of Queen really late. I was on a school trip to Spain - Granada of all places - and my class was full of the biggest assholes you've ever met in your life. This family that I was staying with, this Spanish family, had a ‘’Best of Queen’’ tape and a walkman, and I borrowed it. I used to sit in the back of my Spanish classes listening to his music. I really immersed myself in it. I was around 14 years old, and I came from a classical background. My first job was at the Royal Opera House, which I started working at at the age of 11 because I was originally kicked out of school, so I started working in music and that’s how I got educated. I found something that gave me a sense of value and that’s why I clung to it, and that’s why I got good at it. When I heard Queen it was like, ‘’Oh, wow! This is amazing, This is a way of taking all those melodic influences and classical influences and putting them in the context of rock and pop without a gram of it being cheesy. But as far as the glam side of Queen, actually I don't like it.

 

What don't you like about it?

The aesthetic. It isn't my cup of tea. Let’s put it this way: if [Freddie Mercury] showed up on a speed date with me, it would be pretty quick.

 

‘’You can’t choose a part of me that you like and a part of me that you don’t like. If you like me, it all comes from the same person.''

 

Gay Pride is coming up here in New York. What does Pride mean to you in 2015?

I think Gay Pride, for me, is all about diversity, One of the things that strikes me whenever I come across a Pride [celebration] around the world is the sheer diversity of the LGBT people who are walking the streets and making themselves known and heard, and within that temporary fully protective environment they're immersed in you see all of the different colors that make up Pride. All of the different races and types. I think that is one of the most fascinating things. I think people used to hide behind gimmicks, but now it’s a lot more joyful. Because they have to be less protective, l think there’s more joy and diversity that's coming out; and that’s one of the most amazing aspects of Pride.

 

Ariana Grande is the featured performer this year at NYC’s  Pride’s Dance on the Pier. Tell me about working with her on ‘’Popular Song’’.

We did it on Skype! This was before any of the explosion happened in her career. Within about 15 minutes, I completely freaked out and was sending emails to Monte Lipman, the head of the label that we're on, saying, ‘’Do you realize what you've got in your hands?’’ Simply because she has this incredible natural talent. She is old-school showbiz in the oldest sense of the word. She’s a crazy worker and she has this nothing-is-sacred kind of attitude. The most amazing thing about people who are truly in entertainment and not just in media hype is that there’s a full anti-snobbism. They get their hands in, they work, they grind. They work up the ladder they take opportunity where they can get it and they excel and never go backwards. She’s a perfect example of that, l hope that she continues in the path that she’s started, because she could do very, very, very well.

 

You've touched on politics before, but ‘’AII She Wants’’ is the first song I can think of in your catalog that seems both openly autobiographical and political.

Absolutely! I look at my mother; she would never really want to change me, ever but you see that little modicum of doubt that things might have been nice also to have a little bit of convention, a little bit of the format, things rolling themselves out the way they're supposed to when you have a baby boy. And that’s not a negative thing to say. I think it's very kind if you can turn something negative into something playful, and dismantle that potential negative bomb by addressing it with such a candid attitude. That’s what I’m trying to do in that. In the same way l write songs about the person I would like to be as opposed to the person I am, or the imaginary person as opposed to the real one, I think that l write about the things people are afraid to say. In one way it is a little brutal and in the other it's one of the most tender songs on the album, because of the melody and the way the chorus is really tender and really heartfelt. There's a Beatles’ sweetness to it-but then the lyric is just brutal.

 

Has your mom heard it?

She loved it! She got why I wrote it.

 

The song ‘’Good Guys’’ name checks a lot of gay artists. Do you feel there is a lack of visibility of these ‘’good guys’’?

