Art Basel Music: Santigold Drops New Track at LIV Last Night, Wale Supports AC Milan

All photos by Jose D. Duran

Santigold at LIV.

​Santigold
With Wale
Wednesday, November 30
LIV

Better Than: Waiting in line at a Basel party for free drinks.

Nightclubbing ... Aside from the 1977 Iggy Pop track, we pretty much hate everything about it. The stringent dress codes, blatant superficiality, remixed dance versions of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zero's "Home," and all the other nonsense connected to nightclubbing can be incredibly nauseating.

But for whatever fucked up reason or another, Crossfade willingly agreed to cover Santigold's performance at LIV when planning our personal Basel week schedule.

Rolling past the Fontainebleau's valet and into a city lot about a block down the road, we pushed through the hotel's revolving door just before midnight. As luck would have it, last night's performance was co-sponsored by Corona. We guzzled as many free Mexican imports as humanly possible in seven minutes -- free booze ended at midnight -- and then we did a few wobbly laps around the club.

Five cigarette-less months went up in smoke the minute we found someone who'd let us bum a Parliament. We couldn't help it. It was damn near 1 a.m. with no sign of Santigold. The anxiety was overwhelming and our nerves got the best of us.

A half-pack into someone else's box, the Philly performer's name finally appeared on the jumbotron behind LIV's stage. We posted up right at the top of the stairs and waited for Santigold with our Flip camera at the ready.

​Some 23 minutes later, the lights dimmed and the DJ cued "Go," Santi's collaborative track with Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Dressed like a combination hobo rag doll and Lil Jon drag queen, Santigold took the stage as two backup dancers sprinkled glitter on the ground she walked on.

Live, Santigold sounds incredible. We caught her at Lollapalooza one year and were really blown away by her range. Last night was no different. She tackled the shit out of "Creator" and left us mesmerized with "L.E.S. Artistes."

Santigold also performed "Freak Like Me," a new track off her forthcoming album. "I've got a new record coming out soon," she told the crowd. "And it's finished. It's actually finished," she added cheerfully. "I'm going to do a new song so you can check it out early."

We couldn't help but wonder if Diplo's behind "Freak Like Me." The track's got a real Major Lazor vibe, which we're totally cool with.

Ending shortly before 2 a.m., the set only lasted four songs. About half an hour later, Maybach Music's Wale strolled on stage sporting an AC Milan jersey and an MMG neckpiece. He did about half of "600 Benz" sans Rick Ross, then jumped into "Chillin."

He sounded solid, but we had to bounce. Sleep deprivation and drunk munchies were at an all-time high.

Critic's Notebook 

The Crowd: Aspiring artists and the One Percent.

Santigold's Setlist:
-"Go!"
-"L.E.S. Artistes"
-"Freak Like Me"
-"Creator"

Wale's Partial Setlist:
"600 Benz"
"Chillin"


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