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24
LIFESTYLE
CHRONICLE
19
18
05
THE ORIGIN OF LOVE
Mika
(Pop)
FIVE years after his debut album Life in
Cartoon Motion, Mika returns with his third
studio album. Unlike his previous albums,
The Origin of Love is “not as layered” and
features “simplistic pop music”, as described
by Mika in interviews.
Contrary to his statement, this album
still sounds distinctly Mika. Keeping to his
psychedelic-pop musical style, The Origin of
Love is infused with catchy beats accompanied
by his distinctive vocals.
Daft Punk and Fleetwood Mac have been
named by Mika as influences on his musical
style, which may go some way to explain
the usage of electronic beats in most of the
tracks in this album.
Unfortunately, this experiment in musical
style produces mixed results.
For instance, the thumping electronic
beat of ‘Overrated’ overpowers Mika’s underwhelming
delivery. Furthermore, ‘Love You
When I’m Drunk’ features an uninspiring
beat that serves to distract listeners from
Mika’s strong vocals than complement them.
Yet, the electronica element is triumphant
in ‘Emily’, which is easily the standout track
on this album. As a drum beat loops and
synthesisers play in the background, Mika
playfully exhorts a lady named Emily to live
her life to her fullest. Never falling out of step
with Mika’s vocals, the electronic-inspired
instrumentation is used most effectively in
this song.
Despite the goofiness of the lyrics in
‘Emily’, The Origin of Love has lyrics that
are otherwise a step up from previous Mika
albums. Handling deeper themes such as war,
bullying and romance, the lyrics are thoughtprovoking
and belie the catchy music.
In ‘Kids’, Mika makes his anti-war point
with lyrics like, “There won’t be a me and
you/ If we keep on fighting like we do” and
“Take your kid gloves on, this is love not
war/ Give our peace a chance, make it worth
fighting for”. Sobering lyrics like these recur
throughout the album, giving it a depth that
goes beyond what one may call shallow pop
music.
Bullying, which Mika was a victim of
during his childhood, is also covered in
‘Popular Song’. Unlike the earnestness of the
other lyrics, the lyrics in this track mock the
bullies of Mika’s childhood, with sarcastic
lines like “Standing on the field with your
pretty pompons/ Now you’re working at the
movie selling popular corn”.
Love and heartbreak is also a commonlyraised
theme in The Origin of Love. ‘Lola’, the
second track on the album, explains how
somebody may choose to reject the notion
of romance through lyrics like, “What’s the
point in singing silly love songs/ Who do
they think they are to tell us”
‘Stardust’, the following track, contains
emotional lyrics that almost contradict the
energetic electronic beat, such as “Throw me
HIGH FIVE: Since the release of his debut album five years ago, Mika has won five music awards. PHOTO | INTERNET
a lifeline and open my door/ And pick up my
heart that you left on the floor”.
Heavy-handed as some of the lyrics may
seem, Mika still manages to deliver them
convincingly in a sterling vocal performance.
In numerous songs, he displays astonishing
vocal control across a wide range of notes.
This is best seen in ‘Make You Happy’, where
Mika croons the opening verses, but shifts
to his falsetto with little effort during the
final bridge. Mika’s evident singing talent
is one of the highlights of this album, and
with good reason.
The Origin of Love is, in Mika’s words, a
more simplistic effort than his previous albums.
However, he has still managed to show
his growth as a songwriter and as a vocalist
in this album. While the electronica-based
instrumentation is largely disappointing, the
album is another enjoyable effort from the
flamboyant Brit.
-ER QI JIAN
BOOKS
THIS IS LIFE (FICTION)
Dan Rhodes
$32.95 at Books Kinokuniya
Published by Cannongate Books
IS throwing a pebble at strangers considered
art Aurélie Renard thought so. She had it
all planned out. Her pebble would hit someone
fantastically interesting, and she would
follow that person for a week, sketching
the scenes of his or her interesting life. Her
completed art project would gain the admiration
and support of her peers and professors.
Instead, she hits a baby in the face.
Aurélie is left with no choice but to yield
to the mother’s wishes, who decides to leave
her baby, Herbert, in Aurélie’s care for one
week as a punishment. From here, Aurélie’s
week begins unfold dramatically.
Set in Paris, This is Life is author Dan
Rhodes’ fifth novel. The book chronicles the
intertwining lives and situations of Aurélie
and the city’s other residents.
