Lady Sovereign – Jigsaw Review
2006’s Public Warning was Lady Sovereign’s introduction to the music world. At the time, Jay Z backed her on Def Jam. Missy did a remix with her on her hit Love Me or Hate Me. Fast forward to end of 2008, Lady Sov’ is on her own with no big label behind her, announcing on her MySpace that she will releasing her sophomore album Jigsaw on her own EMI distributed label “Midget Records”.
In April, Lady Sov released her album Jigsaw. Overall, the album is very different from Public Warning. Aside from her voice, she’s grown up quite a bit. I guess her difficulties in the mainstream industry did quite a number on her personality. She is still the rebellious and quirky character, but her topics are different. She’s no longer rapping about the hardships of everyday life, growing up or proving herself as a rapper. She’s now talking about the complexities of her personality, her likes/dislikes and just having a good time.
The progression on the album is quite evident. For one, the beats are more garage and electronic, which refines her sound more. Second, she sings on some of tracks, including the title track Jigsaw. So Human borrows from The Cure’s Close To Me, giving the track a more pop feel. The leading single I Got You Dancing has a very catchy chorus, a more evolved mainstream track than Love Me or Hate Me. And, the beginning of Food Play sounds straight out of a Snoop Dogg album.
I wouldn’t call this a ‘great’ album, it’s okay (maybe 6.5/10). But, it’s definitely an improvement from the last and good enough for me to continue to looking forward to her work and believing in her potential. I think the same of Lady Sov and Lily Allen. If they continue along the path of self-discovery and self-challenge (particularly in music), once they’ve gotten a full grasp of themselves as people, they can produce and release potentially great music.
Lady Sovereign – I Got You Dancing
Track Listing
1. “Let’s Be Mates” – 3:20
2. “So Human” (Lukasz Gottwald, Benjamin Levin, Robert Smith) (based on an interpolation of “Close to Me” by The Cure) – 3:56
3. “Jigsaw” – 3:32
4. “Bang Bang” – 3:22
5. “I Got You Dancing” – 3:33
6. “Pennies” (Gottwald, Levin) – 3:05
7. “Guitar” – 3:32
8. “Student Union” – 3:05
9. “Food Play” – 5:13
10. “I Got the Goods” – 3:01
11. “I Got You Dancing” (Semothy Jones Remix) (iTunes bonus track) – 4:06
Lady Sovereign’s I Got You Dancing, featuring lots of dancing, vogueing and a green face. I forget how short she is at 5′1, until I see her next to other people.
Tags: album
I can’t put my finger on why exactly, but I’m a little bit in love with the Sov.