I don’t think they're necessarily the most tabloid-savvy. I don't think they're the ones that get the most attention, which I think is a pity. On one hand I think that gay culture has never been better, and gay acceptance has never been better. I think of the heroes that l had when I was younger-the song really poses a question to myself: ‘’Why can't you be like those people? Why can't you write and live in a way where you aren't thinking about consequences, nor are you doing anything for attention.’’ The link between who I am as a writer and who I am as a public person - get rid of that gap. And that takes a lot more guts than you think. And when you think about who inspires you to do that - someone like Rufus Wainwright, when l was 14, 15 years old, was pivotal. Just the lyrics that he wrote. He was an anti-Morrissey. Morrissey was deflection, was posing and attitude. Rufus was general and straight for the throat. All of the things that I was thinking as a boy he would confront as a man with this amazing musicality. But I think that media-wise it's a lot harder to shed mainstream media attention on some of the good guys.

 

We consider you one of those good guys, you know.

I don't consider myself one of the good guys, though it warms my heart to even be compared to any of them. But if we talk in like 20 years, then we’ll find out. I’m certainly not taking anything for granted, and I certainly implicate myself in terms of bridging the gap between identity, sexuality, creative integrity. All of those things come as one parcel. I always say, no matter where I’m doing an interview - even in very conservative places, even if I’m doing it on very mainstream platforms, all around the world-I say that you can’t choose a part of me that you like and a part of me that you don’t like. If you like me, it all comes from the same person. And that's why I mentioned Lebanon in ‘’All She Wants’’ Because it’s almost an affront to my grandmother onto some of the family members that I have who are very happy to pick and choose what parts of my life the address, acknowledge, or even respect, and what parts they will talk badly about behind my back. And I think that one of the first things you have to do is with sweetness and creativity dismantle things that are difficult. Dismantling prejudice, it’s one of the most constructive things that one can do.

Edited July 19, 2015 by BiaIchihara

[Marilyn Mastin]

I think I've read that one before, but it is great.

Pop royalty?

I agree.

[mamiam]

I think I've read that one before, but it is great.

Pop royalty?

I agree.

 

MIKA is the KING of pop - nothing less!! 

 

Love,love

me

[Kumazzz]

DAVID ATLANTA

 

Album Review: MIKA’s No Place In Heaven

http://davidatlanta.com/2015/07/album-review-mikas-no-place-in-heaven/

 

MIKA is back again with another round of whimsical, story telling in his latest album No Place In Heaven. The fourth studio album by the colorful Brit is probably his most open and revealing album to date.

From the album’s opening track (and first single) “Last Party” to the album’s finale “Good Guys, Night Time Mix”, the theme throughout the entire album is a bittersweet joy that’ll make you get the feels.

MIKA has a style and way about his music that will take you all over the place… which can be a good thing but only if it is in small doses. One track might make you feel like you’re at Woodstock, while other tracks might have you feel that you are in an underground, disco club. Disappointing to many original MIKA fans, the majority of the album’s songs feel a bit Debby Downer. However, if MIKA’s goal was to make an album that is a bit less Glam-Pop and more lyric driven then he definitely succeeded.

 

Not that he ever was shy or hid the fact that he was gay, this album is definitely MIKA’s most revealing out of all his previous albums. It’s more mature.

The album is laced with tracks yearning for love (“Good Wife”), finding it (“Talk About You”), partying (“Last Party”), acceptance (“All She Wants”), and the struggles of it all especially with being gay. Probably the most discussed song off the album is “Good Guys” which is an open ended question highlighting the lack of gay, male role models around today.

I personally don’t get it. With a slew of amazingly talented artists, athletes, and entrepreneurs out there today, any young gay boy can have someone to look up to and be inspired by. Neil Patrick Harris, Ricky Martin, Lee Daniels, Stephen Fry, Ian McKellen, Tom Ford, Anderson Cooper, George Takei, Jason Collins, Gareth Thomas, Bryan Singer, and so many more have all proven that you can be gay AND be successful at what you do.

MIKA is included in that list as well! I suppose that there can be more “good guys” out there and maybe that is what MIKA is asking in the song. Out of all of the songs on the album, “Good Guys” is probably the most beautifully written track and definitely the one you’ll play over and over.

