NEON DIAMONDS.

She is Marina. You are the Diamonds. “We’ve Got Obsessions” comes on one side and “Mowgli’s Road” the other. Together these elements make up the principle ingredients of Neon Gold’s second record, currently being readied in a North London studio for release in mid-December. We’ve been championing Marina to anyone who’ll listen all year long, so we’re understandably thrilled to have the honor of formally bringing her debut single into the world next month, when it will see a limited release on both sides of the Atlantic with our seal proudly stamped upon it. It seems others are catching on as well, as recent gigs across London (including a support slot for Little Boots on Halloween) have been drawing good press from all directions.

“Obsessions” endures as one of our favorite songs of 2008, all dramatic sparseness, haunting vocals and vulnerable beauty, like the best song Kate Bush never wrote or a week of sleepless nights that’s head and shoulders above any other singer-songwriter fare we’ve heard this year. The new and improved single version, on the other hand, is a whole new kind of phenomenal, splashed in technicolor and reborn as a widescreen pop masterpiece that manages to outdo the original in nearly every regard, a feat we weren’t sure was possible until we heard it for ourselves. We’ll share that in good time once production maestro Liam Howe (he of Sneaker Pimps fame) has sprinkled his last bit of studio magic across it, but you’d do well to download the stunning original in the meantime. Trust us.

MP3: “We’ve Got Obsessions” (Demo) – Marina & The Diamonds