The saying, “the third times’ the charm” has worked for few artists, and Marina and the Diamonds fits the phrase to a T when it comes to the release of her junior album, FROOT. She’s already established herself as a powerhouse indie-pop woman with many faces, some sweet and some fierce, but always fresh.
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With the release of her first album, The Family Jewels, in 2010, Marina Diamand is was an excited, young woman searching for the road of fame and fortune with an innocent sparkle in her voice. Her sophomore album, Electra Heart, took listeners on a journey through her alter-ego’s Madonna-esque heartbreaker lifestyle, which produced chart-topping hits like “How To Be A Heartbreaker” and “Primadonna” in 2012.
FROOT is different than anything Marina has done in the past; then again, she’s always been this way. Every album she has put out has been a different persona, but FROOT is Marina all grown-up. Taking cues from a place of self-discovery and space-y themes, FROOT is the perfect balance of sweet and powerful.
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Her singles thus far, “Froot” and “Forget,” might be the only two songs off the album that are reminiscent of the old Marina with Bjork style vocals mixed in. Nonetheless, they’re pop chart worthy while maintaining a strong indie sound (which might have to do with the 1980’s arcade 8-bit soundbyte in the background). “Blue,” a personal favorite, has that heartbreaker “girl power” perspective that Marina has been perfect at putting into lyrics: “No, I don’t love you/No, I don’t care/I just want to be held when I’m scared/And all I want is one night with you/Just cause I’m selfish/I know it’s true.”
Once again, Marina has done everything herself. Standing behind her one producer this time, Marina oversaw the mixing, the editing and the finishing all while writing all the lyrics herself. She said she was able to grow up, in a sense, from Electra Heart and become the woman she is today because of FROOT. Taking on influences from 70’s disco and early 80’s electronica, FROOT holds its own sound with Marina being the ringmaster behind it all.
While FROOT is different than the faces of Marina in the past, some of the songs might get lost for fans of her earlier, more upbeat work. It’s not that the songs are good, it’s that they are sultry and mature. Even if pop enthusiasts favor her singles off FOOT, the rest of the album is clearly definable as indie. But that’s not why she does what she does; Marina wants people to follow her as she discovers herself and that’s exactly why FROOT is the perfect fit as her junior album.