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. Entertainment Weekly
    Mar 8, 2013
    83
    Natalie Bergman and her brother Elliot are too inventive to get cast as style-rock band, experimenting with African thumb pianos, dub-reggae grooves, and sultry soul vocals with deep pass-the-dutchie raspiness. [15 Mar 2013, p.62]
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  2. Chicago Tribune
    Mar 8, 2013
    75
    With its exotic instruments and spacious arrangements, this is a first-rate pop album that doesn’t sound quite like anything else on pop radio.
  3. American Songwriter
    Apr 1, 2013
    70
    The mood is enriched by an ambitious approach to what seems on the surface to be modest pop songs, which reveal themselves to be far more elaborate, challenging and unusual.
  5. No Ripcord
    Mar 21, 2013
    70
    Wild Belle’s debut is a respectable exercise of ethereal pop.
  6. Consequence
    Mar 13, 2013
    70
    Natalie’s embattled relationship tales balance the island vibes, and Elliot’s expressive backdrops frame each without battling for attention.
  7. AllMusic
    Mar 11, 2013
    70
    With songs largely based around Natalie's love of soul and melodic '60s pop, Wild Belle have a less frenetic, if still hypnotically languid take on NOMO's world fusion sound.
  8. BBC Music
    Mar 8, 2013
    70
    Isles ends up an easy pleasure--nothing too weighty, but substantial in its way.
  9. Austin Chronicle
    Mar 13, 2013
    67
    Without their smart lyrics and complex instrumentation, listeners would feel like they're listening to the same song again and again.
  10. The A.V. Club
    Mar 12, 2013
    67
    Ultimately, Isles falls somewhere between juvenile and sophisticated, which puts it comfortably in the mystifying realm of American pop.

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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