Get the latest gossip
Sault Return to Sumptuous R&B (and Sly Michael Jackson References) With Stealth-Released ‘X’: Album Review
Sault, featuring singer Cleo Sol, return to the sumptuous R&B that put them on the map with 'X," which is full of low-key Michael Jackson references.
Stealth has always been part of the U.K. R&B collective Sault ’s methodology and mystique: The prolific and partially anonymous group, led by songwriter-producer Inflo and singer-songwriter Cleo Sol, avoids photos, interviews, splashy cover art and all the usual trappings, instead dropping a mind-boggling number of albums in a variety of styles — ranging from orchestral to stripped-down rock, along with their usual R&B — in the six years since they first appeared: some 12 albums (yes, twelve!) It starts right in with the winking Michael Jackson references: The first track “T.H.” features “Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough”-style percussion and peppy horns, and throughout the rest of the album you’ll hear a keyboard hook that nods to “Rock With You” “K.T.Y.W.S” (yes, they’ve all got abbreviated titles) and an orchestral arrangement that flashes on “Billie Jean.” But it’s not all MJ: There’s a song called “R.L.,” probably “Real Love,” that nods to the Mary J. Blige classic of the same name; elsewhere on the album there’s a bassline that recalls “Fresh”-era Sly & the Family Stone and horn arrangements that are Fela-esque in one place and P-Funked in others. The band’s core, as usual, is based around its tasteful rhythm section and chunky guitars, with Sol and backing singers soaring above, but the keyboards, horns and ‘80s musical references keep it upbeat; the lyrics are often Christian-themed but less overtly than their recent releases.
Or read this on Variety
