Electra Heart

Marina's sophomore album, "Electra Heart" builds upon, her wonderful artistry. The follow to 2010 album, "The Family Jewels", Marina spent around two years producing this record. While, Electra still features thought provoking lyrics, it's musical is new direction for Marina. The new record features a more electronic sound. I hesitant to call "POP", while does have many pop elements, the album's poetry is far deeper and meaningful, then a casual pop song. "Electra Heart"'s main purpose can easily be uncovered through a listening session - to tell the tragic tale of Electra's (the vehicle of the album) life. The American edition, I'm reviewing contains 14 tracks. "Radioactive" and "Sex Yeah" are bonus tracks on the deluxe edition found in the UK, while "How To Be a Heartbreaker" is a US exclusive track. "Living Dead" from the UK edition, has sadly been omitted, but strongly suggest American Diamonds listen to the track. (It should be available on YouTube. If you like it, you should order the UK edition of "Electra Heart" as well as the American.) Track Reviews: 1. Bubblegum Bitch The album is opener, is fun and sassy. The lyrics act as clues as to the rest of the album. Defiantly a standout track. The lyrics are basic description of the album's main character, Electra. She wants love, but isn't afraid to be assertive and stand up for herself when taken advantage of. Her strong side is shown in this song. "I'll chew you up and I'll spit you out. Cause that's what young love is all about" 10/10 2. Primadonna The first official single from the album. It's perfect first single. Forty second intro draws in the listener, just as the beat kicks in. The lyrics speak of Electra's need to be adored, as well as spoiled characteristic. The infectious lyrics are still dancing in my head, but I'm not complaining! The backing vocals cooing "WOW", "YEAH" and "OOH", were a really nice touch. 9.6/10 3. Lies After a lamenting intro starring Marina's fine vocals, "Lies" dives into Electra questioning her relationship's credibility. The instrumental works very well with vocal permanence, and the lyrics. Proof (along with Primadonna) that Dr. Luke can be just as great as any indie-producer's song. "What's the point of the playing, a game you're gonna lose? What's the point in saying you 'love me like a friend'?" 9.3/10 4. Homewrecker An airy intro, with spoken words, set the stage for this anthem's theme. "I don't belong to anyone". Written as a response to "Lies", "Homewrecker" finds the protagonist coming back, and breaking hearts "just for fun". She proves that she belongs to no one, and that she is the heart-breaker, not broken. "I'm only happy when I'm on the run, I break a million hearts just for fun. I don't belong to anyone" 10/10 5. Starring Role Similar to "Lies", Electra is unhappy with her lover, however in "Starring Role" she much more assertive, however her broken heart can still be heard underneath the strong exterior. "I'd rather walk alone" "Fed up with the fantasies". She dismisses her role in her lovers heart as too small, wishing to be the star. The production creates a sense of anxiety, as if the relationship is on the edge of shattering. 9.5/10 6. The State of Dreaming The song seems to recall the "Electra" is a fictional character lived through on the album. "I've been living a state of dreaming". Or it may recall that Electra lives in her own world, where her perspective on others is altered/warped. "Living in a make believe land". There is a certain sadness to the track, in all it's airy beauty. 9/10 7. Power & Control In the album's second single, the protagonist in at odds in her relationship. This time, is seemingly over dominance, and heartbreak. Electra has decided to break her lover's heart, before her heart is shattered, while also a playing a game. She desires to make him fall, hard. She is no longer under his control. "we can't have peace, without a war" 10/10 8. Sex Yeah "Sex, sex, sex sells" chimes. The beat of the introduction brings to mind factory work line, where soulless pop stars, are somehow mechanically produced. The song then announces that history has given little to allow people to be who they are. They're lives mapped out for them, due to gender, among other factors. The protagonist wants to find what history and society can give to her that's positive, at the same time encouraging listeners to question their morals, and the morals of the society. 10/10 9. Teen Idle The ode to regretted youth is emotionally devastating. The song connects to both adults and teens. Teens relate, who feel pressures of their age. I feel youth these days are put under much more pressure then the previous generation. Adults connect, as there are regrets from their youth. Easily one of, if not the best song on "Electra Heart", the song mixes sad vocals, with up beat cheer. "Feeling *Super Super Super* suicidal". The bridge brings the song full circle with self-deprecating lyrics of fear of living a lonely life. Eventually the protagonist "dies, only to find I've come to life". A possible rebirth? 10/10 10. Valley of Dolls The protagonist cannot go on in her current form. It seems her identities are crushing her, she wishes to just sleep in "the Valley of the Dolls". While it's tenor is downcast, a feeling of hope somehow permeates it. As if, she is letting go of her other personalities. Can she now just be herself? "But to zero, here we go again. Racing again into oblivion" These lyrics to me, recall "Numb" on Marina's debut. 10/10 11. Hypocrates An more upbeat song after the darker section of the album, Electra is finally done with the relationship. She comes to complete terms with his actions and his hypocritical behavior. The lightness of the track, seems to suggest she is not longer saddened by the relationship. She is just calling him out, no wars. 8.9/10 12. How to Be a Heatbreaker A lesson on how to be a hearbtreaker, Electra encourages having fun, and looking pure. She suggests not getting attached, as well never wearing a your heart on your sleeve. She now know how to keep her heart unbroken, and how to break to the others. She isn't taking anymore risks in love. "Girls don't, we don't want our hearts to break into... So it's better to be fake" 9/10 13. Radioactive One of the first songs debuted off "Electra Heart", "Radioactive" sees Electra finds a love that makes her feel electric.... Radioactive even. Easily the most electronic song on the album, Electra states "I'm the one who left you", not the other way around. It does makes sense to place Radioactive, after Heartbreaker, even thought their recording dates are far apart. 8.5/10 14. Fear & Loathing The conclusion to Electra's journey. It begins with a reflection of her life. It admits to the multitude of personalities, and her bitterness. However, she is not truly changed. She's realized that she must let go of her negativity. She is done with fruitless effort of "having it all". She has been saved, free to live in happiness now. The track ends with a haunting vocal by Marina's grandmother. It's beautiful, and strangely fitting. "I wanna touch the edge of greatness. Don't wanna be completely faithless." 10/10 "Electra Heart" is not "The Family Jewels", but why would you want the same album twice? Both are masterpieces in my opinion. It's Marina has stretched into territory - the sound works quite well. This album is one that requires analyzing and input. It's poetry will leave breathless - on the edge of greatness.

