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The spirited chants and intricate beats give Fool’s Gold unity, and the precision is inviting. They never break from their tight sound with a boldly original gesture, but there’s no need to risk spoiling this fun set of songs.
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Fool’s Gold stretch Western pop templates out into African shapes; and this debut album belies their name by being a genuine gem.
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This new project is hardly a bandwagon-shaped whim. Instead, Fool's Gold, the album, has been made with genuine passion and a desire to pay homage to something its creators clearly love.
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Where Vampire Weekend sound like indie musicians who have embraced African music, Fool's Gold's leader Lewis Pesacov grew up listening to Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan as well as US pop, and his band's uplifting sound vibrates with love and kinship with the continent's music.
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UncutIt doesn't require a lyric translator to hear the exquisite sense of regret that permeates a song like "Ha Dvash," but the sheer exuberance of the music keeps spirits soaring. [Feb 2010, p.88]
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The sounds of Touareg and Afrobeat and Ghanaian Highlife are rippling through the eight songs here, each a rollicking, warm reflection of appreciation.
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Throughout its 43 minutes, Fool’s Gold has the air of the kind of effortless breeziness that comes with tossed-off side projects. But that vibe underscores the effectiveness of the album, which features multiple stylistic quirks that could lead Fool’s Gold in a variety of directions if they continue as a project.
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The first half connects the mind and the body equally, which is why they are such successful songs. The second half of is just body music and that’s where it falls a little flat. That’s not to say it doesn't work at all.
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Tribal chanting and desert parties meet drum machines and electrifying guitar riffs in an album that is consistently inventive, mesmerising and incredibly danceable.
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Fool’s Gold might mine a rich vein, but they rarely forge anything more than mere tourist trinkets.
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Their sound has life, culture and tiny details that could only be developed from a wide variation of instruments and worldly inspirations.
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Under The RadarWhen a band takes that inspiration and --through performance, production, and a cantorial twist-makes it irresistable and uniquely their own, you can't do much else but shake it. [Fall 2009, p.62]