Article, a fairly GOOD critique.

[mel_tinydancer]

Found it here - http://theedge.bostonherald.com/musicNews/view.bg?articleid=193585

 

UK popster Mika hands out ear candy on new CD

By Shilpa Ganatra

Sunday, April 8, 2007 - Updated: 07:13 PM EST

 

 

 

 

Blame it on Michael Jackson.

 

We’ve become oh so negative about adults who haven’t quite realized they’ve grown up.

 

But thank Johnny Depp for making childlike behaviour enjoyable again with his performance as Willy Wonka in “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.†Now maybe Mika will do the same in the world of music with his new CD, “Life in Cartoon Motion.†It couldn’t be more aptly titled.

 

Mika, a 23-year-old Beirut-born Londoner, adorns the album cover with bright colors and bold patterns drawn by his artist sister Yasmine. But that’s nothing compared to what’s inside: a rainbow of pop tunes, falsetto vocals and not an unhappy minor chord in earshot.

 

 

 

It’s a formula that’s working in the UK. In a flurry of hype and radio airplay, and helped by Mika’s stunning looks and eccentric personality (The mad performances! His great style! The fact that the only thing he won’t confess is whether or not he’s gay!), lead single “Grace Kelly†became only the second track to reach No. 1 in the UK on the strength of downloads alone. The song continues to linger in the top 10; it’s still at No. 7 after more than two months.

 

The track, which uses the iconic actress to illustrate a person’s need to be liked, is typical of the album. Mika’s influences - Queen, Scissor Sisters, Jellyfish and other grandiose pop music makers -couldn’t be more in your face if he scribbled the names of his favorite bands on the inside of your eyelids.

 

Further into the CD, which was released in the United States last week, you’ll encounter: “Love Today,†camp disco at its best; “Happy Ending,†which calls on a full gospel choir; and “Big Girls (You Are Beautiful),†which has a melody that sticks like a limpet to your brain.

 

Clearly, he gets under your skin. Maybe that’s to be expected from a man who cut his teeth writing jingles. Before releasing his solo material, he was hired by Orbit and British Airways (“I’ll never forget calling up British Airways to get a ticket, only to be placed in a line, listening to my own voice,†he told a reporter).

 

Yet his catchy songwriting could also be his downfall. Critics - myself included - can argue that his sugar-sweet pop becomes sickly sweet after a few minutes: What first strikes you as a delicious burst of flavor quickly becomes overbearing.

 

Or to put it another way: One song heard on the radio is great; an album’s worth of such sucrose is vomit-inducing.

 

So whether Mika (whose last name is Penniman, though I’m quite sure he’s no relation to Little Richard) is a shiny, pop-tastic artist who will bore us quite soon, or whether he’s about to corner the novelty rock market remains to be seen. For the moment, only this much is certain: Elton John would just die for Mika’s oversized, rose-tinted sunglasses.

 

Shilpa Ganatra writes from Dublin, Ireland.

[my_rainbow_radio]

Ooh I like this article and this journalist! I smiled like a loon and almost high-fived my computer screen when I read "helped by his stunning looks and eccentric personality". Yayyy!

[mel_tinydancer]

I smiled like a loon and almost high-fived my computer screen

 

 

hahaaa this made me laugh out loud

[dridri]

I don't think the article is positive at all, the critic is not impartial and he obviously doesn't get the music ("not a sad cord?" it misses the point and belittles the album... i believe another author quite brilliantly summed it up as "technicolor tears") ...

 

The piece is a subtle bit of "artistic assassination" (Brian May has the best expressions..), acknowledging that there is some good stuff but that it wears out quickly ("vomit-inducing"? you can't buy wit like this). That's code for "one-hit wonder, that's all, folks!"...

 

Shame, I loved the beginning!

[ziema]

I don't know what I think about that artivle. It feels kind of sarcastic

But I like the journalist's expression

[Ms.Mewissa<33]

ehmm...the beginning was good until it got bad.

but i just loove this line

For the moment, only this much is certain: Elton John would just die for Mika’s oversized, rose-tinted sunglasses.

LOL

[EnFa]

Or to put it another way: One song heard on the radio is great; an album’s worth of such sucrose is vomit-inducing.

 

 

I loooove the review until that line! I thounght it was fantastic! Haha! very surprising ending!

[ThatRadFreak]

It Was Good

Till She Started Dissing Mika

 

He's The Best,

Just Because A Few People Only Like Grace Kelly, Doesnt Mean Everyone Does.

I Will Be Listening To Mika Until I Die

 

 

Which Hopefully Wont Be For A Long Time

[*Danique]

I love this article! It's very funny

[Ms.Mewissa<33]

at least it has a positive comment

[RosieLou]

I don't think the article is positive at all, the critic is not impartial and he obviously doesn't get the music ("not a sad cord?" it misses the point and belittles the album... i believe another author quite brilliantly summed it up as "technicolor tears") ...

QUOTE]

 

Technicolour tears... I like that...

[esperia75]

[...]

I Will Be Listening To Mika Until I Die

 

 

[...]

 

 

I'm afraid I'll do the same...his music is the beat of my heart now

[blackwildkitty]

Loved the beginning, especially about how colorful the music is..... later they got his influences wrong..... but the end was annoying, spoiled the whole article.