Not Not Fun
Estonian-born London-based singer/producer Maria Minerva (born Maria Juur) worked herself to the bone in 2011 releasing two LPs for L.A.’s Not Not Fun and two EPs for its sister label 100% Silk. Though she hasn’t come close to that kind of productivity in 2012 Maria shows strides in continuing to push forward with her third album Will Happiness Find Me?
Despite the substantial media interest Maria hasn’t quite turned into that refined pop star just yet. Happiness sounds less like it was mixed underwater in a tin can yet is still very much in tune with her outsider milieu. First track “The Sound” shows some hope however with its crispier production lithe melody and perfectly danceable beat. It’s easily the most accessible thing she’s ever done.
But that moment of madness doesn’t last. Maria is too radical and uncompromising to give herself up to any kind of easy listening. Her bedroom-born avant-disco pop fluctuates between bizarre shapeless experiments (“Never Give Up” “Heart Like A Microphone”) and beatific dub-infused jams (“Sweet Synergy” “Mad Girl’s Love Song”). So really not anything profoundly different from her previous efforts but when you can hear Ariel Pink blaring inside Old Navy maybe a mainstream crossover for Maria wouldn’t be all that shocking in 2012.
