A bright grab bag of new wave, reggae, post-punk, and electronic dub, Santigold’s 2008 debut had unusual reach, charming indie blogs and general audiences alike, and serving as a well of samples for countless mixtapes. Four years later, though, in a post-Internet landscape where all music seems to be slowly melting into one big Gorillaz album, Santigold’s cross-genre adaptability is no longer such a novelty. Established hitmakers now regularly cross-pollinate with independent artists, and Santigold producers Diplo, Switch, and John Hill have worked their way to the front of the industry’s Rolodex, recording with stars like Beyoncé, Usher, and Rihanna.
At its most combative, Make-Believe is Santigold’s proclamation that she was here first. On the prickly opener “Go!,” she pushes back in militaristic terms against imitators who “try to pull my status, but they couldn’t fake it.” Santigold makes a more convincing case for her turf, though, when she sounds as if she has nothing to prove. The radiant pop anthem “The Keepers” and the dreamy, dubby “Disparate Youth” don’t detour from her debut’s roadmap, but their sounds are just as sweet the second time around. When the singer does tweak her formula, it’s usually to slow it down and soften it. Several tracks co-written by Yeah Yeah Yeahs guitarist Nick Zinner ripple with the low-key pensiveness of that band’s prettiest songs, especially the lovely “This Riot’s Gone.” At just 11 songs and 37 minutes, Make-Believe is a modest work, short on big thrills and surprises, but generous enough with the creature comforts that made Santigold’s debut such a gem.