Rhodes keeps things light and interesting
by introducing many unconventional characters.
Le Machine is an artist who promotes
his art piece, which consists of collecting
every excretion from his body in giant
glass jars. Sylvie, Aurélie’s best friend, is
so beautiful that two of her former lovers
who have been obsessed with her killed
themselves when she ended their respective
relationships. Not forgetting Eric Rousset,
the owner of the last surviving erotic cinema
in the whole of Paris.
The narratives of all these characters
are intrinsically linked to one another, and
Rhodes’ writing style is charming enough
that the reader is willing to suspend all
disbelief and accept these coincidences.
But some parts are still too unbelievable.
The mood of the entire novel is playful,
and in line with the humourous plot.
Rhodes repeatedly pokes fun at modern
artists who take themselves too seriously.
He caricaturizes them through the character
of Sebastien, a snobbish and arrogant
artist who always orders the most unpronounceable
coffees. Sebastien is often
shown making over-confident claims of his
definite future glory and brilliant ability
to ‘subvert the zeitgeist’.
However, because the novel brings in
so many interesting characters, there is
too little space left for plot development.
Although This is Life spans over 400 pages
long, most of it is spent on descriptions and
internal monologues.
As a result, the connections between
the characters end up being quite predictable,
and there is no real motivation
that drives the story forward. In fact, the
entire story is laid out within the first
three-quarters of the book, and the happy
ending of the book is dragged out over the
last 100 pages.
Although the book often veers off
into the fantastical, Rhodes still manages
to keep the reader hooked onto the book.
His medley of unique characters and their
antics is more than good enough to keep
readers entertained. This is Life may not
be the most groundbreaking or influential,
but it is still worth a look.
-TAN DEYONG
THE PROSECUTOR
(NON-FICTION)
Glenn Knight
$24.61 at Books Kinokuniya
Published by Marshall Cavendish
TO call Glenn Knight’s The Prosecutor
an autobiography would be off the mark.
While the book does touch on the personal
life of the once powerful Deputy Public
Prosecutor, it is mainly a recount of the
cases Knight took when he served in the
Singapore Legal Service.
His distinguished career was marred
by legal troubles. He served as the first
Director of the Commercial Affairs
Department and in 1980, received the
Gold Public Administrator Medal. He was
disbarred in 1991 after being convicted
of corruption and was again convicted in
1998 for misappropriating money while in
office. In 2007, he was reinstated after garnering
support from members of the Bar.
Knight’s trials garnered much public
scrutiny and The Prosecutor is his way
of standing up for himself. He presents
his claim of innocence through a short
chronicle of his early life before narrating
the various court cases that defined
his influential position. Through these
cases, Knight presents himself as one who
honours justice and integrity.
Despite the initial letdown upon realizing
that The Prosecutor reads like a
casebook, readers will soon realise that the
court cases are as captivating as Knight’s
life. From corruption to homicides, Knight
makes it a point to describe each case
vividly and in layman terms. He spares
no details, even in the most gruesome
murder cases, allowing readers to paint an
elaborate picture of every case.
He also tears apart the notion of an absolutely
just and formidable legal system.
In a chapter that recounts the collapse of
Pan-Electric Industries in 1986, Knight reveals
that Mr Tan Koon Swan, a prominent
stakeholder found guilty of abetment in
criminal breach of trust, was in fact innocent.
“It was extremely painful for me
to suddenly discover that the Singapore
courts had got it so wrong,” wrote Knight.
While the Attorney-General’s Chambers
claims that Knight got his facts wrong in
that chapter, readers are nonetheless given
both sides of the story to form their own
opinions on the final verdict.
That being said, Knight’s failure to
elaborate on his own trials is puzzling. In
his book, Knight claims innocence. If that
is true, readers cannot help but wonder
why he spent so little pages backing up that
claim. Perhaps the man still has something
to hide, or perhaps, as he says, he would
rather not “dwell on those dark days”.
Whichever it is, one can only wonder.
In short, The Prosecutor is more than
a chronicle of a lawyer’s life — it is an
insight to Singapore’s legal sphere. It is
not for readers who expect to have their
heartstrings tugged by sorrowful cries
of injustice, but more for those who wish
to have an glimpse into the struggles of
those who have the power to save lives and
thwart deaths through the arms of the law.
-LIU KAI YING
BOOKS FROM BOOKS KINOKUNIYA