Marina and the Diamonds
American Jewels EP
(Chop Shop/Atlantic)

Marina and the Diamonds is a five-person group fronted by Greek-Welsh songstress Marina Diamondis, a passionate, quirky singer who caught my attention a few months ago with the lovely song, “I’m Not a Robot.” Whilst we wait for the full-length album, The Family Jewels to come out on May 25th, we have a small EP, called American Jewels, to listen to for a few short minutes. The EP contains the song I spoke of, followed by an overly-mixed Passion Pit remake of the same song, and the song, “Mowgli’s Road,” which has the bonus addition of some hoots and yodels.

There isn’t a lot to say about this EP except that it gets your ears ready for what is to come, which should be pretty great. The Passion Pit remake seems to take Marina’s voice and the music to a much higher level and faster tempo that they sound good at. Marina started as a DIY musician, using Garageband to self-compose and produce her music, but quickly climbed the charts to reach the number two slot on the BBC’s ever-prescient “Sound of 2010” ranking. She is now a regular sensation, touring around the U.K. and coming to the Lilith Fair this summer. NME calls her “astonishing” so watch out.