OR M.I.A.'s "Galang '05" & other "Galang" remixes

Now I ain't sayin' she's a gold digger for making a new video or selling "Galang" to Scion or whoever. As someone sagely pointed out on ILM, these days being the cool music to like (or past tense, depending on how progressive and snobbish you'll admit to being) doesn't pay the bills. And yet, I'm still puzzled why "Galang" needs an update. Yeah, it belongs in 2k3, but it sounds as fresh today as it did when it first galangalangalanged off our ears (not to mention that Arular just dropped this year). And shit! The only real difference is the bridge/outro also acts as an intro. Who thinks doing that is going to sell more records, I don't know. The video is pretty silly too, doing a bit to sex her up and show off how incredibly spindly she is by having multiple personalities.

What kills me even further (dust to dust, maaaaaaaan) are these remixes. Serj Tankian of System of a Down doesn't so much remix as mash up Maya's vox with a mildly amusing Faith No More cop and some dhol flourishes. Not that I would expect much more from our pal Serj, but this sez two things: the song isn't Eastern/Asian enough sounding, so play that up, and the only way S.O.A.D. fans will accept this is if they're hit over the head with a Fender Squire riff. Where's your confidence in the lady? Another remix that's floating around is by Dave Kelly Main or something? It barely even matters because this is a further attempt to shove the Asian in M.I.A. down yer throat. (Don't get me wrong, I'm all Bollywood love.) They even got "Cham" blahing vaguely Indian things. Bollywood, if it gave a fuck about this tripe, would waggle a finger at'cha, boys. M.I.A. should really let Diplo and Richard X do more shit for her. Remember the "Galang" blend with "What Happened To That Boy"? Bananas, people. Bananas.