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It could have been remarkably easy for M.I.A. to go for broke and take the yellow-bricked road to the underwhelming R & B genre so common on a third album. Thank God for the unconventional London rapper, because instead of being another Keri Hilson, we get an electro, bold, strange and polarising album. One of the definite highlight is Born Free, in which the controversial video, featuring a genocide against redheads, had really taken attraction off the actual song. Really, what makes this song genius is how different it sounds to anything else on the album. Her vocals are definitely noted as she screams defiantly, (I don't wanna talk about money cos' I got it) Different to this is the closest thing to pop on the album, XXXO, in which she rallies about the blatant sexualisation of children, the biased media and Quentin Tarintino. possibly the best are heavy industrial songs like the mechanical whines in the fantastic Steppin' Up, or the possible-best song Teqkilla, in which we get those same unbelievably catchy lines (I got sticky icky icky icky wiiiiiiid/I got shots of tequila in me) Is it a good album? Yes, but some songs are just too ridiculous for M.I.A., like the undeniably irritating Space. However, many hit the right note, but this is not conventional M.I.A. so many fans will recoil at how artistic it is. I however, very much enjoyed it and that's why I'm giving it 9/10.

9/10

Teo