She's Marina, We're The Diamonds, And That Was The Rate [Finalized]

Maki

Maki

R.I.P. "Primadonna", gone too soon. Even though I said a lot about it in the commentary, there are still a few things left to say, but later.


Kind of glad that "Hollywood" and "Obsessions" left at this point, because they were not one of my three remaining 9+ scores. I may call them slightly overrated, but even that sounds harsh.

"Hollywood" is great, but that chorus lacks a little more punch and sounds like it's a bit too reserved (for example, "Oh No!" does that explosive chorus much better).

And "Obsessions" was a really weird one to score. It was my least favorite song from the album some time ago, and then grew on me immensely (like "Numb" did).
Although I don't have OCD, the supermarket panic bit (and irrational fears in general) is extremely relatable to me. I always feel like I'm in the spotlight whenever in a public place, especially in those crowded supermarkets.
The song itself has sort of a 'classic' feel to it (especially the chorus) and those lyrics are something that only Marina could write. Unfortunately, the melody misses something interesting and 'Marina-sounding', which is the only thing that brings it down (at least @DJHazey agrees).
Oh, and those are 'ah-ah-ah' in the middle-8? I always though she sang 'pa, pa, pa' there.. now it finally clicked.
That's probably the best part of the song. It still grows on me, and I can totally understand the massive appeal of the song.


Either way, "Mowgli's Road" should've been the highest ranked single from "The Family Jewels".
Now rooting for "Oh No!" to be the 'crowning jewel' of that album.
 
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Subspace

Subspace

He/Him
Now you all stan The Family Jewels.
giphy.gif
 
Maki

Maki

Subspace88 said:
Now you all stan The Family Jewels.
giphy.gif
Click to expand...
While we're at it, here are some 'fun' facts with my scores for "The Family Jewels":
- Only one album track (i.e. non-single) had a score lower than 8,75 ("Hermit the Frog" with 6,5).
- All of the album tracks (i.e. non-singles), except "Hermit the Frog", had higher scores than "Shampain", "I Am Not a Robot", "Obsessions" and "Hollywood" (that's 4/6 singles)
- The only album where a single received the lowest score ("Shampain" with 5,5).

It's funny how all of the fan-favorites from that album aren't that special to me and how vast majority of my favorites were eliminated early (poor "Rootless", among others).
 
Phonetics Girl

Phonetics Girl

she/her
"(Laughs) Well I’m always talking to myself, in every song, that I’ll ever write, in my life. (Chortles at length) I like to say it’s about relationships just to look a bit more normal, but it never is! (Laughs) No, but it’s definitely to myself."



7.
I-Am-Not-A-Robot-Cover.jpg


8.96

+2
(+0.14)

11: @Posh Spears
Highest: 10x26 (@Sprockrooster, @Bangers&Bops, @soratami, @Miyawakiwi, @dancingwithmyself, @Verandi, @pop3blow2, @lehnw01, @happiestgirl, @Cundy, @tylerc904, @Pecans, @maverick_79, @Subspace88, @enjoy v2.0, @RUNAWAY, @Hurricane Drunk, @djmakemewet, @Trouble in Paradise, @Oleander, @sfmartin, @rdp, @Remorque, @Vixen, @Sally_Harper, @Cutlery)
Lowest: 4x1 (@OspreyQueen)
@əʊæ: 8.5​

I Am Not A Robot totally became even better for me when I finally got that she’s singing to herself. I grew up with an undiagnosed disorder which contributed to feeling emotionally repressed and not making worthwhile friends until I went to university. I guess it’s heartwarming to know there’s someone out there who grapples with similar issues and appears to have their shit together, you know. It gave me hope that maybe one day I’ll have my shit together too. There’s still a long road ahead of me, but that’s why songs like this are so important. I Am Not A Robot is there for me when I don’t have the strength to remind myself it’s ok to feel shit and that world is not ending around me just cause of that. That was my sob story. What’s yours?


@OspreyQueen (4): "I like that she spoke out about toxic masculinity before most people even recognised it existed…but that’s pretty much all I like about this one. It’s a nauseatingly twee slog of a song which, like many other songs on this album, doesn’t seem to know what it’s trying to say. I mean…surely “don’t be so pathetic” is one of the worst things you can say to someone struggling with societal pressure?" That's how self-loathing works? It's not the best word choice but she's obviously trying to buid herself up and it's not like we are taught to cut ourselves slack. I can relate to that, though I know to do better in 2019.

