Cleo Sol is a British R&B singer who first made a name for herself as a teenager nearly 15 years ago, but has since risen to prominence as the most prominent vocalist in Sault, the prolific and deliberately anonymous alt-soul collective led by musician-producer Inflo that has released a staggering 11 albums in just four years. Sol has taken this ethic to heart, releasing two full-lengths within a fortnight of each other this month: ‘Heaven’ and ‘Gold’, the latter of which dropped last night.
While these are solo albums, she has worked closely with Inflo – he co-wrote and produced both – so the sound and feel is, unsurprisingly, often similar to Sault’s, but stays in the smooth Massive Attack/Sade lane that marks the group’s most R&B-leaning material. There’s a lot of Erykah Badu and a lot of early 70s Stevie Wonder in her vocals and grooves, and while she generally moves at a leisurely, understated pace, Sol shows she can open up and (almost) belt when she feels like it: ‘Lost Angel’, one of the strongest songs in the batch, finds her ratcheting up the intensity as a gospel chorus soars behind her.
The themes of the songs are mostly about love, self-belief and a gently Christian-influenced spirituality, and the lyrics aren’t always as inspired as the music, but her phrasing is as softly focused as the sound, so they’re not intrusive. It’s not music for rocking a party, but it’s perfect for lighting candles and winding down after a night out.
Sault fans have been spoiled (if not overwhelmed) by the wealth of material coming out of the group’s camp in recent months – in addition to the six albums the group released last year, Inflo also produced the entirety of Little Simz’s ‘No Wonder’ album – and suddenly here’s another windfall.
