Listen to Santigold’s new album, Master Of My Make-Believe, via streaming audio at NPR Music

Philly-born Santigold’s sophomore album, Master Of My Make-Believe, is set for release on May 1st (via Downtown and Atlantic Records). Earlier this month, she announced a series of tour dates in support of the release, including a performance at the Trocadero on Tuesday, May 8th. From NPR Music:

As uncompromising in her own way as M.I.A., whose music attacks more viscerally, Santigold seems ambivalent about most everything she touches on Master of My Make-Believe — especially success, if “Fame” is any indication. Even the profanity-laced “Look at These Hoes” seems to straddle the line between loathing material excess and embracing it; in that case, the result feels deadpan to the point of half-heartedness.

With its frequent nods to island rhythms — and the aid of collaborators from old standbys Diploand Switch to Yeah Yeah Yeahs‘ Karen O — Master of My Make-Believe has a sprawl to it that belies its 38-minute run time. As a result, whether a given song comes out as a jolt (“Freak Like Me”) or a trot (“Pirate in the Water”), Master of My Make-Believe feels packed and filling. But fun has been edged out of the equation a bit, in favor of an emphasis on ferocity and artistry that’s increasingly hard to deny

You can read the full write-up and listen to the album in its entirety here.