March 4, 2013 | 12:01 PM | By

Album premiere: Listen to the debut album by Wild Belle, Isles

FILED UNDER: Album Reviews, Artists, Recordings, Wild Belle

Photo by Jennifer Tzar

Photo by Jennifer Tzar

Wild Belle makes music for an integrated world. Chicago natives, brother and sister Elliot and Natalie Bergman, draw on reggae, pop, West African and psychedelic music on its mesmerizing debut album, Isles, out on Tuesday, March 12th. Listen to the album in its entirety below.

Isles is brimming with warm, mystical grooves and dreamy dance songs laced in pop tradition. Natalie and Elliot perform many of the instruments themselves including a wide range of keyboards including piano, Hammond, Fender Rhodes, Memory Moog, Minimoog and Casio. Elliot plays saxophone and percussion including congas and kalimba. Natalie’s lead vocals are beguiling and sensual, and the songs are complemented with bass, guitar and drums, handled by Erik Hall, who plays with Elliot in the jazz/funk/afrobeat influenced Chicago band Nomo.

Songs like “Keep You,” “Twisted,” and “It’s Too Late,” are catchy and irresistibly playful and on “June,” Wild Belle grab a page out of the playbook of the early rock steady sounds of Jamaica with refreshing results. In fact, Isles feels like a deep dive in to the classic Trojan Records catalog with great respect for the past while crafting something thoroughly modern sounding. For Wild Belle, the groove is definitely in the heart.

Isles is out Tuesday, March 12th. Buy the album here.

  • http://twitter.com/thedriveinn 3raig 3opeland

    Obrigado!

  • Dondré

    Perfect.

  • http://www.facebook.com/nickdahan Nick Dahan

    These songs will get some airplay this spring/summer. Regardless, I’m going to blast the album out of my boom box at the beach for all to hear.

  • Ross CMR

    Such good music! this album is perfect for the coming summer. Have you seen their video for “Keep You”? its great http://smarturl.it/WBKeepYouVEVO

  • damascus

    this is so great.. very excited to see them at some festivals this summer

  • Jenna

    Love this group! I hope they come to Xponential :)

  • Bee

    <3 i can't stop playing it. cant wait for the vinyl

  • Patricia

    I can’t stop playing this over and over again! Fun song to dance to and clean to ;)

  • Carolyn

    Yes! this band is incredible. I can’t stop listening to isles. So glad I caught their show at Union Transfer :) The video for Keep You is so beautiful http://smarturl.it/WBKeepYouVEVO

  • Alex

    This duo is excellent mellow indie. They put out some pretty interesting music videos if you have yet to check them out. Here’s the one for Its Too Late…http://smarturl.it/WBTooLateVEVO

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Eric-Kolkey/759329229 Eric Kolkey

    Love Wild Belle! I ordered the album and look forward to seeing them alive again.