The return of Marina has been a bit of a snooze-fest. The promotional singles ‘Handmade Heaven’, ‘Orange Trees’, ‘Baby’ and ‘Superstar’ were forgettable at best with a very monotonous sound that didn’t really invigorate or excite listeners. With the April 26 release date of her fourth studio album ‘Love + Fear’ looming she has decided to surprise everyone and drop the first half of her album. Fulfilling the eight songs from the ‘Love’ side of the album she brings four new tracks into the world. The first is the 80’s synth inspired ‘Enjoy Your Life’ which confusingly should’ve been one of the early singles. This groovy and funky pop moment is everything you want from new Marina. It sounds like Carly Rae Jepsen and Betty Who had a English love child and that’s very much a HUGE compliment. The upbeat and catchy track encourages you to live your life and enjoy the ups and downs as they come because it’s all apart of life. “Sit back and enjoy your problems. You don’t always have to solve them. Cause your worst days, they are over. So enjoy your life”. Following it up with the disco tinged ‘True’ she continues the self exploration and appreciation propaganda with another strong pop moment that makes me question why she released any of the other material first. “Always said we’re gonna be true. We will never change, we will never change”. The political ‘To Be Human’ sounds like a time warped flashback to original Marina And The Diamonds with her theatrical vocals and alt-pop production before she wraps it all up with the slightly tacky ‘End Of The Earth’. But even though the love-sick song is a little over-the-top it is still a lot better than any of the four songs she lead this record with. Which makes me question why? Because these new four songs are pretty good. ‘Enjoy Your Life’ and ‘True’ lead the way as the clear standouts and will most likely become instant fan favourites too with their upbeat vibes.