Santigold Pop

santogold the collaboration between santi white and former stiffed bandmate john hill first began receiving notice in late 2007 thanks mostly to the release of the single creator which seemed to point white in the direction of an m i a knockoff the debut full length however shows santogold to be a unique group one that pulls equally from dub pop punk hip hop electro and rock without succumbing to the archetypes of any much of this is because of the contributions from hill who adds plenty of guitars and warm keyboards encouraging white to fill out the songs the verses and the hooks with her rich gwen stefani meets janelle mon e voice i m a lady despite the fact it could belong in the late 90s pop canon is delightfully catchy and inviting l e s artistes sounds like a fuller brighter tegan and sara song and my superman is the urban 21st century s version of a sultry jazz standard in fact hill is so instrumental in creating the diversity and lushness of sound that the pieces in which he doesn t contribute or contributes very little are markedly different switch the producer responsible for m i a s kala shows off his impressive beat making skills on creator which features white doing the singsongy rap that has helped make maya arulpragasam so popular me i m a creator thrill is to make it up the rules i break got me a place up on the radar and the diplo helmed unstoppable marries dub and hollertronix electronica nicely these are the exceptions to the overall sound however and their very rarity makes them so much more appealing and evidence of the work of a complete artist not one trying to follow the coattails of another because most of santogold lacks that jagged angularity that drives m i a s records instead the album is informed by pop and good humor the importance of melody and structure never overshadowed by rhythm and dancefloor worthiness this is music that looks outward at the pan continental landscape while staying firmly adherent to and respectful of its deeply