Album Review: Santigold – Master Of My Own Make Believe

One of the Mistresses of Musical Mastery returns with her first material since 2008’s (near) eponymous debut.

It’s fair to say that when she first hit the scene, Santigold turned more than a few heads. Her vibrant, funk-filled songs were inescapable, turning up on various adverts around the place; always followed by a ‘who was that?’ and a rush to try and find out.

“Master of My Make Believe” is a bigger, louder, ‘beatier’ and full of the swagger that made people sit up and take notice back in 2008. As before, there are obvious comparisons with M.I.A in terms of musical style, loud, distinctive and has the potential to grab your eardrums and shake them about a bit.

Navigating the waters between shouty riff-based tracks, delicate tunes and some great pop melodies is a trick which does take some practice, but having had a few years to do this, and working with such musical luminaries as The Beastie Boys, Basement Jaxx and comedy geniuses ‘The Lonely Island’, means she’s certainly refined her sound.

Mixing the best elements of funk, pop, dub and rock, the whole album leads you from start to finish with the effortless panache of an excitable child who’s got something great to show off and is actually very good at it.

Every track has a part of it that makes it a worthwhile listen, whether it’s the groove-laden (‘Go!’, ‘Disparate Youth’, ‘Big Mouth’), the softer (‘This Isn’t Our Parade’, ‘The Riots Gone’), or the rockier (God From The Machine, The Keepers’).

Having been 4 years in the making, you *almost* want it to be more, but that would be harsh on what is undoubtedly a fantastic 11 tracks that will help ease us into summer with consummate ease.

RL