Charli XCX | You (Ha Ha Ha)

Fresh from getting trolled by a Tumblr hater who basically called her a rip-off of "DIY" act Grimes, and compared her unfavourably to fellow major-label act Sky Ferreira (curiously, all 3 of them appeared together on the cover of V Magazine back in the Autumn), Charli XCX releases her 6th (!) single this week.

You (Ha Ha Ha) samples a track by Gold Panda of the same name, and mixes obscenity-laden Kate Nash stroppiness with MIA-style beats. Her vocals shift seamlessly from sung-spoken verses to the triumphant, booming chorus, and is a return to catchy form after the dreary You're The One. This should mark another tiptoe towards the mainstream, in the massive game of Grandmother's Footsteps that is Charli's achingly slow rise to fame. 

Welcome To The Room... Marina & The Diamonds

Make no mistake – London-based Marina Diamandis is difficult to pigeon-hole. Adopting a moniker that connects herself to fans, (her “Diamonds”), Marina’s style varies from sparse, piano-based number Obsessions, (a look at the mundanity of life that gained lazy Kate Nash comparisons)...

...to the jungly vibe and "cuckoo!" shrieks on her forthcoming debut single proper Mowgli’s Road. 

The latter is an odd choice, perhaps, for her introduction to the mainstream, but for an artist who discusses on her blog everything from female sexuality and Britney Spears to record labels’ desire to release “hit me quick with the big fat chorus” tunes, this comes as no surprise. 


Opinionated and peculiar, wild and reflective, Marina’s arty videos and lyrics such as – “You’re lovable, so lovable… but you’re just troubled” from I Am Not A Robot make her instantly likeable and easy to identify with. Her first album The Family Jewels is due out in early 2010, but for now treasure this diamond of a voice whilst her gems are still underground favourites.