DANI56 Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 (edited) thanks to Lucrezia http://i27.tinypic.com/1190ao3.jpg http://i27.tinypic.com/21dh16s.jpg http://i32.tinypic.com/2zxmelx.jpg http://i25.tinypic.com/30mpj5z.jpg http://i31.tinypic.com/2dlqdjr.jpg http://i26.tinypic.com/34fbls1.jpg http://i29.tinypic.com/1zpozz6.jpg Edited September 16, 2009 by DANI56 big pics Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertina Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 thanks dani! XL never lets me down! can you reduce the scans a bit? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikalollipop_karla Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 thx Dani haha now is 2:22:am Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louiza Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 thank you daniela!!! translation of the article anyone? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Droopsy Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 Thank you for posting! Gorgeous new(?) pic!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inbar_assaf Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 brilliant, gorgeous AMAZING picture! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lil'Violet Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 wow!!! thank you so much for posting the scans dani!!!! the article is very nice!! i think that the journalist has been caught by the mika's charme as well!! her writing is so poetic... too bad the weather here is awfull and i can't go out to buy a copy... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxxy Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 Italian Thanks for posting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nezza Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 (edited) At my shows I'll give out fake money, like Monopoly money; I'll create a competition for fans, then I'll come and play in the winner's living room. XL met pop's ultimate perfectionist. Who is (honestly) crazier than we thought. I'm melting in the sun of a Saturday afternoon outside the big offices of Universal. The street's deserted, the Milanese have escaped in search of cooler weather. However, the record company's working on a Saturday, because of Mika. The meeting was moved at the last minute; we should have met outside the Parenti theatre before his show that evening, but he tried the stereo system at the theatre and said "No, you don't hear my record here well." It's a desire for perfectionism that is immediately satisfied. The Universal offices will open for him outside of hours, and when we arrive the cleaner greets us enthusiastically. Someone's finally arrived to chase away the monotony of the long empty corridors. Mika's radiant. He has a CD that he'll let us listen, only to then destroy it. He's burned it himself on his Mac, where he secretly keeps the files of his new album. "You'll have to leave the bag outside", they tell me seriously just outside the room. The fear of the internet has created a terrorist alarm within the music industry. Mika’s not immune to this fear and he personally checks that my recorder’s been switched off. “Maybe I’m becoming paranoid” he admits. No little red lights are on. We can start. “This album (at the time of the meeting it was called We are Golden, then at the last minute Mika changed the title to The Boy Who Knew Too Much) deals with my adolescence. As I was writing it I was trying to retrieve the feelings I had when I was 16, 18 years old. That energy of adolescence, when you don’t care what everybody thinks of you or what you do, because you are worth something; there are other people who love you, and you are not on your own. The song We Are Golden says that this value doesn’t have anything to do with richness or popularity, but depends solely on the simple fact that you are growing; this is your strength. With the first album Life in Cartoon Motion I was recreating the film of my childhood: lullabies, fairy tales, the surroundings of primary school. With the second CD I’m carrying on with the story of my life.” There is a cloth puppet hanging from Mika’s neck that watches me. There’s such a magic in the air that it wouldn’t surprise me if it said something. “The question I ask myself is when does adolescence end? Maybe it won’t ever finish for me!” he laughs in a funny way. Then he chooses a couple of other songs, Blame it on The Girls with its’ crazy percussion, and Rain, an explosion “Trying to be ordinary, Was it me who was the fool” say the lyrics, whilst behind the sofa we are sitting on, the record producer who accompanied the singer dances wildly. Five minutes earlier he seemed like a very serious person. Mika watches him, pleased. I See You follows, a sweet, intimate song, where the piano crosses the voice in a romantic meeting. “Can we turn the volume down?” he asks, showing me two small objects which look like earplugs, “They’re two small amplifiers”, he says wearing them. “They’re very expensive and let you hear the smallest detail. He sinks into the sofa, listening attentively, forgetting about my presence. When the song finishes he talks to me about his friend, the piano, who has always been dear to him. “When I went to school there were difficult moments when I was gripped by panic. For example, I was terrified of the football ball” he opens his eyes widely, “I saw it coming from far away, and I knew it was going to hit me because I didn’t have the faintest idea about how to play football. I protected myself, and I couldn’t wait to get back to my piano, it was so reassuring. Once I wrote a song I felt so precious, I knew that I was worth something. Ever since I was 12 years old I’ve always worked as a musician, performing and practicing every day, and this has stunted my growth. Because of this I created an imaginary world for myself. But in the last songs I tried to abandon the fantasy a bit and to speak in the first person as well. It was very difficult, but I felt like I had to do it. But many characters have remained though.” He reassures me, showing me a notebook full of designs. “When I write songs I do these”, he leafs through the pages as we listen to other songs from the album, Touches You, Pick Up Off The Floor, One Foot Boy. It’s music that