Recorded 2007 Santogold
(2008) Top Ranking
(2008) Release date 29 April 2008 | Length 41:19 Artist Santigold Label Downtown Records | |
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Released April 29, 2008 (2008-04-29) Producer Diplo, Disco D, Freq Nasty, John Hill, Jonnie "Most" Davis, Santi White, Switch, Chuck Treece, Steel Pulse Genres Pop music, Punk rock, Indie rock, Dub, New wave, Electronica, Reggae fusion Nominations Danish Music Award for International Album of the Year Similar Santigold albums, Indie rock albums | ||
Santigold santogold 2007
Santogold is the debut studio album by American artist Santigold (real name Santi White, who performed under the moniker Santogold at the time of the album's release). The album was released on April 29, 2008 in the United States and May 12 in the United Kingdom, on Downtown Records and Atlantic Records, respectively.
Contents
- Santigold santogold 2007
- Santigold santogold
- Background
- Critical reception
- Track listing
- Personnel
- Production
- Songs
- References
Blending a variety of musical genres ranging from new wave to alternative rock and reggae, the album was very well received by critics upon release and was noted for its "cross-genre confidence". It earned multiple spots on 'top albums of the year' lists from major music periodicals such as NME, Rolling Stone, and Spin, and was positively compared to several other artists, including Debbie Harry, Pixies, M.I.A., Goldfrapp, The Go-Go's, Joe Strummer, and The Slits. White, who was admittedly influenced by '80s new wave rock, based the music of "My Superman" from the song "Red Light" by Siouxsie and the Banshees.
The album spawned four singles, most notably "L.E.S. Artistes" and "Creator", and features appearances and/or production work from Bad Brains' Chuck Treece, Clifford Pusey of Steel Pulse, Diplo, Disco D, Freq Nasty, Spank Rock, Radioclit, Sinden, Switch, and Trouble Andrew. In addition to vocals, Santi White played guitar and keyboard on several songs on the album. The music video for the album's lead single, "L.E.S. Artistes", is an homage to the 1973 Alejandro Jodorowsky art film, The Holy Mountain.
Santigold santogold
Background
Santigold's goal for the album was to "help break down boundaries and genre classifications" and show that she wasn't just "a black woman singing R&B." "The cool thing is that I was able to work with all these genres that are typically sub-cultural, like dub or punk or something, and then, by writing in a way that had hooks, made it accessible to everyone." When Santigold had signed to Atlantic Records, the album was "pretty much done and they already loved it. They asked me not to change anything on it." The writing and recording process took eight weeks. Santigold had tried to work with her friend Mark Ronson, whom she collaborated with for his album Version, but "it wasn't possible timing-wise."
Critical reception
According to review aggregator Metacritic, Santogold has been received positively, with a score of 77 out of 100. The album was given four out of five stars by Rolling Stone, saying that Santogold "mixes dub, electronic and new wave for one of the year's most unique debuts." The Hartford Courant agreed, continuing that no songs are alike, "yet they fit together to form a cohesive whole". PopMatters opined that "if this is the struggles of urban artists, [Santigold's] anthems ensure that starving will never go out of style." Entertainment Weekly also gave the album an A-. "The album is hardly flawless, but in an era that retro-fetishizes rock and whitewashed pop, Santogold feels both raw and real." NME felt the album "reveals a glittery crazy-paved path towards a brave new musical future." However, Drowned in Sound stated that "Tunes-wise there's some strength in depth here but it's telling that, in spite of the lip service being paid to various left-of-centre influences, Santogold feels a strangely conservative listen, in danger of satisfying neither fans of wild stylistic forays nor the bubblegum masses thirsting after their latest dose of content-free self-assertion." The album was made #39 in Q's 50 Best Albums of the Year 2008. Rolling Stone placed the album at #6 on the 50 Best Albums of 2008 list. The magazine also placed "L.E.S. Artistes" at #2 on the 100 Best Singles of 2008 list. Pitchfork gave the album an initial review of 7.1/10 and later named Santogold the 22nd best album of 2008.
Track listing
Personnel
Production
Songs
1LES Artistes3:24
2You'll Find a Way3:00
3Shove It3:46