 

On another note, some of the songs on No Place In Heaven do sound very similar to some of MIKA’s past songs. “Oh Girl You’re The Devil” (even though it is probably the most fun song on the album) sounds like his “Popular Song”. Also, the chorus to the album’s title track “No Place In Heaven” sounds extremely similar to The Supremes’ “You Cant Hurry Love”.

Another standout track off of the album is the bonus track “Promiseland” which does sound a bit like a knockoff Maroon 5 song but it’s sooooo good!

All in all, No Place In Heaven is a definitely a great album – a tad melancholy but great nonetheless! It’s not as colorful as his past albums but, then again, MIKA is evolving as an artist so it is refreshing to see him try something new and succeed at it. Even though the album doesn’t have that standout runaway hit like “Grace Kelly” or “Love Today”, you’re guaranteed to enjoy this album just as much as you did his first three.

 

Standout Tracks:

“Promiseland”

“Staring At the Sun”

“Rio”

 

WEB magazine

DAVID ATLANTA

Album Review: MIKA’s No Place In Heaven

 

http://issuu.com/davidatlantaga/docs/david_v18_i30_web

 

The review is on page 26.

 

Edited July 31, 2015 by Kumazzz

[mamiam]

DAVID ATLANTA

 

Album Review: MIKA’s No Place In Heaven

http://davidatlanta.com/2015/07/album-review-mikas-no-place-in-heaven/

 

MIKA is back again with another round of whimsical, story telling in his latest album No Place In Heaven. The fourth studio album by the colorful Brit is probably his most open and revealing album to date.

From the album’s opening track (and first single) “Last Party” to the album’s finale “Good Guys, Night Time Mix”, the theme throughout the entire album is a bittersweet joy that’ll make you get the feels.

MIKA has a style and way about his music that will take you all over the place… which can be a good thing but only if it is in small doses. One track might make you feel like you’re at Woodstock, while other tracks might have you feel that you are in an underground, disco club. Disappointing to many original MIKA fans, the majority of the album’s songs feel a bit Debby Downer. However, if MIKA’s goal was to make an album that is a bit less Glam-Pop and more lyric driven then he definitely succeeded.

 

Not that he ever was shy or hid the fact that he was gay, this album is definitely MIKA’s most revealing out of all his previous albums. It’s more mature.

The album is laced with tracks yearning for love (“Good Wife”), finding it (“Talk About You”), partying (“Last Party”), acceptance (“All She Wants”), and the struggles of it all especially with being gay. Probably the most discussed song off the album is “Good Guys” which is an open ended question highlighting the lack of gay, male role models around today.

I personally don’t get it. With a slew of amazingly talented artists, athletes, and entrepreneurs out there today, any young gay boy can have someone to look up to and be inspired by. Neil Patrick Harris, Ricky Martin, Lee Daniels, Stephen Fry, Ian McKellen, Tom Ford, Anderson Cooper, George Takei, Jason Collins, Gareth Thomas, Bryan Singer, and so many more have all proven that you can be gay AND be successful at what you do.

MIKA is included in that list as well! I suppose that there can be more “good guys” out there and maybe that is what MIKA is asking in the song. Out of all of the songs on the album, “Good Guys” is probably the most beautifully written track and definitely the one you’ll play over and over.

 

On another note, some of the songs on No Place In Heaven do sound very similar to some of MIKA’s past songs. “Oh Girl You’re The Devil” (even though it is probably the most fun song on the album) sounds like his “Popular Song”. Also, the chorus to the album’s title track “No Place In Heaven” sounds extremely similar to The Supremes’ “You Cant Hurry Love”.

Another standout track off of the album is the bonus track “Promiseland” which does sound a bit like a knockoff Maroon 5 song but it’s sooooo good!

All in all, No Place In Heaven is a definitely a great album – a tad melancholy but great nonetheless! It’s not as colorful as his past albums but, then again, MIKA is evolving as an artist so it is refreshing to see him try something new and succeed at it. Even though the album doesn’t have that standout runaway hit like “Grace Kelly” or “Love Today”, you’re guaranteed to enjoy this album just as much as you did his first three.

