The Family Jewels. Released: 2009 - 2010
Album art: Atlantic Records, Mat Maitland.
One can easily understand, or take a guess, at Marina's life at this point of stage. Her career in music started off with a lot of problems. We know about the real facts, where she did try out at various auditions, but failed, but we can take a good guess at how her personal life was at that time, with this album. Are You Satisfied? was probably something she asked herself, whilst dealing with her ordinary life. Shame, and pain, where from most people think, evolved Shampain, came around with taking major decisions that would give her life a newer direction; The one, closer to her dreams. I Am Not A Robot is one song that many relate to. No body likes to be too mechanical now, right? Most of the songs in this album deal with her, and her separation from people she once was with. The ones who probably questioned or ridiculed her for her seemingly impossible dreams, or the bold steps she probably took. Like in Girls, for example. Give the album a listen when you're especially mad at the world for trying to stop you from what you want to do.
She describes her dressing style as vintage, cartoon, and cheer-leading, and one can see a lot of that in her music as well. For the time's one would go cuckoo, you're on your own version of Mowgli's road. In this album, Obsessions is one song, that I couldn't understand. Honestly, it seems too plain, or if not, it probably talks about how Marina would want someone (a romantic interest perhaps?), to get his own sets of obsessions, so she, with her own set of dreams, can share them with him, with ease.
Hollywood as a song is an easy giveaway to what she was all about. I love this song, because of the happy melody and a lovely chorus. 'I'm obsessed, with the mess, that's America!' How true is this for so many? I love its video as well. Check it out!
We've all had moments of feeling like an outsider. The Outsider does justice to that feeling. It's from this song that things start getting a bit serious. Guilty justifies the reasons why she probably wrote Shampain. Of course, with the want to get fame, one might have had to taken some strange steps. I wonder what Marina is guilty about. Was it probably because she did something to annoy Hermit The Frog? I wonder if this person is the one she talks about in Obsessions. (Together, perhaps, they broke their glass balloon.)
Oh no! Is a happier piece in this journey of wanting what one dreams of. It's a straight forward song with lyrics that lack subtlety, but therein lies its charm. 'If you are not very careful, your possessions will possess you! TV taught me how to feel, now real life has no appeal!'
I think in Seventeen, Marina talks about the same boy she had hinted about, in the earlier songs of this album. Perhaps about a boy, who couldn't stand her gutsy self? They probably got together when she turned 17. 'The rise of the king, and the fall of a queen.' I like how she uses 'the' and 'a' here. Something tells me, that Marina's want to become a pop idol, and being more independent, was the reason of all the tension between them. Finally, we come to the last song, Numb. This song does complete justice to the entire album, and was a perfect choice to conclude it with. It's as if the whole album was written for her fans, so they'd know her better, except this one. This song feels like that of her own, where she talks about the cost of fame, losing ones friends, and family. (The deluxe version of the album gave us another add on song, Rootless; It talks about what it implies, about one having no roots, and the sadness that comes along with it.)
'Lower I get, the higher I climb. And I will wonder why I got dark, only to shine, looking for the golden light. Oh, it's a reasonable sacrifice.'
Oh, Marina. Your sacrifices were worth it.
~
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