SAULT

British project that emerged in 2019, SAULT was built around producer Inflo and singer Cleo Sol, with the flexible operation of a collective in which some collaborators remain deliberately less exposed. From England, SAULT develops music that moves between neo-soul, contemporary R&B, funk, disco, gospel, reggae, house, and, at times, a more neoclassical approach to songwriting. The first albums, 5 and 7 in 2019, establish a sound that is both direct and composite, based on dry grooves, choirs, pronounced basslines, and an alternation between rhythmic tension and more meditative passages. In 2020, Untitled (Black Is) and Untitled (Rise) place more clearly at the center questions related to Black experiences and spirituality, before Nine in 2021 extends this vein with a tighter form. SAULT then shifts perspective with Air in 2022, an instrumental album with a predominantly orchestral feel, and in the same year follows with several releases including 11, Earth, Today & Tomorrow, Untitled (God) and AIIR. Collaborations with Chronixx, Little Simz, Michael Kiwanuka, Kid Sister or Jack Peñate have punctuated this journey without altering SAULT’s logic, that of a discreet, highly productive collective long absent from the scene. The group gave its first concert only in 2023 in London, after several years with no interviews or real live presence.