Average User Rating: 80% (8 Reviews)
1 / 5	Labels For Less The Wolf (uk) - 19 July 2008 The Wolf first encountered Ms White and her cohorts on the estimable Mr Holland's variety show 'Later' early in 2008. Some months later, given a knock-down price at my local music emporium, Santogold has eventually found its' way into my range of hearing. My somewhat obsessive-compulsive nature usually leads me to peel extraneous sticky labels from CD cases as soon as I am able. Mrs Wolf believes this to be one of my most annoying habits as they are particularly difficult to remove from paws when dropped lazily on the floor of our cave. One such adhesive irritation, admittedly only half-read, may have displayed the words "pop", ""of" and "queen' (the term "undisputed' may also have been present). If I am wrong about this matter I apologise for my inattention. If memory serves me correctly however "pop", "of" and "queen" references seem to me to be both misapplied and innacurate. I honestly can't remember the last time I was left feeling so despondent by a new musical experience. (Actually the last time was probably Kelly Osborne's 'Sleeping In The Nothing'). This is dull, uninventive retro-electro-pop of the worst pedigree. Ms White barks, yelps and ululates her way through this dismal collection, paying scant attention to matters of tonal and dynamic control and quality. The perpetrators' intention had doubtless been to create a work of sophisticated urban cool. In this they have failed to a miserable degree. Historic lowpoints include 'Creator' followed closely by 'I'm A Lady' and the truly execrable 'Anne'. Surely three of the most horrible songs you will hear this year. On the basis of more warmly inclined reviews you may still wish to explore this album but don't say I didn't warn you. ... Read Full Review »
4 / 5	Your horizons... Broaden them. DaPersa (London) - 15 May 2008 I purchased this album for two reasons. Firstly, for the one song 'Creator' from the VO5 adverts. Secondly, and tied to the first reason, I thought to get the album because I found her voice and style on 'Creator' very similar to that of M.I.A. Reviews also compared and made references between the two artists and I very much admire M.I.A's work. At first listen, i was disappointed. It sounded very rock/punk to me with the exception of a couple of tracks. But I pressed on, as always to get my money's worth, and listened to the CD all day to gain a full immersion into the music of Santogold. I am pleasantly surprised. The tracks which at first impression sounded rocky and exhausting turned out melodic and upbeat. It is not the usual style of music I enjoy but there is something I indeed like about it. For instance, the mild reggae feel of 'Shove It' and the ska punk element in 'Say Aha'. It has a retro electronica sound about it and consequently, being an 80's baby myself, delivers a nostalgic effect. Other examples of this include 'My Superman', 'Starstruck' and 'Anne', all of which hold a sort of dark, melancholy synth-pop sound. The best track of the entire album has to be 'Anne'. It is reminiscent of Bronsky Beat's 'Smalltown Boy' and epitomises this mid-80's synth genre. Tracks which I personally find weak include 'Lights Out' and 'I'm A Lady'. They are definitely much too indie-pop for my taste. In fact, I deleted them from my Windows Media Player but unfortunately cannot off the actual CD. Shame. Another disappointment was the fact that she did not provide lyrics with the CD. Knowing what an artist is singing about always seems to elevate a track. In conclusion, I would recommend this album. In comparison with M.I.A, the 'Creator' track and very vaguely 'Unstoppable' is where the similarities end. However, in the M.I.A vs Santogold debate I would still opt for the former despite what some reviews may say about Santogold having a more diverse repetior (and in one case "more talent and a wider artistic range") than M.I.A. She's my personal preference (maybe because she's Indian and a British artist). So if you're more of a Rio Funk and World music meets House & Garage type, I might suggest to allow Santo. But it never hurts to broaden your horizons...... Read Full Review »
4 / 5	Well worth a listen SJC (Sheffield, UK) - 14 May 2008 Santogold has been the subject of a fair amount of what could be called hype recently, which means I approached this LP with a certain amount of scepticism. While this record isn't the pop revolution some journalists would seem to think, it is an enjoyable and generally interesting one. This isn't as "genre bending" as some have said, but it is fairly varied in that tracks like "You'll Find A Way" are in a quite Yeah Yeahs Yeahs / The Kills type vein, whereas tracks like "Creator" are very M.I.A.-ish (someone she's often compared too - in my eyes Santogold is more interesting, actually). Tracks like "My Superman", on the other hand, are more reminiscent of good 80's pop than anything else, for me. This mix is a good thing, and keeps things interesting enough to make this LP well worth sticking with, and if you like the above mentioned groups, you might well like some of this LP. On the down side, this isn't doing anything THAT new, but it is still doing it well, and is well above the very run-of-the-mill stuff clogging up the charts these days. This in itself makes this worth 4 stars - because it has genuinley good tunes (tracks like "Lights Out" and the current single "L.E.S Artistes" are examples of simply great pop tunes) and doesn't desperately try to be something "cool" for the sake of it. So - a good pop album, with some actual depth - but don't expect this to blow you away, just take it for what it is - a good set of tunes (with a few weakish tracks...). All in all, well worth checking out above much else out there at the moment. I am still left wondering though - when will the 80's throwback stop...?... Read Full Review »
5 / 5	Unclassifiable pop genius! A Music Lover - 6 June 2008 If you put Blondie, dub reggae, punk, new wave, disco, dancehall, electro, pop and ska in a blender and pressed the button, you'd come out with something approaching Santogold's debut. If that sounds horribly arty and pretentious, though, don't fear; this is also a brilliant pop album, topped off with buckets of Brooklyn cool courtesy of Santi's Ronettes-meets-Debbie Harry voice. There's great hooks aplenty and you'll be humming these songs all summer. Yeah, okay, it's so undoubtedly trendy I expect to hear it the next time I go in Topshop, but Santogold is so much more than your average NME-endorsed chancer and far far more than (as some have claimed) a weaker version of her pal M.I.A.- and if you don't know who that is, you ought to search for 'Kala' and add it to your basket NOW. If you want to hear something fresh and exciting but still danceable and very enjoyable, you can't go wrong with this near-flawless effort from the amazing talent that is Santogold. Never thought I'd find myself agreeing with the NME but she might just be 'the Queen of all pop in 2008'!... Read Full Review »
4 / 5	A golden spew of sound and lyric A. O. Moore "flashboredom" (Co. Durham, UK) - 14 July 2008 This album caught my attention because Amazon put it in my recommended buys and I immediately loved the cover. On impulse, despite having heard nothing about or by Santogold I bought it and was not disappointed (my favourite impulse buy to date). The record is a mix of sounds that I am unable to accurately categorize though my best attempt would put it between modern R&B and Electronic influenced pop (dirtier though). There is the modern R&B cockiness found in the lyrics of songs like "Unstoppable" and "Creator": "me I'm a creator/ thrill is to make it up/ the rules I break got me a place/ up on the radar." However, this is backed up with heavily synthesized sounds which put it apart from mainstream R&B as it currently stands. Other songs such as "Lights Out" reveal a hot bass line with a sweet voice and fewer ambient electronic noises - you'd almost think they were by different artists. This album sounds great and I don't own anything like it, frankly I don't think there is anything like it (the nearest I could come up with was NYPC but they aren't that close) and I suggest you buy it.... Read Full Review »