Is “Kala” The New “Play”?

Michaelangelo Matos | August 27, 2008 3:45 am
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If nothing else, the recent chart ascents of M.I.A.’s Kala and “Paper Planes” are fascinating for the parallels they evoke with… Moby. Think about it: Play was a modest-selling album by a critics’ pet that thanks to truckloads of advertising wound up selling a huge number of copies; Kala finished second in Idolator Pop 2007 and is now climbing the charts (currently at No. 37, having sold 11,000 copies) thanks to its use in a movie (and trailer). I’ve long thought of Play as the signal album of the dot-com boom and bust, for many reasons, and it’s interesting to see Kala in that light at this later date. No prizes for guessing M.I.A. will eventually sell 10 million, though.