@imaduck (6): "I never really quite got why this song was a single? I think if Bjork wrote this it would be heartbreaking but Marina never seems to commit to the concept as well as she does on other tracks (see seventeen, happy and most of Electra Heart) The Starsmith remix is infinitley superior" I do prefer the remix, but pls, I'm too basic to relate to Bjork.

@abael (7): "I haven't decided yet if the lyrics are silly or superb. Good track regardless." Superb, there you have it.

@Stradiwhovius (7.25): "Actually my first experience of Marina was searching for this song when a piano instrumental of it was used in bupa adverts." Tf is a bupa? It sounds like a blend of words for snot and ass in Polish, so maybe I don't wanna know after all.

@Maki (7.5): "I have a very alienating thoughts about this song. I know it's one of the fan favorites, but sonically it never clicked with me as much. Some great moments throughout, especially once the pre-chorus kicks in. The instrumental outro is really good, with those violins and the middle-8 is another high point of the song. Bonus 'fun fact': my younger cousin has that awful TikTok application and while showing me some of the popular videos there, "I'm Not a Robot" appears in quite an amount of recent ones (the 'you're just a little baby' bit). I guess it's some kind of a trend or something. Those random song popularity and exposures will never make sense to me." Another fun fact: until, like, today I thought that she's singing "you're just a little Pippi", as in Pippi Langstrumpf. With her referencing Mowgli on the same album that seemed totally plausible to me, I guess?

@DJHazey (8): "The first Marina song I was introduced to and I was actually lukewarm to it at first, but I grew to like it more and more as the years went by. Love how the "whaaat" reminds me of "youuu" from Hypocrates, which helped the song come to life for me a little bit. I must say though I've kind of left it behind more recently. Hearing it now after a long time isn't exactly making me run to hit play a few more times, like I'm doing with some of these other early tracks."

@Ana Raquel (9): "Possibly when I first heard about her. Would have scored a bit lower if not for nostalgia value."

@Music Is Life (9): "Love the production, and the lyrics are great. Not one of my faves though."

@Dijah. (9): "What a song. WHAT a song."

@babes aloud (9.3): "Oh yeah, Marina has that somh where she sounds like April Kepner." *googles April Kepner* Oh, I saw her before. It's just that I always changed the channel and never bothered to learn because of whom.

@Subspace88 (10): "Ouch. Relatable." Guess the slap was felt, then?

@Trouble in Paradise (10): "I once wrote a double digit paged paper on this and Royksopp and Robyn’s “I”m in Love with a Robot” and how they relate to straight woman’s experiences dating men who have been inundated with toxic masculinity. I argued that both songs used the metaphor of a robot to represent a man who was incapable of expressing emotions and vulnerability. Robyn was stuck lamenting her situation to a third party whereas Marina was singing to her man begging him to open up. So yeah, I’ve listened to this song quite possibly a thousand times and I still aboslutely adore it." I like this interpretation. It's also interesting to compare the way I immediately assumed that she's singing to a woman. Mona sis...the projecting!

@sfmartin (10): "Perfect. Such a fantastic song. This is the first song that really made me pay attention at the very beginning."

@happiestgirl (10): "Almost my 11! Her best lyrics. This kind of sparse production centered on her voice is so heartbreaking"

@Pecans (10): "I remember seeing the video for this on some music channel and wondering who this amazing woman was. Marina was always such an innovator in her early days and Robot is certainly one of the jewels in her crown."

@maverick_79 (10): "best song on the album"

@Vixen (10): "Ahhh, a classic, isn't it? Again, this one is just...immensely relatable. Probably because a lot of us (especially if we're around the same age as Marina) probably all felt that emotional detachment she sings...right around the time she released this song. We love the soundtrack to our lives!"

@Sally_Harper (10): "Incredible. Those VOCALS."

@Sprockrooster (10): "There can be times I am a bit sick of this song, but for this rate I am handing it a 10 as it has any right to win this for the times it moves me. Those lyrics are among her best. On the nose perhaps, but so easily to connect with."

@Bangers&Bops (10): "This is the song that got me into her way back in 2008/2009. I would say this was probably my gateway into indie pop and phew gurls I was not ready."

@Miyawakiwi (10): "I can only imagine how much it took for her to get all that glitter off once the video shooting was over lol"

@Verandi (10): "The Marina song I cheris the most. I would listen to it much much more if it wasn't for the emotional baggage attached to it. The verses exactly describe a person that, five years ago, I would have died for. An incredible song, but a difficult listen."

