Mika

I am so behind on listening to new and recent CDs that it's almost not funny. But I have a good excuse, one that I'll probably share with you (either directly or indirectly) next month. I also have a not-so-good excuse -- basically, the simple fact that I've been having quite a bit more fun blogging about this kind of stuff than music lately. But anyway, now that the forementioned good excuse is no longer occupying nearly as much of my time as it was, I should be able to get caught up on recent arrivals in the next few weeks. Here's to me not calling myself a liar...!

MIKA
"THE BOY WHO KNEW TOO MUCH"
(Universal Republic, 2009)


It seems that, quite often, I end up liking an artist's sophomore release more than their debut, and Mika is the latest example. For this album he seems to have toned his overall sound down a notch or two, mostly forsaking the high flamboyance of tracks like "Grace Kelly" in favor of the comparatively mild tones of tracks like "My Interpretation". But then, I could be wrong and I might be hearing just as campy a set of songs as on "Life In Cartoon Motion", since I already knew what to expect from him based on that album (as well as the cover of this new one carrying on the busy technicolor theme started by it).

The more obvious sign of change is that there are more quiet moments on the album -- the lush "I See You" is almost like Scissor Sisters doing a OneRepublic ballad, and the delicate "By The Time" kind-of sounds like a lost track off an Imogen Heap album. The rest of the disc is lively like its predecessor, but somehow without being obnoxious (not that his debut was) -- "Touches You" reminds me of George Michael's "Father Figure" as if it were written for a High School Musical group number; "Blame It On The Girls" is good, fun, classic Mika; and I totally love the festive Latin beat of "Blue Eyes", probably my favorite track on the album. The '80s synth-pop groove of "Rain" and the torchy sway of closing track "Pick Up Off The Floor" do nicely to round out the variety of sounds on the set.

It's not that I necessarily like his new album more than his first specifically because he's mellowed out a bit -- heck, I never would have bought this one in the first place if I didn't like his debut as much as I did. It's just that artists who regularly pile on such aural embellishments can come off (to me, at least) as being pretentious and gimmicky, and would wear out their welcome if they carried the act on to a second album. But Mika seems to walk the tightrope between his previous antics and a more mature approach well enough to make it seem like a natural transition ... or at least, a step toward it.

Dr. John - MIKA