Customer Reviews

Life in Cartoon Motion

5 star:		(107)
4 star:		(30)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

When I saw the video for "Grace Kelly" back in January 2007 I sat up and paid attention. Who's this I said? He sounds like a cross between Elton John and Queen. In fact, he sounds a lot like Freddie Mercury. I have to get this. Alas, it was not yet availabe in the U.S., so I got it from the U.K. instead. It was not until today that I was allowed to post a review. After listening to it for 6+ weeks I have to say that it is easily one of the best debuts of 2007, and one of the strongest in recent memory.

Mika is apparently Lebanese born and Paris/London raised. He apparently was trained at the Lysee school of music in France. This is evident by the abundance of talent throughout the songs. He is clever, he is original and he is thankfully DIVERSE. "Grace Kelly", "Lollipop", "Love Today", "Relax (Take It Easy)", "Any Other World", "Billy Brown", "Big Girl (You Are Beautiful)" and "Happy Ending" are all solid songs.

After repeated listening I felt that not only does Mika remind me of 70's Elton John and Queen, but he also reminded me of the Bee Gees in terms of his abundant use of falsetto (which is more refreshing than it is grating). He also employs elements of The Beatles with the Eleanor Rigby-ish strings on "Any Other World".

The bottom line is "Life In Cartoon Motion" is cheap and the music is very good. Mika definitely seems like someone to watch in the future. Also you have probably already been exposed to his music via the Verizon telphone commercials on t.v. and in movie multiplexes which featured the song "Love Today". Already he's released three singles from "Life In Cartoon Motion"--"Relax (Take It Easy)", "Love Today" and "Grace Kelly" in Europe. "Grace Kelly" was a number one hit over there already along with "Life In Cartoon Motion". Now, if Mika could only conquer America. Probably not--too much hip hop garbage. But you could change that. Check out "Life In Cartoon Motion".

Ok I'm probably not the target audience for this CD...if there even is one. I never really listened to Queen or any of the other people MIKA has been compared to, but I was hooked from the first time I heard Grace Kelly on the radio, and I bought the CD as soon as it came out.

It's probably the happiest saddest CD that I own which makes me love it more. MIKA deals with so many issues in his songs and presents them in such an amazing way. The part of you that may not want to like a song for whatever reason always loses to the part of you that just can't help loving it.

So yeah, MIKA has got a great voice, his songs are catchy and you'll have a blast singing along, the instrumentals are awesome, and to top it off the lyrics are fun yet serious and meaningful. All together it makes an amazing album.

This album is genius. I saw Mika in concert on Monday at the Chicago Metro. It was fun, incredible, and amazing! If you like this album, you have got to see his live performance. But, once you've seen him live, you'll want to see him again and when compared to the live performances, the studio versions of his songs seem flat. Now I can't wait for the live CD version!

P.S. To those of you who claim Mika's ripping off Freddy Mercury et al., get a dictionary, look up the word "homage," and learn to recognize the difference between a rip off artist and an artist honoring the spirit of a predecessor.

I was 18-20 when Queen was at its zenith. Mika's music doesn't merely recall that musical time or remind me of events that took place 20+ years ago, it makes me *feel* like I'm 20 again. How cool is that! The kid is a genius who deserves all the accolades we can give him (particularly since there doesn't seem to be enough payola flowing to the radio stations to get him much playtime)!

Mika's lyrics are beautiful, his voice is unbelievable, his style is unequalled. And to top it off he is charming and beautiful. I'm 52 and I've joined a fan club for the first time. My neighbors must be crazy given how many times I have played it from beginning to end. There is not a weak song on the whole CD. In addition it is less expensive than almost anyone else.

There is simply no one like Mika.

I'm a little late to the game when it comes to being a Mika fan, but in this case, it is definitely better late than never. This CD is phenomenal! His style! His voice! The songs! I could go on and on and on and on.
"Grace Kelly" starts off the cd, and it grabs you right from the start. By the time you are grooving to "Big Girl" near the end of the cd, you'll suddenly realize you haven't had this much fun listening to a cd in a long, long time.
Give it a try. Trust me, you won't regret it.

I never had any interest in Pop music - finding it unimaginative and repetitive (when someone has a classical background - most pop music is boring) - however, when a friend gave me this CD as a gift - I listened to it and found it extremely fun. Absolutely refreshing. Maybe it has references to other artists - but the nice melodies, beautiful orchestration and some very wacky things that appear in some tracks are very very amusing (like the Grace Kelly sampled voice in "Grace Kelly"). This is probably not for the mundane, easy-listening customer and I found very impressive his astounding 5-octave vocal range. The tongue-in-cheek attitude is also fun - I don't know much about pop music, but I find this absolutely delicious.

This guy's voice is amazing! If you miss the days when male singers were really singers and not some pop-image being marketed to 12 year-olds, you will really enjoy Life In Cartoon motion. The last decade of Pop music, especially here in the states, has been so uninventive, predictable, and dull --particularly in the male vocalist genere. I had forgotten what it was like to hear an album free of over-sung boy-bandish sappy ballads and/or whiny 'unplugged' misery-songs. Mika's Life in Cartoon Motion is a welcome breath of fresh air and I would venture to say he one of the best all-around artists to come along in a very VERY long time. If you loved Prince, George Michael, Freddy Mercury, Elton John, or Michael Jackson when they were at the top of their game you will really appreciate this guy's voice and song-writing. Mika's range is remarkable and his ability to sing with a flamboyant-abandon but still be in control is nothing short of fabulous! It is easily one of the best albums I have bought in the last five years.

I bought the UK release on a friend's recommendation, and I have to say Mika is my favorite new artist of the past several years. Every time I listen to this CD, it just makes me *HAPPY*. People keep comparing Mika's voice to Freddie Mercury, but the music makes me think of a fresh new take on my favorite Erasure/Andy Bell songs from 15 years ago. This is happy pop at its best - catchy and fun, but with a quality and depth that bears listening to over and over.

Mika's second album has taken the world by storm and its not difficult to hear why. He is extremely talented with a great song-writing ability and he also possesses a unique voice. Many people have compared him to the late Freddie Mercury in both voice and song-writing, which is a great compliment. I have enjoyed this album immensely.

Wow, WOw, WOW!!! Where do I start? This is a brilliant CD from start to finish. Mikas voice and style are out of this world. From the moment I put this CD on my iPod and hit play I immdietlely fell in love with it. The style reminds me so much of Freddie Mercury (Queen) meets George Michael. With over the top dramaic sounds like Queen this CD pleases again and again and again.
I cannot go on enough about this release. It is a must have. It is so upbeat, fun and different. It has crazy hooks and melodies.
Every single song on here is hit worthy and stands out above anything that is out there right now.
You need to run to go get this CD - you will be so pleased!!!

~~~JAC 07'