Santagold – Say Aha

• 9th Dec 2008

‘Say Aha’ is as catchy as an adverts jingle and as simple as a one side Rubik’s cube, not that the ad men haven’t already plundered Santogold’s material, ‘Creator’ for example being used in a shampoo commercial.

The most powerful element is Santi White’s vocals, strong with a ’If you don’t like it fuck off’ punk attitude that must have carried over from her punk project ‘Stiffed’; meeting that Blondie vibe, back when they blended reggae with new wave and came out the other end with chart hits aplenty.

With a two-tone feel buried just under the surface, it could be the Specials fronted by Santi and laid back with a dub beat.
The single comes complete with remixes an although they are welcome, particularly the ‘Tepr’ remix, what it really shows is that a simple melody will always win out, certainly some of the remixes fall short but on the whole the original is the best point of contact.

Recent reports from the tour with Kanye West suggest it’s going to take a concerted effort to break over here, but it’s something that will happen, ‘Say Aha’ might not be the song that does it, but it will also do no harm, as acceptance and then appreciation are only round the corner, Santogold’s next move will most certainly be as interesting, as it will be important.