 

Standout Tracks:

“Promiseland”

“Staring At the Sun”

“Rio”

 

 Thanks a lot Eriko - for sharing this interesting and great review!   

 

Love,love

me

[Starlight]

DAVID ATLANTA

 

Album Review: MIKA’s No Place In Heaven

http://davidatlanta.com/2015/07/album-review-mikas-no-place-in-heaven/

 

MIKA is back again with another round of whimsical, story telling in his latest album No Place In Heaven. The fourth studio album by the colorful Brit is probably his most open and revealing album to date.

From the album’s opening track (and first single) “Last Party” to the album’s finale “Good Guys, Night Time Mix”, the theme throughout the entire album is a bittersweet joy that’ll make you get the feels.

MIKA has a style and way about his music that will take you all over the place… which can be a good thing but only if it is in small doses. One track might make you feel like you’re at Woodstock, while other tracks might have you feel that you are in an underground, disco club. Disappointing to many original MIKA fans, the majority of the album’s songs feel a bit Debby Downer. However, if MIKA’s goal was to make an album that is a bit less Glam-Pop and more lyric driven then he definitely succeeded.

 

Not that he ever was shy or hid the fact that he was gay, this album is definitely MIKA’s most revealing out of all his previous albums. It’s more mature.

The album is laced with tracks yearning for love (“Good Wife”), finding it (“Talk About You”), partying (“Last Party”), acceptance (“All She Wants”), and the struggles of it all especially with being gay. Probably the most discussed song off the album is “Good Guys” which is an open ended question highlighting the lack of gay, male role models around today.

I personally don’t get it. With a slew of amazingly talented artists, athletes, and entrepreneurs out there today, any young gay boy can have someone to look up to and be inspired by. Neil Patrick Harris, Ricky Martin, Lee Daniels, Stephen Fry, Ian McKellen, Tom Ford, Anderson Cooper, George Takei, Jason Collins, Gareth Thomas, Bryan Singer, and so many more have all proven that you can be gay AND be successful at what you do.

MIKA is included in that list as well! I suppose that there can be more “good guys” out there and maybe that is what MIKA is asking in the song. Out of all of the songs on the album, “Good Guys” is probably the most beautifully written track and definitely the one you’ll play over and over.

 

On another note, some of the songs on No Place In Heaven do sound very similar to some of MIKA’s past songs. “Oh Girl You’re The Devil” (even though it is probably the most fun song on the album) sounds like his “Popular Song”. Also, the chorus to the album’s title track “No Place In Heaven” sounds extremely similar to The Supremes’ “You Cant Hurry Love”.

Another standout track off of the album is the bonus track “Promiseland” which does sound a bit like a knockoff Maroon 5 song but it’s sooooo good!

All in all, No Place In Heaven is a definitely a great album – a tad melancholy but great nonetheless! It’s not as colorful as his past albums but, then again, MIKA is evolving as an artist so it is refreshing to see him try something new and succeed at it. Even though the album doesn’t have that standout runaway hit like “Grace Kelly” or “Love Today”, you’re guaranteed to enjoy this album just as much as you did his first three.

 

Standout Tracks:

“Promiseland”

“Staring At the Sun”

“Rio”

That's a nice review!

[Marilyn Mastin]

DAVID ATLANTA

 

Album Review: MIKA’s No Place In Heaven

http://davidatlanta.com/2015/07/album-review-mikas-no-place-in-heaven/

 

MIKA is back again with another round of whimsical, story telling in his latest album No Place In Heaven. The fourth studio album by the colorful Brit is probably his most open and revealing album to date.

From the album’s opening track (and first single) “Last Party” to the album’s finale “Good Guys, Night Time Mix”, the theme throughout the entire album is a bittersweet joy that’ll make you get the feels.

