MATA: Punchy, Bold and Beautifully Bizarre

Contemporary, innovative and known for her experimental approach to music, London-born rapper M.I.A has released her sixth studio album MATA after a six-year wait, having taken a step back from the music industry, pledging to “redefine” her sound.

A liberating, mind-provoking amalgamation of hip-hop, dance and elements from world music, MATA is a continuation of M.I.A’s boundary-pushing creativity, propelled by the rapper’s distinctive wild beats, fast-flowing lyrics and extensive sampling. Inspired by both her childhood spent in Sri Lanka, India and London, and many prevailing political and economic standpoints, MATA is a bold, ‘in-your-face’ album.

In May of this year, the rapper teased the release of the album with the single ‘The One’, a melodic track with a heavy bass and an upbeat, catchy chorus. This was met with mixed reviews for its modern sound, whilst seen as still staying true to the artist’s distinctive style.

MATA has a more refined and mature sound than its predecessor AIM (2016). However, with this album, M.I.A seems to fall back on her signature avant-garde music style with heavy sampling and choppy percussion which she has been known for since the release of her debut album Arular (2005).  

The album begins with a gritty two-song opening named ‘F.I.A.S.O.M (Freedom Is A State Of Mind)’ (Pt.1 and Pt.2), which incorporate M.I.A’s traditional agile beats and sampling with some truly provocative lyrics. Her raw vocals during the chorus are haunting.

One of the most interesting tracks is the appropriately named ‘100% Sustainable’, an acapella-esque sound paired with M.I.A’s compact and nimble rhyming style. Possibly a little self-indulgent, it includes no musical instruments, only the voices of women, with the artist’s lead vocals being the centre of the song. Ending with the bold declaration, “this is 100% organic, human-made, with care,” the song certainly has the fallback of being another one of M.I.A’s brave experiments.

Other tracks such as ‘Beep’, ‘Energy Freq’ and ‘Popular’ are well-produced and reliable, but can perhaps be seen as nostalgic nods to M.I.A’s roots rather than groundbreaking creations.

A personal favourite of mine is the eighth track of the album ‘Time Traveller’. The repetition of the chorus is catchy, but with the explosive verses and minimalistic style, it is a fun and playful track. The spiritual ambience of the song seems to encompass ideas of astronomy, beautifully mixed with historical happenings from both her own life and world-wide, giving it an otherworldly feel.

M.I.A ends the Album with ‘Marigold’, a rap ballad surrounding the events of recent times. A “no-hope” mindset is addressed, with the forlorn mood set by lyrics such as “we’re gonna need a miracle” starkly contrasting the rabble-rousing entrance of the album.

After a six-year wait, M.I.A is back, and what impresses me most is the way that she constantly manages to be ahead of her time, despite being seen as an older artist. She manages to collect distinctive artistic styles from a plethora of genres and mould them together to create outlandish and intriguing art, with MATA being no exception.

MATA is available on all streaming platforms now.