Sia's Got 'Real Problems'

Like many of us, Sia knows that a companion animal can bring comfort.

Remember Sia? It’s hard to forget the woman who knocked the wind right out of us with “Breathe Me,” her single that became the soundtrack for the indelible finale of HBO’s Six Feet Under series in 2005. Like her uncle Colin Hay, who fronted the 80s New Wave group Men at Work, this Australian pop sensation comes “from a land down under,” and in December she plans to release a new full-length album, called Some People Have Real Problems. True to its title, the album’s cover art mimics a child’s therapeutic drawing of stick people in crayon.

The lead single, “Buttons,” finds Sia mired in a negative self-image, affirmed by her lyrical references to “carrying this stuff” and “losing my marbles,” but she remains reliably peppy enough so that this song about rejecting her lover actually sounds quite chipper. Much less sunny is the already popular video, with its images of her stuffing her head into plastic wrap, pantyhose and condoms. Tsk, tsk. Even toddlers who draw stick people know you should never pull synthetic materials over your face without supervision.

Then again, perhaps the hosiery antics salute Beck, who famously coined the term “beefcake pantyhose” in his breakout hit, “Loser.” He joins Sia for “Academia,” another tune on her forthcoming album. Let’s just hope he won’t be schooling listeners in the ways of Scientology.

Sia will embark on a month-long U.S. tour this fall to support her new album.