MIKA has a style and way about his music that will take you all over the place… which can be a good thing but only if it is in small doses. One track might make you feel like you’re at Woodstock, while other tracks might have you feel that you are in an underground, disco club. Disappointing to many original MIKA fans, the majority of the album’s songs feel a bit Debby Downer. However, if MIKA’s goal was to make an album that is a bit less Glam-Pop and more lyric driven then he definitely succeeded.

 

Not that he ever was shy or hid the fact that he was gay, this album is definitely MIKA’s most revealing out of all his previous albums. It’s more mature.

The album is laced with tracks yearning for love (“Good Wife”), finding it (“Talk About You”), partying (“Last Party”), acceptance (“All She Wants”), and the struggles of it all especially with being gay. Probably the most discussed song off the album is “Good Guys” which is an open ended question highlighting the lack of gay, male role models around today.

I personally don’t get it. With a slew of amazingly talented artists, athletes, and entrepreneurs out there today, any young gay boy can have someone to look up to and be inspired by. Neil Patrick Harris, Ricky Martin, Lee Daniels, Stephen Fry, Ian McKellen, Tom Ford, Anderson Cooper, George Takei, Jason Collins, Gareth Thomas, Bryan Singer, and so many more have all proven that you can be gay AND be successful at what you do.

MIKA is included in that list as well! I suppose that there can be more “good guys” out there and maybe that is what MIKA is asking in the song. Out of all of the songs on the album, “Good Guys” is probably the most beautifully written track and definitely the one you’ll play over and over.

 

On another note, some of the songs on No Place In Heaven do sound very similar to some of MIKA’s past songs. “Oh Girl You’re The Devil” (even though it is probably the most fun song on the album) sounds like his “Popular Song”. Also, the chorus to the album’s title track “No Place In Heaven” sounds extremely similar to The Supremes’ “You Cant Hurry Love”.

Another standout track off of the album is the bonus track “Promiseland” which does sound a bit like a knockoff Maroon 5 song but it’s sooooo good!

All in all, No Place In Heaven is a definitely a great album – a tad melancholy but great nonetheless! It’s not as colorful as his past albums but, then again, MIKA is evolving as an artist so it is refreshing to see him try something new and succeed at it. Even though the album doesn’t have that standout runaway hit like “Grace Kelly” or “Love Today”, you’re guaranteed to enjoy this album just as much as you did his first three.

 

Standout Tracks:

“Promiseland”

“Staring At the Sun”

“Rio”

I wouldn't say Mika's original fans are disappointed with the album. But it's a thoughtful review.

[Christine]

I wouldn't say Mika's original fans are disappointed with the album. But it's a thoughtful review.

 

Yes it's more LICM than TOOL was. I agree with him about Good Guys though. Mika has explained it many times but I still don't understand what he means. It's not like Rufus Wainwright and Bowie have even gone anywhere.

[CarolinaAsh]

Yes it's more LICM than TOOL was. I agree with him about Good Guys though. Mika has explained it many times but I still don't understand what he means. It's not like Rufus Wainwright and Bowie have even gone anywhere.

I think he means specifically in the charts maybe or in production. But I agree with the reviewer. There are a ton of great gay role models for both sexes right now. I love Neil Patrick Harris, and even as characters in shows and movies they're no longer relegated to just sitcoms and Showtime. One if my favorite shows right now is The Fosters on ABC Family. It's about a lesbian couple who have a mix of kids, 1 biological son for one of them, adopted boy/girl twins, and when it started they got a teen girl and her younger brother as foster kids. Now the boy is adopted but there is an issue with the girl. It's really interesting to see how all of this is dealt with. One mom is a vice principal, one is a cop, the kids face so much because of their circumstances but they're awesome. Just last season the little boy Jude came out (I think he's like 8 or so maybe?) And it was handled with such realness but also grace that it was amazingly touching.

[Marilyn Mastin]

Yes it's more LICM than TOOL was. I agree with him about Good Guys though. Mika has explained it many times but I still don't understand what he means. It's not like Rufus Wainwright and Bowie have even gone anywhere.

