Marina & The Diamonds: 'I Am Not A Robot'

Marina Lambrini Diamandis's fantastic last single, 'Hollywood', took her to the edge of the top ten for the first time and did its bit in helping parent album The Family Jewels into the top five. Looking to build on that success, she and her label have opted to re-release last year's 'I Am Not A Robot' in the hope it will perform better second time out. That's a bit of a shame, to be honest, because there are countless other tracks on her album that would have been perfect for some 7" action ('Are You Satisfied', 'The Outsider' and 'Girls' to name but three).

That said, it's still a lovely track, and with the limited exposure of the The Crown Jewels EP, you could well argue that the song deserves another crack at the hit parade. Marina's attracted some criticism for her slightly self-conscious quirky persona, but instead of being a predictable anti-conformist lament, 'I Am Not A Robot' is actually a deliciously defiant statement of vulnerability ("But inside you're just a little baby / It's okay to say you've got a weak spot"). The almost-saccharine melody and Marina's vocal tics could well annoy some, but here they combine to make this song oh so much more than the sum of its parts.