@pop3blow2 (10): "Probably my favorite song on the album. The kind of quirky melody her voice wraps around perfectly. An introverted anthem for the captcha generation."

@Cutlery (10): "An emotional song through Marina's lens gives us a little gear sounds, a little robot comparisons, and 100% something I unabashedly love. I don't have that much to say because, at its core, it is a very bare bones song and simple concept, with a perfect result."






​


From now on it's all 9s!​
 
swim

swim

he / him
‘I Am Not a Robot’ is probably her best song. It distills everything about her that makes her great into a fantastic and quirky little package. I remember it being played everywhere, it’s definitely bigger than people realise because you’ll always see people singing along to it. Brilliant song.
 
Subspace

Subspace

He/Him
The end of of I Am Not A Robot (around the 2:42 mark) where she properly belts out the choruses with the full production kicking in is divine. Deserves 7th place. Also, I only just noticed the LA video has a slightly different instrumental to it. Flop fan.

I bet she's still triggered by glitter after filming that video though. My favourite comment underneath the video:
Oh, so when Marina covers herself in black glitter it's "artistic" and "visually stunning" but when I do it I'm "embarrassing myself in front of the guests" and "making a mess on the carpet"
Click to expand...
 
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Maki

Maki

Sorry to say this, but "I Am Not a Robot" ended up overrated. Actually, it's my third lowest score for "The Family Jewels" album.
I can get the appeal for "Obsessions", but "I Am Not a Robot" always sounded a bit too 'sterile' for a Marina song to me, especially during that era. Of course, it has beautiful moments that were already noted, although it's nowhere near the highs of her career.

"I'm a Ruin" and "Blue" can go next.
 
P'NutButter

P'NutButter

I adore 'I Am Not A Robot' purely because it was one of the first tracks of hers I heard, I think it was the demo version too?! It's a bit dated production wise, but it's still decent.
 
Phonetics Girl

Phonetics Girl

she/her
"Instead of living in a bubble and worrying about stupid things, I wish I'd lived every day a bit more. I've never been reckless at all and I wish I had been. I've had this realisation in the past year."


6.
teen-idle.jpg


9.01

+1
(+0.09)

11: @dancingwithmyself, @P'NutButter, @Petty Mayonnaise
Highest: 10x22 (@mokitsu, @soratami, @Miyawakiwi, @abael, @Ana Raquel, @lehnw01, @DJHazey, @happiestgirl, @tylerc904, @BEST FICTION, @maverick_79, @Dijah., @Kenny, @nikkysan, @Trouble in Paradise, @Oleander, @evilsin, @Music Is Life, @Vixen, @Sally_Harper, @Posh Spears, @Cutlery)
Lowest: 6x1 (@Cundy)
@əʊæ: 7​

So I have beef with Teen Idle’s production. What the fuck did you think you were doing, Liam Howe? Remaking Jem's hits? The Elite, your thin-ass drums suck. Song with lyrics as cutting as Teen Idle deserves smn more than this kind of mid-00s nursery rhyme wankery. A propos lyrics, they’re obviously quite amazing but I get a little too uncomfortable to give the track repeated listens. I was a fucking miserable teenager too, but also I’ve never had regrets that I wasn’t anything more than that. Just lack of imagination on my part I suppose. So, yeah, I’m not gonna bother with some long ass dissertation analysis of the lyrics. I’m sure we’ve all been there anyway.


@Sprockrooster (7): "I stanned this hard at the release, but I can now honestly say I can do without."

@Verandi (8): "The fan fave. K. It's mostly iconic for that video of her singing it to a group of kids."

@sfmartin (8): "I love the way she says "wasted yurs". Feeling Super super suicidal is an inspired lyric."

@imaduck (8.5): "wordy ballad Marina is my favorite Marina, this hasn't aged a day has it?"

@Maki (8.5): "Another one of those fan favorites, which totally makes sense. The lyrics are amazing, as well as the most of the song. I always wanted something even more sad melodically from it, in order to fit those lyrics even more. The delivery juxtaposition in the 'feeling super, super, super...' bit is great and so clever, though."

@japanbonustrack (9): "when what you thought you had buried very deep comes back from the dead to haunt you 10 years later. the chorus after the middle 8 sounds like the confrontation, the boss battle. the outro sounds like owning your own past."