My review of this album is similar to this album: Perfectionist (Amazon MP3 Exclusive Deluxe Version) [Explicit] [+Digital Booklet ]. It is like Marina dove into my mind and programmed this CD to my personal sound taste. I'm glad she put out an album with more than 10 tracks, also. I feel like I'm getting jipped when its only 10 songs. I finally purchased the whole album after getting a taste of PRIMADONNA for free and finding it catchy and something fresh from a new artist(for me anyways). Marina did a great job on this album. Excellent beats along with snippy, dark-pop, introspective lyrics. Her ability to write creative lyrics is her biggest strength as an artist. I have yet to go back and listen to her older album, but this album stands very well on its own. I have read places that she wanted to go for a pop sound to make a statement and also fulfill a personal goal of being a pop star. I think with this album she could do that in the most ironic way. If she ever comes to my city to perform somewhere, I'd go. I'd want to see how her voice would sound live, what she really looks like through the lenz called my eye, and see how she does a show. Her voice has a unique overall sound and I'd be interested to see what she uses in her music. There are some neat instruments, sounds like the harp in PRIMADONNA. The reason I almost gave it a 4 instead of a 5 though was because her voice just sounds so much like Katy Perry's in certain songs. Not that its that bad, but she does some of the things that Katy Perry does with her voice that I don't enjoy. For example, when singing HYPOCRITES, I think she fluctuates her voice unnecessarily. At the same time, her voice is very sexy especially in lower registers. I love her voice because it has great pitch most of the time. I love the slight opera sound she has and she has amazing range. And the whole record sounds like an opera of her love life. My first few listens through the album I thought there were some songs that sounded similar to one another in theme and background. But after listening to the album for the better part of 2 months, I think she is just pure talent. I discovered songs that are on different versions of the album and I wish I could have those ones too. I've also tried catching clips on youtube and interviews w/ her. I hope that she doesn't lose her motivation like she did between Family Jewels and Electra heart because I'm interested to see what she comes up in the future. Highlights for me were RADIOACTIVE, PRIMADONNA, BUBBLEGUM BITCH, HOMEWRECKER, HOW TO BE A HEARTBREAKER and STARRING ROLE. Which is almost half the album. Yes it is really GOOD, listen to the whole thing. Update: Its been a little over a year and I still have this album on repeat. Even after I saw Marina live, I needed to hear at least one song of hers everyday. For this reason I changed my review to 5 stars. Marina is a diamond in the rough & I'd like to claim myself as one of her biggest diamonds.

