Isles (Wild Belle album)

Isles is the debut studio album by the American brother/sister duo Wild Belle. It was released on March 12, 2013, by Columbia Records. The album encompasses many genres, and its title refers to the band's goal of making each song its own "isle" with a distinct musical style.[2]

Isles
Studio album by
Wild Belle
Released12 March 2013 (2013-03-12)
Genre
Length39:57
LabelColumbia
Producer
  • Elliott Bergman
  • Bill Skibbe
Wild Belle chronology
Isles
(2013)		 Dreamland
(2016)
Singles from Isles
  1. "Keep You"
    Released: February 21, 2012
  2. "It's Too Late"
    Released: September 17, 2012
  3. "Another Girl"
    Released: September 14, 2013
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Consequence of Sound[1]

Style and instrumentation

The album has a relaxed feeling, with rhythmic yet varied beats and a unique blend of reggae, pop, and electronica.[3] Lead vocalist Natalie Bergman sings in a laid-back, breezy voice.[3] She is accompanied primarily by keyboard, drums, and electric guitar. Fellow band member Elliot Bergman sings lead vocals on "When It's Over."

Critical reception

Upon release, Isles received favorable reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews by mainstream critics, Isles received an average score of 63, based on 16 reviews.[4] Greg Kot of The Chicago Tribune called the album "deceptively breezy", while praising Natalie Bergman's vocals and questioning Elliot's.[5] Consequence of Sound's Adam Kivel gave the album a C+, saying that the album was not made to meet any expectations, while also praising Natalie's vocals and comparing the album's material to the works of Beach House, Amy Winehouse, and Diana Ross.[6]

Hazel Sheffield of NME, however, was less positive by rating it 3/10. She described the album as "exotic" while also highlighting songs such as "Twisted", in which she contrasted Natalie's vocals to "a greyscale Lily Allen".[7] MusicOMH was also negative with its review of Isles, rating it only two and a half stars while describing the album's material as "mundane" and "turgid".[8]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Elliot Bergman and Natalie Bergman except where noted.

No.TitleLength
1."Keep You"3:30
2."It's Too Late" (E. Bergman, N. Bergman, J.Mittoo)3:13
3."Shine"4:41
4."Twisted"3:05
5."Backslider"3:23
6."Happy Home"3:45
7."Another Girl"3:52
8."Love Like This"3:58
9."When It's Over"3:33
10."June"4:03
11."Take Me Away"2:54
Total length:39:57

Personnel

Credits for Isles adapted from AllMusic.[9]

Charts
Chart (2013) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[10] 113
US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[11] 20
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[12] 1
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[13] 31

References
  1. Kivel, Adam. "Album Review: Wild Belle – Isles". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved May 13, 2013.
  2. "Wild Belle: Musical Siblings Go Island-Hopping". NPR Music. 12 March 2013. Retrieved 12 July 2013.
  3. Kot, Greg (11 March 2013). "Album review: Wild Belle, 'Isles'". Chicago Tribune A&E. Retrieved 12 July 2013.
  4. "Reviews for Isles by Wild Belle". Metacritic. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
  5. Kot, Greg (March 11, 2013). "Album review: Wild Belle, 'Isles'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
  6. "Wild Belle - Isles". Consequence of Sound. March 13, 2013. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
  7. Sheffield, Hazel (March 8, 2013). "NME Review - Wild Belle 'Isles'". NME. Retrieved October 10, 2015.
  8. Meller, David (March 9, 2013). "Wild Belle - Isles". musicOMH. Retrieved October 10, 2015.
  9. "Wild Belle: Isles - Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
  10. "Wild Belle Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
  11. "Wild Belle Chart History (Top Alternative Albums)". Billboard.
  12. "Wild Belle Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard.
  13. "Wild Belle Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard.
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