Once every few years the music community seems to come together and agree that one artist is undeniably brilliant. The last unambiguous example was Missy Elliott, and it is becoming exceedingly clear that 2005 will bring the coronation of the next phenomenon: Maya Arulpragasam, better known as M.I.A. Very simply, M.I.A. deserves all these accolades and more. Arular is not just a hot album; it comes dangerously close to brilliant.
Arulpragasam is a Sri Lankan refugee to Great Britain, and her music reflects both her South Asian heritage and the garage/two-step feel of the same London that brought Dizzee Rascal international prominence. This latter element shouldn’t discourage those who have been put off by the recent British invasion of hip-hop; where Rascal failed, M.I.A. succeeds masterfully.
Arular is nearly un-categorizable: killer hip-hop beats bounce off baile funk breaks played with South Asian instruments, with M.I.A. rapping and singing in enough languages to place the album in the dreaded world music section. Lead singles “Galang” and “Sunshowers” have effectively proven M.I.A.’s ability to rule the clubs. The former is a Timbaland wet dream of hand claps, crunk bass drops and nearly unintelligible shouts, while the latter is a beautifully constructed mix of rubberized drums and high-pitched samples that lets M.I.A.’s skill as an MC shine.
What Arular really proves is that M.I.A. can provide a full album’s worth of material, rather than just reign as a dancehall queen. The blaring horns, Kill Bill strings and pure sex appeal of “Bucky Done Gun” are enough to bring most listeners to their knees. The vocals of “Bingo” worked well mixed over Jay-Z’s “Big Pimpin’” on M.I.A.’s official Piracy Funds Terrorism, Vol. 1 mix tape from last year, and the vicious delivery kills over an original if overly-similar beat here. Still, it’s “10$,” M.I.A.’s critique on sex and power dynamics, that may best stand up against her singles-the intro is too long to work in a club, but her rhymes are tighter than Missy’s and the beat gives new meaning to the word “propulsive.” Debut records don’t come much better than this.
