Marina and the Diamonds

Marina And The Diamonds是BBC 2010年年度新聲亞軍得主，同年也獲得了MTV歐洲音樂獎最佳英國新人獎和被提名全英樂評人選擇獎。她是來自英國威爾士的一位女歌手,Marina從小便在音樂上擁有寫作的天賦。最終在2009年，簽約給了華納公司設(shè)立在英國的分廠牌679 Recordings，隨后第二年便為這位才女發(fā)行了第一張專輯The Family Jewels，展現(xiàn)以獨立流行為主要概念的流行作品。2012年Marina帶著第二張專輯Electra Heart回到大眾眼前，全新的曲風贏得一眾好評，英國開賣首周便獲得冠軍專輯稱號。值得一提的是Marina And The Diamonds并不是樂隊，而是只有Marina Diamandis一個人，“The Diamonds”指的則是自己的粉絲。而Marina的獨特的假音唱腔也讓人矚目。
by Jack Semmence
Marina and the Diamonds, really just Marina Diamandis (the Diamonds are the fans), was born in Wales to Welsh and Greek parents in 1986, although she has often claimed to be from Ancient Greece. After dropping out of four different music courses at four different universities, Marina decided to make her own way in music, and began writing her own unique brand of left-field pop songs under her new stage name. Early on, she claimed that her inspirations were Britney Spears and Gwen Stefani -- who she often covered at live gigs -- but her songs have a soulful edge pointing to a deeper source of influence.
Her piano/keyboard-driven songs vary from melancholic ballads to out-and-out glam-pop, but her unique voice and melodic style are omnipresent in her music. Essentially a solo artist, Marina wrote the bulk of her early material alone, arranging it for a band to ensure her live shows carried the full energy of her studio recordings. Quick to distance herself from comparisons to the rest of the female solo artists who broke through in 2009, Marina was also open about voicing her opinions on more established musical peers including Lily Allen and Kate Nash. In interviews she often showed a dislike of being grouped together with other emerging artists, especially when she had nothing in common with them except gender. The variety in her music made it hard to classify or pigeonhole, and comparisons were made with artists as diverse as Regina Spektor and Elvis Costello. The startling "cuckoo!" refrain of "Mowgli's Road" and the introspective balladry of "Obsessions" could not be more different, but it was the ever-present charm in Marina's music that brought her cult success in the early part of her career.
Her first single, "Obsessions/Mowgli's Road" was issued by indie label Neon Gold in the U.S., also home to electro-indie Americans Passion Pit, and was followed later in 2009 by The Crown Jewels EP, which contained three new songs, including an electronic remix of fan favorite "I Am Not a Robot." After playing the exhausting British festival circuit in the summer of 2009, Marina briefly retired to the studio to polish off her debut album, The Family Jewels, before quickly hitting the road again in late 2009.