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Baker's Dozen

My Pioneers: Santigold's Favourite Albums
Tara Joshi , October 10th, 2018 07:44

In this week's Baker's Dozen, Santigold takes Tara Joshi through 13 favourite albums from Salt-N-Pepa to the Cocteau Twins, Fela Kuti, Nina Simone and Bad Brains, and points out that while Morrissey might have gone wrong, you can't take away what his songs once gave her

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Cocteau Twins - Garlands
So remember when I said I bought the Smiths record and I met this guy who became my friend? His name was Ishmael, and he ended up being in a band called Digable Planets. He loved the Cocteau Twins, and I think he's the one who introduced me to them when I was about 15. My favourite thing about Cocteau Twins is how Liz Fraser sings with no lyrics – it's all just gibberish and melody. It makes it feel okay to do anything you want. They tap into an era and a sound that I really like, with the drum machines coming in… I like on this record in particular that there's a little bit of a punk influence, it's almost more rock compared to their later records – but still with the beautiful melodies. This record stretched my perception of how different elements can come together.