Most of my music collection is not pop music. It's eclectic, but mostly indie. That being said I think this is an absolute triumph of pop music artistry. It's catchy, it's quirky, it's honest, and best-of-all the artist actually contributes to the songwriting. I really have no respect for artists that simply sing (likely auto-tuned) and dance but have little if any creativity. In any case I first heard about Marina from hearing "Primadonna" on the radio. I thought it was a very catchy and very clever pop song. Furthermore I thought Marina had a very pleasant voice and good vocal range. Obviously going with Dr. Luke as the producer of this song was a good choice as he really knew how to give the song that very infectious beat that makes you want to bob your head. I started looking for more of her songs and the next one I heard was "Power and Control". I was arguably even more impressed with that song, not only because of the stark contrast to "Primadonna" but because it also emphasized the honesty of her songs, her great vocal range, and the overall dark subject matter of the album itself. After hearing this song I knew she wasn't just a one-hit-wonder. I heard essentially the whole album before I bought it, but listening to the songs in bits and pieces just isn't the same as listening to the album all the way through. There really is a good focus to the album. Even if I didn't hear her explain it in an interview the album is obviously about the darker side of love and relationships. "Primadonna" is probably the most out-of-place song on the album but it's such a pleasure on its own you really couldn't leave it out. After owning the album for about 4 or 5 weeks I've probably listened to it 12 times in succession. "Lies", "In The Valley of The Dolls", "Lonely Hearts Club", and "Buy the Stars" are the best songs on the album that don't have a single. Of course the singles themselves are good too. I was a little disappointed to discover that "How to be a Heartbreaker" is not on the Deluxe Edition of the album. It isn't exactly one of my favorites, but it's just annoying that one CD doesn't have it all. I definitely think I bought the better version though, since I'd be giving up "Lonely Hearts Club", "Radioactive", and "Buy The Stars". This isn't a Britney Spears album, Marina can actually write and sing, and this isn't a Katy Perry album, you can actually tell each song has a personal meaning for her. She's not a fad, she's here to stay, love you Marina, every day!

I have never heard of this artist before this album, unlike many of the other reviewers that have been following her career. I love all kinds of music and get bored, even with great albums after listening to them a few times because the music and lyrics lose their effect after you hear them over and over again. I choose a lot of my music by sampling songs from albums or hearing one really good song I like and then doing research on that artist to see if they have a catalogue of songs I like. I still buy cd albums so, I don't buy just based on liking for 2 or 3 songs, I usually have to like/love more than 50% of the songs to purchase the album. That being said, I was especially draw to Electric Heart after hearing the 30 second sample tunes, because there was a different sound to the songs and I practically liked every clip I heard! Now most albums never live up to having all the songs being as good as you think they were when you hear the sample. Some will sound better but invariably some don't sound as good. The difference of with this album is that the songs keep you hooked even after hearing them several times. I guess many have tried to sum up the value of her style. Pop culture music with more complicated arrangements that make them more than just pop with lyrics that touch your soul and just enough quirkiness and multi layers that don't make you get tired of it after listening a couple of times. Whatever she has it is very good. This is the first album that have in my car cd player that I have listened for over 2 weeks straight and I am not tired of hearing it. This was surprising to me and that is what drove me to write this review. I am now on the hunt for more of her music!

