Following two albums for Columbia and a collaboration with
Major Lazer, all of which were well-received but deserved to make a bigger impact, brother-sister duo
Wild Belle have survived the major-label hype machine and gone the independent route for their third full-length.
Everybody One of a Kind appears on the duo's own Love Tone imprint, with a vinyl pressing handled by the Bob Marley-founded Tuff Gong label. It's easily their most upbeat release to date, with a bit more of a dancehall bounce to it, and in some ways it sounds poppier than the duo's major-label work. The island-inspired vibe is heavy here, as singer Natalie Bergman occasionally slips in some patois and makes lyrical references to dreadlocks. Her lyrics and personality are saucier this time around; she proclaims "I'm a naughty girl, I'm a nice girl too" on the
M.I.A.-esque opener "Rocksteady," and the hedonistic "Have You Both" details lustful feelings for two different guys. "We Are the Future" is a bold call for revolution, both socially and sexually: "Who makes the rules? Let's break the rules, you can love whoever date you chose." While this is a powerful statement, and one of the album's high points, even more affecting is "If I Should Lose My Mind," a sentimental ode to undying devotion that doesn't sound sappy or melodramatic in the least. Throughout the album, the production is airy, spacious, and slightly eccentric, with traces of voices embedded into the mix. It's fluid and dub-inspired without being truly outlandish or bugged out, and the rhythms are skeletal but supportive; it never seems like there's too much or too little going on at any given time.
Wild Belle truly sound free on their audacious third album, which contains some of their catchiest, most sonically adventurous material. ~ Paul Simpson