I suppose Rufus and David are not as prominent as they were years ago, but it's Mika's own perception of those people that he puts in the song. I don't think it's meant to be about who, as a gay celebrity, is influential now. There are some good gay guys around today, but I think Mika just listed some people whom he looked up to at a time in his life when he was in need of people to identify with. 

[Kumazzz]

DAVID ATLANTA

Album Review: MIKA’s No Place In Heaven

 

http://issuu.com/davidatlantaga/docs/david_v18_i30_web

 

The review is on page 26.

[Marilyn Mastin]

I found this on Twitter, about gay influences in pop music in America.

It's on fire with love for Mika and NPIH, and says. "His songs will be sung a generation from now".

I don't know how to post the scan, but here's the link.

 

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/there-gay-aesthetic-pop-music-180956253/?no-ist

[Pandora_Z]

I found this on Twitter, about gay influences in pop music in America.

It's on fire with love for Mika and NPIH, and says. "His songs will be sung a generation from now".

I don't know how to post the scan, but here's the link.

 

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/there-gay-aesthetic-pop-music-180956253/?no-ist

That is such an awesome article! It's one of the best US press articles I have read in a long time. That was my favorite part also..."His songs will be sung a generation from now" So true!

[zia Giovi]

I found this on Twitter, about gay influences in pop music in America.

It's on fire with love for Mika and NPIH, and says. "His songs will be sung a generation from now".

I don't know how to post the scan, but here's the link.

 

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/there-gay-aesthetic-pop-music-180956253/?no-ist

 

Thanks for finding this, Marilyn. Being a huge Elton John fan I'm absolutely proud of the comparison between him and our Mika 

Well, honestly I thought since the beginning that Mika is Elton's heir, but this is another story 

[CarolinaAsh]

I found this on Twitter, about gay influences in pop music in America.

It's on fire with love for Mika and NPIH, and says. "His songs will be sung a generation from now".

I don't know how to post the scan, but here's the link.

 

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/there-gay-aesthetic-pop-music-180956253/?no-ist

I love this piece!

[Kumazzz]

Thanks a lot for posting !!

I found this on Twitter, about gay influences in pop music in America.

It's on fire with love for Mika and NPIH, and says. "His songs will be sung a generation from now".

I don't know how to post the scan, but here's the link.

 

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/there-gay-aesthetic-pop-music-180956253/?no-ist

 

Smithonian.com

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/there-gay-aesthetic-pop-music-180956253/?no-ist

August 13, 2015

 

 

Is There a ‘Gay Aesthetic’ to Pop Music?

From Elton John to Mika, the “glam piano” genre may be as integral to the Gay American experience as hip-hop and the blues are to the African American one

 

Now that the Supreme Court has acknowledged that homosexuals have the same right to marriage as any other Americans, perhaps we can begin to think about Gay Americans as we think about Irish Americans, African Americans and Hispanic Americans: as a community with its own traditions and cultural flavors while being an essential part of the American whole.

 

If that's true, we can ask the question: can we identify a “gay” aesthetic in music the same way we can point to a Celtic, black or Latino aesthetic? You don’t have to look very hard to find not just one but multiple gay currents in music. The most obvious one is disco music, which evolved into today’s nearly ubiquitous EDM. The most out-of-the-closet example is the lesbian-folk-song movement self-described as “Womyn’s Music.”

 

But one aspect of gay-pop worthy of detailed examination is the sub-genre I call “Glam Piano.” The roots of this tradition can be traced back to New Orleans bars of the 1950s, when Little Richard, Esquerita and Bobby Marchan refined their piano-based rock'n'roll while working with and/or as female impersonators.

The biggest Glam Piano star is Elton John, the flamboyantly costumed British pianist whose ringing piano figures and diva-like belting made “Philadelphia Freedom” and “Crocodile Rock” templates for the genre. Culture Club's Boy George put his own twist on John’s sound, and more recently Rufus Wainwright has given an art-song gloss to the genre.

