At this year’s MTV awards, Macy Gray appeared in a dress bearing the message: “My album drops 18 September. Buy it.” It may have been more than a stunt in keeping with Gray’s contrived image as soul’s kooky misfit. For The Id (Sony) to repeat the success of 1999’s On How Life Is, it will need all the promotional help it can get.
While her debut featured undemanding retro soul, the music on The Id is as bizarre as Gray’s husky vocals. Oblivion features what sounds like a German oompah band. Blowin’ Up Your Speakers offers free-jazz honking akin to Radiohead having one of their turns. Musically straightforward tracks feature lyrics to scare off radio programmers. Gimme All Your Lovin’ or I Will Kill You suggests violence can patch up a relationship. “It’s amazing what a gun to the head can do,” rasps Gray cheerfully.
In fact, she sounds cheerful throughout The Id and her mood is infectious. It lends a unique humour, perfectly befitting an intriguing raspberry in the face of commercial expectations.