@OspreyQueen (9): "I weirdly don’t have a whole lot to say about this one, even though I played it like every day when I was 12. But I will say I love how the song’s tone lilts between outright sad to…sort of hopeful-ish, which gives a bit of reprise to such a dark subject."

@Stradiwhovius (9): "While I do, yes, feel this on an emotional level and have certainly listened to it repeatedly when I felt aimless and wanted to die, it feels like fanservice to the Tumblr fanbase beyond a point I can ignore."

@babes aloud (9.1): "Only here because it demonstrates an archetype."

@Miyawakiwi (10): "Wasted youth being the theme here, as a gay guy i surely wish i would’ve spent my highschool years differently lol."

@abael (10): "Production takes a step back so Marina can take center stage for what is one of her best performances so far."

@Ana Raquel (10): "ME????? Giving a 10???? To a BALLAD???????????? And, for some time, this was my most played Marina song. Shocking. I don't know, it just gets me?."

@DJHazey (10): "Objectively, this is probably the crown jewel of the album with astonishing lyrics that hit deep. The contrast between Marina's often playful vocals with such dark themes is so staggering, obviously highlighted by "super-super-super-suicidal" in that sarcastically bubbly manner."

@happiestgirl (10): "This was seventeen year old me's favorite song. Yes, blood, guts, and angel cake was the name of my tumblr. In retrospect it's kind of a ridiculous song, but I'm still throwing it a 10 for nostalgia purposes. Marina really was the perfect popstar for your average depressed teenage girl with a tumblr"

@Kenny (10): "I still go back to my late teens whenever I listen to this song. However I never thought about burning a bible."

@Trouble in Paradise (10): "What self respecting Marin stan can’t help but throw at least 9 points to “Teen Idle!?” Is it absolutely absurd? Yes! Does it crushingly capture my own reflections on my much wasted adolescence? YES! Most of y’all know the wonderful experience of delayed adolescence us queers get to go through hand this song feels like the soundtrack to both that experience and the bitter reality that there really wasn’t another option,"

@Vixen (10): "A classic...literally a classic. Electra Heart at its core."

@Sally_Harper (10): "The cheerleader-esque chants on“feeling super super super...suicidal” are a stroke of genius. I find it so affecting and I can’t even explain why."

@Cutlery (10): "I mean I had "Instead of being 16 and burning up a Bible / Feeling super super super! Suicidal" as my Facebook header for a couple months seven years back. To say this helped shape my early teen years would be an understatement. I breathed this song. I was obsessed. I can write a copypasta about it using that one ATRL "Camila leaves Fifth Harmony" meltdown as a basis. I barely listen to it nowadays but it's just… I have too many memories attached to it that I know this song will stay there as a grateful moment from my middle school years, in the midst of your typical closeted gay drama. Thank you M."

@Dijah. (10): "Alright, I’m gonna be corny and sentimental real quick. Teen Idle is the Marina song that’s closest to my (Electra) heart. This was the song that made me stan her as an angsty 15-year-old who spent too much time on Tumblr and just realized she was depressed as fuck. Upon the first few listens, I internalized the hell out of this song—I couldn’t listen to it without sobbing my eyes out by the end. As much as I wanted to die and shouldn’t have been listening to a song so openly about suicide, I just felt like Marina understood me. I felt seen. I didn’t understand at the time how this 20-something Welsh woman with a life experience so different from mine managed to make me, a 15-year-old Black American girl, feel like I could somehow relate to her. Life got a little better in the last 6 years, thankfully, but I hadn’t connected to an artist this deeply at the time (except for, like, Lana Del Rey, because every sad Tumblr girl already stanned her). The big metaphors on Teen Idle really got me back then, but I think I now appreciate the track more for the production and her voice. Marina sounds amazing on this, the instrumental is hard-hitting, and her mind is so very powerful for coming up with this song and having the courage to share it. Marina is one of the bravest pop girls I stan because she’s not afraid to tell us just how bad things have gotten for her. But she survived. She now ~~enjoys her life~~ Teen Idle, as melodramatic as it is and should be, is a masterpiece and the single best hate letter to adolescence that I could have stumbled upon at such a vulnerable time. Thank you for attending my Ted Talk."
This was so beautiful. Thank you ❤️


@P'NutButter (11): "she may not like it very much, but I do. I have the music video in my head ready to go..."​





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