forces the mind to travel in fantasy. “I’ve always liked the music of Walt Disney cartoons, they’re comforting, they’ve inspired me a lot. I can say that on a visual level if that in the first album I used white and black and primary colours, the chromatic range in this album has definitely increased. The artwork of the album will also be richer and more colourful. “When I finish writing a song my sister Yasmine (penname DaWack) comes into the recording studio and paints. Together we create an entire world around the song. The character we’re working on at the moment is an adolescent boy. We’ve designed his bedroom, his school, the road he walks down, and all this will inspire the record’s artwork. He closes the notebook, and he confesses that the characters of the previous album are hidden in the new songs, even if they have changed or grown a bit. If you look carefully you’ll be able to recognise them. Lollipop for example sings in We Are Golden, but she’s a teenager now. Big Girl’s become Toy Boy’s mum and uses the toy that her son’s abandoned to create a voodoo doll against her husband. It’s like they’re a big family, I could never abandon them.” I can’t stop myself from laughing when I think about this invasion of characters who go in and come out of his songs, but he is very serious. “I don’t think that an album is a collection of songs to promote. For my whole life I’ll add bits to my creation even if by going ahead it will become more and more crazy and strange, and the songs more and more fantastic and mad. That way I’ll really enjoy myself, otherwise it would be boring to be a musician.” To beat the boredom Mika’s also preparing big surprises for his fans. “I’ll put this entire world on my site, the artists I love and my fans will have their own page and will be able to personalize it like Myspace. By buying tickets they’ll win fake money like Monopoly money, “Mikopoli” money, that they’ll be able to spend on the site, and I’ll hold a competition to win a concert by me in their living room.” Can you imagine Mika sitting on your sofa? Unfortunately it’s time to go, before saying goodbye, Mika does a small auspicious gesture. He takes the CD from the sofa, he places it underneath one of his feet, and jumps on it, shattering it into thousands of tiny shards which fly off in every direction, lodging themselves in the carpet. He looks surprised and says “It looks like a crime scene”. The cleaner won’t be as happy now, but she definitely won’t put Mika’s CD on the internet. Someone let me know if something needs correcting Edited September 16, 2009 by Nezza Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Queenie Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 Thanks Dani for the scans & Nezza for the translation! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gracekelly85 Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 I bought it! it's great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DANI56 Posted September 16, 2009 Author Share Posted September 16, 2009 At my shows I'll give out fake money, like Monopoly money; I'll create a competition for fans, then I'll come and play in the winner's living room. XL met pop's ultimate perfectionist. Who is (honestly) crazier than we thought. I'm melting in the sun of a Saturday afternoon outside the big offices of Universal. The street's deserted, the Milanese have escaped in search of cooler weather. However, the record company's working on a Saturday, because of Mika. The meeting was moved at the last minute; we should have met outside the Parenti theatre before his show that evening, but he tried the stereo system at the theatre and said "No, you don't hear my record here well." It's a desire for perfectionism that is immediately satisfied. The Universal offices will open for him outside of hours, and when we arrive the cleaner greets us enthusiastically. Someone's finally arrived to chase away the monotony of the long empty corridors. Mika's radiant. He has a CD that he'll let us listen, only to then destroy it. He's burned it himself on his Mac, where he secretly keeps the files of his new album. "You'll have to leave the bag outside", they tell me seriously just outside the room. The fear of the internet has created a terrorist alarm within the music industry. Mika’s not immune to this fear and he personally checks that my recorder’s been switched off. “Maybe I’m becoming paranoid” he admits. No little red lights are on. We can start. “This album (at the time of the meeting it was called We are Golden, then at the last minute Mika changed the title to The Boy Who Knew Too Much) deals with my adolescence. As I was writing it I was trying to retrieve the feelings I had when I was 16, 18 years old. That energy of adolescence, when you don’t care what everybody thinks of you or what you do, because you are worth something; there are other people who love you, and you are not on your own. The song We Are Golden says that this value doesn’t have anything to do with richness or popularity, but depends solely on the simple fact that you are growing; this is your strength. With the first album Life in Cartoon Motion I was recreating the film of my childhood: lullabies, fairy tales, the surroundings of primary school. With the second CD I’m carrying on with the story of my life.” There is a cloth puppet hanging from Mika’s shoulder that watches me. There’s such a magic in the air that it wouldn’t surprise me if it said something. “The question I ask myself is when does adolescence end? Maybe it won’t ever finish for me!” it laughs in a funny way. Then he chooses a couple of other songs, Blame it on The Girls with its’ crazy percussion, and Rain, an explosion “Trying to be ordinary, Was it me who was the fool” say the lyrics, whilst behind the sofa we are sitting on, the record producer who accompanied the singer dances wildly. Five minutes earlier he seemed like a very serious person. Mika watches him, pleased. I See You follows, a sweet, intimate song, where the piano crosses the voice in a romantic meeting. “Can we turn the volume down?” he asks, showing me two small objects which look like earplugs, “They’re two small amplifiers”, he says wearing them. “They’re very expensive and let you hear the smallest detail. He sinks into the