The child of musicians, they started writing and playing music at the age of four. They studied violin, viola and composition at the Purcell School before being offered a scholarship to attend the Guildhall School of Music and Drama to study composition. Levi performed as a DJ and MC around the UK garage and grime scene in London, and released a mixtape titled Filthy Friends, which was posted on their Myspace page in 2006. For Filthy Friends, they enlisted the help of friends and musicians of various backgrounds including MCs Baker Trouble, Brother May, Man Like Me & Ghostpoet, singer-songwriter Jack Peñate, jazz band Troyka, London pop-band Golden Silvers, producers Kwes. and Toddla T. Following its release, Filthy Friends became sought after on the London club scene.
While a student at Guildhall, Levi was commissioned to write an orchestral piece for the London Philharmonic Orchestra which was performed at the Royal Festival Hall in April 2008.
Levi formed a band called The Shapes, which includes Raisa Khan on keyboards and Marc Pell on drums. They signed to Accidental Records who released their debut single "Lone Ranger" in May 2008, followed by "Golden Phone" in August 2008. With the Shapes, Levi's focus has been on experimental pop music. Most of this music prominently features an acoustic half-guitar with various non-standard tunings, extensive distortion, and use of noise and found-object elements, as well as occasionally unusual time signatures. Despite these experimental leanings, the artist categorizes her output with The Shapes as pop music.
Their debut album, Jewellery, produced by influential electronic musician Matthew Herbert, was recorded around Mica's composition studies at Guildhall School. Advance copies of the record reached the press in early 2009, and generated positive feedback. In the wake of this growing buzz, Micachu and the Shapes were signed to Rough Trade, who released Jewellery on 9 March 2009. Drowned In Sound consequently hailed the record as "thrillingly improbable pop made by a grade-A maverick."
Levi describes the music they performs with The Shapes as "pop", without many of pop's defining characteristics (obvious choruses and accessible lyrics). They often use unorthodox instruments, many of which are homemade. These include a modified guitar played with a hammer action, called a 'chu', and a bowed instrument fashioned from a CD rack. This multitude of objects, varying from broken bottles to a vacuum cleaner, help Mica achieve their distinctive and unique sound. They also own a 3rd bridge Home Swinger built by Yuri Landman.
They produced the very effective horror-like music to the 2013 Jonathan Glazer's movie Under the Skin.
Waste
Micachu Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There's a lover in that girl
She's a visual escape
From the horrors of the world
She's got words to waste
There's a lover in that girl
She's a visual escape
A horror
The brat is fat and leans to get up
Takes his time when he leans to get up
Take them back the words you lack
No I can't do that
I can't do that
The lyrics to Micachu's song Waste evoke feelings of wonder and awe, expressing the power of love and the potential for escapism in the face of the world's horrors. The repeated lines of "She's got words to waste" and "There's a lover in that girl" emphasize the idea that this girl has a boundless capacity for expression and emotion, and that her love serves as a way to escape from the darkness of reality. The juxtaposition of "horror" and "pearl" in the final line further highlights this theme of finding beauty in the midst of chaos.
The second half of the song takes a darker turn, with the introduction of a "brat" who is described as "fat" and slow-moving. The repeated refrain of "Take them back the words you lack / No I can't do that / I can't do that" implies a sense of frustration and hopelessness, suggesting that the singer and the brat are both struggling to find ways to communicate effectively. Overall, the lyrics to Waste are both thought-provoking and emotionally resonant, inviting listeners to explore the intersections of love, language, and escapism.
Line by Line Meaning
She's got words to waste
She is prone to talking excessively and rambling on without much purpose or meaning
There's a lover in that girl
She has a deep affection for someone but it may not be reciprocated or beneficial for her
She's a visual escape
She presents herself in a way that allows others to briefly forget about the harsh realities of their surroundings
From the horrors of the world
The world is a dark and scary place that is filled with pain and suffering
A horror
The world is often a terrifying and overwhelming experience that can leave people feeling helpless
A pearl
Despite the hardships that life throws at her, she manages to find something beautiful and valuable
The brat is fat and leans to get up
The person in question is overweight and struggles to stand up straight
Takes his time when he leans to get up
The person moves slowly and cautiously when trying to stand up from a sitting position
Take them back the words you lack
Someone is telling the artist to retract their previous statements because they were not well thought out or lacked substance
No I can't do that
The artist is unable or unwilling to take back what they said, even if it was not the most articulate or accurate expression of their thoughts
I can't do that
The singer is asserting their right to speak their mind and express themselves, regardless of whether or not their words are well-received or effective
Contributed by Nora D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.