 

This summer, however, has seen the release of one of the greatest Glam Piano albums ever. “No Place in Heaven” is the work of Mika, a singer-pianist born in Beirut in 1983 and a resident of London since he moved there at age nine. Like Little Richard, oddly enough, Mika was born with the last name Penniman and likewise dropped it. While a modest star in Europe, he remains largely unknown in the United States, yet he has steadily built the best Glam Piano catalogue in history by marrying John's irresistible melodies and thumping rhythms to Wainwright's smart, literate lyrics.

Mika (pronounced MIH-kuh) has mastered the essential elements of Glam Piano. Like any good rock 'n' roll songwriter, he has that rare knack for fitting catchy tunes, surprising chord changes and propulsive rhythms so tightly together that it's hard to imagine one part of that triad without the others. But he gives that craftsmanship a gay aesthetic by tweaking everything to make it more theatrical. Every verbal and musical gesture is exaggerated just enough to make a bigger impression and is then counterbalanced by a knowing wink.

 

It’s a music that constructs fantasy personas, while simultaneously acknowledging that it's just a pose. This allows a fluidity of identity, for one pose can be easily cast aside and replaced by another. Such self-aware exaggeration is usually reflected in the visual presentation of album covers, stage costumes and stage designs, which are highly theatrical—or even cartoonish. It’s no coincidence that Mika and his sister Yasmine Penniman decorate his albums with cartoon illustrations; his second album was even called Life in Cartoon Motion.

 

Mika’s gift for earworm hooks is obvious on his top-10 British singles such as “Grace Kelly,” “Love Today” and “We Are Golden.” Sales like that imply that many non-gays have been buying his songs, but that's no different really than Otis Redding’s and Kanye West’s ability to articulate specifically African-American experiences and at the same time connect to a non-black audience.

 

YouTube

 

When his high tenor warbles the choruses, all the tension of the verses is released into a liberating effusion of pleasure. And unlike a lot of today’s top pop stars, who rely on studio production to camouflage the skimpiness of the material, Mika works in the verse-chorus-bridge format of classic songwriting. His songs will still be sung a generation from now, because they will work in whatever production style comes along.

 

Unlike his hero Elton John, however, Mika doesn’t settle for lyrics that merely sound good without saying much of anything. From his earliest records, his infectious melodies have been employed to tell stories about people with embarrassing secrets, such as “Billy Brown,” a gay man with “an ordinary life: two kids, a dog, and a precautionary wife,” or the gay man who says, “I try to be like Grace Kelly, but all her looks were too sad. So I try a little Freddie [Mercury]; I've gone identity mad.”

 

With each album, he has become more explicit about addressing issues in the gay community. The new album's title track, “No Place in Heaven,” is a plea to God himself, begging the deity to make a high court ruling and open the pearly gates to folks like the singer, who has felt like “a freak since seven years old … for every love I had to hide and every tear I ever cried.” Mika plays the gospel piano, while his co-producer Greg Wells sneaks a disco beat underneath.

 

“Last Party” is a tribute to Mercury, the Queen lead singer and gay icon. The music is melancholy, but the lyrics are defiant, arguing that the early death of so many hard-living gay men is not to be pitied but admired. “Don't be misled; it's not a twist of fate; it's just what happens when you stay out late,” Mika sings. “If we're all gonna die, let's party.” Eventually he seems to win the argument, as the music shifts from wistful elegy to party soundtrack.

 

“Good Guys” is a similar tribute to all the gay role models that meant so much to the songwriter “when I was 14 years old and my heroes [were] dressed up in gold.” He namechecks W.H. Auden, Andy Warhol, Cole Porter and Jean Cocteau as the music builds to anthemic sing-along. “All She Wants” is push-and-pull, hand-clapping dance number about the pressure to arrange a heterosexual marriage as camouflage. Other songs, such as “Staring at the Sun” and “Hurts” describe the elation and despair of any romantic relationship, no matter what genders are involved.