I purchased the Electra Heart vinyl album by Marina and the Diamonds as a Christmas gift for my niece, and it was an absolute hit. The vinyl quality is top-notch, delivering a crisp and immersive listening experience that transports you right into Marina's world. My niece says every track on this album is a masterpiece, filled with catchy tunes and profound lyrics that resonate deeply. My niece couldn't be happier with this gift. Highly recommend for fans and vinyl enthusiasts alike!

The product is in perfect conditions

this album is so catchy and marinas voice is super unique to me, it's one of my favorite albums and the reason for that is i have way too favorite songs from this, it's quite hard to pick your favorite because every one is uniquely different and marinas voice makes it much better. maybe a bit better than TFJ?? bubblegum bitch (7/10) i like this song, especially the chorus but it's not one of my favorites but gives off a rock and roll kind of vibe i like it. this song had to grow on me. primadonna (8/10) one of her singles and i'd say one of her most popular?? (maybe not???) this song is super poppy once the chorus passes and it's catchy. i didn't see why this one wouldn't be a hit ~anyways~ lies (6/10) i haven't really gave this song a really good listen so i can't really give it a good rating but seems catchy???? homewrecker (9/10) one of my favorite songs, the beginning is so calm and i absolutely love this lyrics and the beat. especially the line "i break a million hearts just for fun" and "instead love and trust and laughter what you get is happy never after" it seems when i listen to this album i always go to this song first. starring role (5/10) i haven't listened to this song that many times, but one of those songs that i wouldn't listen to a lot so i can't judge with a big score, i guess this one has to grow on me but it's not bad. power and control (10/10) this is one of my favorite marina songs that i literally once discovered it i couldn't stop listening to it. the chorus is super catchy and i just love everything about it. it didn't even have to grow on me either, this song is one of the best on here. living dead (8/10) i kind of get an 80's vibe from this song, i love marinas voice in this song. teen idle (7/10) not one of my favorite songs but i really like the lyrics in this one. valley of the dolls (10/10) besides the creepy title which actually put me off on this song, when i first listened to this i didn't like it at all but it started to grow on me and it's one of my favorites, i totally thought this song was going to be really creepy but the melody in the song is really calm. how to be a heartbreaker (8/10) another one of marinas singles which i think is cute when she says "at least i think i do" i love this song and the beat but i wouldn't say would be one of my favorites but is close to it. radioactive (10/10) this song is kind of unique to me and i absolutely love her voice here! not quite good at reviewing, there are other songs i didn't mention like fear and loathing and the state of dreaming but i'm going to give those a listen. if you haven't bought this you totally should.

Ever since I started listening to Marina and the Diamonds I have been obsessed with her music. Electra Heart is Marina's sophomore album and although there might be some differences from her first one, this album is just as good and personally my favorite between the two. The lyrics and beats are catchy and have those good old Marina lyrics in them; her wonderful vocals chiming out over addictive pop sounds make for a good time. The album has two major different tones. Songs like Bubblegum Bitch, Primadonna and Home wrecker are feisty pop songs that entail sass and fun while songs like Teen Idle, starring Role and Valley of the Dolls take a darker tone of suicide, sadness and love loss. Most of the deeper songs have relatable and meaningful messages in them, like `Sex Yeah'. So if you're looking for a good album that gives you the feeling to dance, sing or cry I recommend Marina. +++Also the track listing on the album includes: How to be a Heartbreaker and Radioactive