sofa, listening attentively, forgetting about my presence. When the song finishes he talks to me about his friend, the piano, who has always been dear to him. “When I went to school there were difficult moments when I was gripped by panic. For example, I was terrified of the football ball” he opens his eyes widely, “I saw it coming from far away, and I knew it was going to hit me because I didn’t have the faintest idea about how to play football. I protected myself, and I couldn’t wait to get back to my piano, it was so reassuring. Once I wrote a song I felt so precious, I knew that I was worth something. Ever since I was 12 years old I’ve always worked as a musician, performing and practicing every day, and this has stunted my growth. Because of this I created an imaginary world for myself. But in the last songs I tried to abandon the fantasy a bit and to speak in the first person as well. It was very difficult, but I felt like I had to do it. But many characters have remained though.” He reassures me, showing me a notebook full of designs. “When I write songs I do these”, he leafs through the pages as we listen to other songs from the album, Touches You, Pick Up Off The Floor, One Foot Boy. It’s music that forces the mind to travel in fantasy. “I’ve always liked the music of Walt Disney cartoons, they’re comforting, they’ve inspired me a lot. I can say that on a visual level if that in the first album I used white and black and primary colours, the chromatic range in this album has definitely increased. The artwork of the album will also be richer and more colourful. “When I finish writing a song my sister Yasmine (penname DaWack) comes into the recording studio and paints. Together we create an entire world around the song. The character we’re working on at the moment is an adolescent boy. We’ve designed his bedroom, his school, the road he walks down, and all this will inspire the record’s artwork. He closes the notebook, and he confesses that the characters of the previous album are hidden in the new songs, even if they have changed or grown a bit. If you look carefully you’ll be able to recognise them. Lollipop for example sings in We Are Golden, but she’s a teenager now. Big Girl’s become Toy Boy’s mum and uses the toy that her son’s abandoned to create a voodoo doll against her husband. It’s like they’re a big family, I could never abandon them.” I can’t stop myself from laughing when I think about this invasion of characters who go in and come out of his songs, but he is very serious. “I don’t think that an album is a collection of songs to promote. For my whole life I’ll add bits to my creation even if by going ahead it will become more and more crazy and strange, and the songs more and more fantastic and mad. That way I’ll really enjoy myself, otherwise it would be boring to be a musician.” To beat the boredom Mika’s also preparing big surprises for his fans. “I’ll put this entire world on my site, the artists I love and my fans will have their own page and will be able to personalize it like Myspace. By buying tickets they’ll win fake money like Monopoly money, “Mikopoli” money, that they’ll be able to spend on the site, and I’ll hold a competition to win a concert by me in their living room.” Can you imagine Mika sitting on your sofa? Unfortunately it’s time to go, before saying goodbye, Mika does a small auspicious gesture. He takes the CD from the sofa, he places it underneath one of his feet, and jumps on it, shattering it into thousands of tiny shards which fly off in every direction, lodging themselves in the carpet. He looks surprised and says “It looks like a crime scene”. The cleaner won’t be as happy now, but she definitely won’t put Mika’s CD on the internet. Someone let me know if something needs correcting grazie, tesoro! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iridaceae Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 Thanks for posting, and thanks for the translation!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickadee Posted September 17, 2009 Share Posted September 17, 2009 Thanks for posting and thanks for the translation. I went "Noooooo!!!" when I read that he'd said Big Girl has turned into Toy Boy's mum. I've always identified with Big Girl and I don't want to be Toy Boy's mum:tears: She's horrible. The other thing I thought was curious was his comment about being a musician from age 12 and performing and practicing everyday. (Or whatever he actually said). And how that stunted his growth. Obviously not physically:teehee: but did he mean emotionally or psychologically or what? Interesting.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louiza Posted September 17, 2009 Share Posted September 17, 2009 thank you so much for the translation!!! love that he says that he couldnt abandon the characters from the first album:wub2: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lil'Violet Posted September 17, 2009 Share Posted September 17, 2009 The other thing I thought was curious was his comment about being a musician from age 12 and performing and practicing everyday. (Or whatever he actually said). And how that stunted his growth. Obviously not physically:teehee: but did he mean emotionally or psychologically or what? Interesting.... you're right, it's not very clear in the article.. who knows what he said really.. i've understood that as he was practising every day for hours and performing often, he has sort of lost the contact with the 'real life' and perhaps also missed part of the natural growth process not interacting with same age kids with the same common interests my interpretation.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickadee Posted September 17, 2009 Share Posted September 17, 2009 you're right' date=' it's not very clear in the article.. who knows what he said really.. i've understood that as he was practising every day for hours and performing often, he has sort of lost the contact with the 'real life' and perhaps also missed part of the natural growth process not interacting with same age kids with the same common interests my interpretation.. [/quote'] I was thinking along the same lines. I just wasn't 100% sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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