Isles
by Wild Belle
  • Record Label: Columbia
  • Release Date: Mar 12, 2013
Metascore
63

Generally favorable reviews - based on 16 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 16
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 16
  3. Negative: 1 out of 16
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  1. DIY Magazine
    Mar 18, 2013
    60
    All in all, with Isles, Wild Belle is sure to attract many visitors who will visit for a quick party, but end up staying on for the island romance.
  2. PopMatters
    Mar 15, 2013
    60
    Sure Isles coasts at times, snoozes on occasion and pales if compared to, say, Taken by Trees’ similarly tropical but superior Other Worlds but its bonhomie and infectious, wide-eyed perkiness still warrants a good ol’ holiday-romance romp in the dunes.
  3. The Observer (UK)
    Mar 8, 2013
    60
    Happily, their music is less predictable than that geographical inevitability.
  5. musicOMH.com
    Mar 11, 2013
    50
    While the album is described as a myriad of styles, there’s nothing to really demonstrate this: only the reggae and reggae-related genres are consistently and tiresomely reflected.
  6. Uncut
    Mar 8, 2013
    50
    Manicured cuteness, trite melodies and a tendency to banal, genial navelgazing leave an impression of carpet-bagging slackers contriving decorous but vapid Tourist Board pop. [Mar 2013, p.79]
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  7. Q Magazine
    Mar 11, 2013
    40
    [Natalie Bergman's] undoubtedly gifted, but the end result feels as passionless as a first date at Starbucks. [Apr 2013, p.112]
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User Reviews

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User Score
7.1

Generally favorable reviews- based on 7 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 7
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 7
  3. Negative: 0 out of 7
  1. WadeVS
    Sep 1, 2013
    7
    Natalie and Eric came out of nowhere with an album that sounds like it's been shaped over the course of a decade. The usual derision thatNatalie and Eric came out of nowhere with an album that sounds like it's been shaped over the course of a decade. The usual derision that would come with a white, brother and sister indie band playing reggae is not here, because let's face it there aren't that many white, brother and sister, indie reggae playing bands. They are a breath of fresh air. The sounds are authentic and flow with ease. They are also catchier than syphilis. And it's not all reggae here and not all female vocals either. Eric steps in for the track 'When It's Over', detailing the demise of a relationship.
    The lyrical content is piercing, but not intense. Instrumentation is accentuated beautifully with horns and genuine reggae and ska basslines. This is a very fresh, incredibly likeable debut and one that fills a gap, modernizes a genre and remains as true to their inspiration as you could hope a band to get. I genuinely hope to hear more from WB.    … Full Review »
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