 

Like African-American music, gay music is neither required of nor limited to gay musicians. Just as black musicians such as rock 'n' roller Jimi Hendrix and country crooner Darius Rucker could build successful careers outside black styles, so has Bob Mould, a gay man who created brilliant post-punk music as part of Husker Du and Sugar and as a solo artist. And just as white singers such as Hall & Oates could make great records within the soul-music genre, so has the heterosexual Ben Folds made great records within the Glam Piano genre.

 

One of the best but most obscure Glam Piano artists of all is Bobby Lounge. These days this reclusive songwriter from McComb, Mississippi (Bo Diddley's hometown), plays only one show per year: the final Sunday afternoon of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival—and it’s worth it to fly to Louisiana just to see that one-hour set.

 

YouTube

 

This year, as always, he made his entrance in a silver iron lung, wheeled in by an attending nurse. Like the angelic ghost of Hannibal Lecter, he popped free of the contraption in a long white robe and silver, metallic wings. While the nurse leafed through a waiting-room magazine in boredom, Lounge jumped behind a piano and began pumping out chords like Elton John channeling Jerry Lee Lewis. His songs told comic, lurid tales about characters eccentric even for the Deep South—folks like the “Slime Weasel,” the “Apalachicola Fool” and the “Ten Foot Woman.”

 

These songs often went on for verse after verse—seven, eight, nine minutes and counting—buoyed by the constant invention of Lounge’s lyrics and the non-stop propulsion of his catchy piano riffs. As hilariously exaggerated as they often were, the songs also carried the satiric bite of a social outsider who has always lived in the same small Southern town as these characters. That outsider status discouraged him from pursuing the career that should rightfully be his. But even if you can’t make it to Jazzfest, you can go on line to order Lounge’s three CDs, illustrated with his own strange folk-art paintings. And if you do, you’ll discover just how vital a genre Glam Piano can be.

 

[Littlelady]

love it :thumb_yello:

[Marilyn Mastin]

I hope a lot of people read this article. They may do so, because it's not on a gay website, but one that many people are likely to read. I hope they all look up Mika and find their very own place in Mika-Heaven.

And it's high time Elton acknowledged Mika. It upsets me that he never has done so. He duetted with Gaga. He should do one with Mika!

[Christine]

And it's high time Elton acknowledged Mika. It upsets me that he never has done so. He duetted with Gaga. He should do one with Mika!

I imagine he did that for his own benefit, not Gaga's. I know he is an icon in the UK but he is long irrelevant in Canada and I imagine the US even moreso. We hear about his personal life once in awhile because he married a Canadian and that's it.

[CarolinaAsh]

I imagine he did that for his own benefit, not Gaga's. I know he is an icon in the UK but he is long irrelevant in Canada and I imagine the US even moreso. We hear about his personal life once in awhile because he married a Canadian and that's it.

I dunno. I mean we don't hear much. I didn't even know he did a duet with Gaga though it doesn't surprise me. He still can make news here though but it's usually when it's slow and more because he is so classic and also I think they like to say "Sir Elton John" but mostly I remember him with Eminem on I think the MTV awards as the last big thing.

[teenagedreamer98]

I hope a lot of people read this article. They may do so, because it's not on a gay website, but one that many people are likely to read. I hope they all look up Mika and find their very own place in Mika-Heaven.

And it's high time Elton acknowledged Mika. It upsets me that he never has done so. He duetted with Gaga. He should do one with Mika!

 

Agreed!  Mika's style reminds me a bit of Elton's, their voices would blend good together.

[Marilyn Mastin]

Agreed!  Mika's style reminds me a bit of Elton's, their voices would blend good together.

They are both great musicians. I think The Lion King is one of the best musical scores ever written. The music makes the movie in my opinion.

[teenagedreamer98]

They are both great musicians. I think The Lion King is one of the best musical scores ever written. The music makes the movie in my opinion.

 

I loved that film when I was little.  Maybe Mika should write film music too!