MIA-Paper Planes(the single)

XL Recordings

by: Lee Jon

At what point does whining become singing? It’s hard to tell on M.I.A’s riff raff of a song, Paper Planes. The sound on this track evokes a sonic landscape uncommon to American ears; the disjointed melodies and rhymes clash together to form an almost kindergartenish presentation. Part of the problem is it lacks the smooth synchronization of lyrics to beat that’s so common in pop. To the first time listener the following thought may come to mind upon first listen : “How do some people with seemingly so little talent get so lucky?” After all, with over 2 million plays on YouTube, this dame isn’t starving for attention. But listen a few more times and the whining becomes melodic. It becomes a sonic purr that grows on you like a blister. Much of the allure of this track is tied to its maddening simplicity. Think if the movie Castaway were a song. The way Tom Hanks spoke volumes in his silence she does so through stripped down intensity. Her lyrics on the track speak to the every day lives of the poor and working class and perhaps it should make us overlook the childish antic that is her production. Although, she lives in Brooklyn, she is the product of a politically unstable upbringing in Sri Lanka. It’s a place where political chaos bubbles from underneath. She knows what it means to be downtrodden and oppressed and she speaks volumes from the heart. On this track she serves up just enough lyrical excitement to shake the mind electric.

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