Sault - What's the story?

Friend just tipped me to the new one, which then sent me back to the earlier albums. Great stuff all around. Have not yet delved into the Cleo Sol album, obviously I should. The new one sits comfortably alongside Moses Boyd's album, both on my best-of-year shortlist.

So I've now been bingeing all the Sault albums and the Cleo Sol album for two weeks, and this is a pretty great body of work to all be churned out in under a year. Seems weird that it's still a little under the radar.

All their albums have been virtually ignored by US media. In the UK only the Guardian and Q magazine picked it up. I don’t know how getting your album reviewed works, is sending a copy enough? Is there payola involved?

Do you need to represent a big label to be considered at all? They would have slayed in scores, their sounnd ticks too many critics-darlings boxes. I don’t see how any of their albums would get a score lower than B-.

I managed to get a serious metalhead excited about their new one.

I don’t know how getting your album reviewed works

As far as I know (which isn't very far), you need some way to get editorial/writers to actually notice your email promo from the millions they receive. Maybe that's because they've already heard of you or something catches their eye, but more likely because it's coming from a PR or label person that they know and trust (or who sends promos for other notable artists, and who they want to keep having a good relationship with).

As topical as it is, I think the new one would get a lot more attention in the States if it was by an American artist.

But some kind of breakthrough feels sort of inevitable. They're too good to ignore.

Xpost: I mean Inflo is connected, he’s not an artist that gets lost in your spam... if he really wanted their albums to be reviewed by Pitchfork or Rolling Stone, he has worked and probably has the direct contact number of artists like Michael Kiwanuka, Danger Mouse, Belle & Sebastian, Little Simz, The Kooks, Portugal the Man, Jungle... I don’t think knocking on Pitchfork’s or RS’s doors and getting someone to answer is the problem here. Maybe it is, idk.

or maybe it's the new iteration of punk rock and the "major players" can fuck off?

also, yeah: the new one kicks fucking ass. wish i had the money to just buy the discography.

Yeah I think the albums being “obscure” and not giving a fuck if they get picked and reviewed is a very deliberate choice.

They’re doing ok on spotify for an act with virtually no media exposure. Most of their top songs are almost on the 2M plays.

fuck, i've been listening on bandcamp like the plebe-y purist scum that i am. i will

also, like the cheesy cornball doofus i am, i have to say that 'eternal life' is my fav track on the new one. just something so pure bout it. f`kin rad.

*i will start listening on spotify

Hahaha it doesn’t matter where you listen to them, I doubt they get any real benefit out of their Spotify plays. I was just pointing out that there’s a real fanbase developing in there.

bandcamp doesn't pay artists for streams, whereas plays on spotify *do* generate (very little) residuals. and spotify does have "charts" of sorts that help get the word out. and i like the music a lot anyway, so may as well listen on the platform that generates something for them.

Yeah 500k Spotify listeners a month is a shitload and way more than bands “in the machine” with publicists desperately trying to get Stereogum to premiere their blog single or whatever.

I think their attitude is obviously punk and pretty admirable and part of the draw. No information about the band. No press. No label. Nothing.

and yes, because of all that, i kind feel obligated to listen on the platform that contributes, as i don't have the money to buy the physical media at this point.

sorry spamming this thread this afternoon, BUT—

their discogs (confusingly) specifies only one person under group members: kid sister —— what!?

From what I read somewhere (Allmusic?) Kid Sister isn't even on 7, or not much. Cover and Cleo Sol cowrote everything on Cleo's album, so that album sort of IS a Sault album I guess? Hard to say. It's clearly all of a piece or on a continuum.

I finally heard my first Sault song in the wild, I suppose: a pool party that one of the guests was DJing. Hope this trend continues!

The albums are *very* affordable on Bandcamp digitally--something like £7, £7, name your price, very very worth it... Very spendy on vinyl/CD, but even there I copped, as these albums have more continuously and consistently brought be joy than basically anything since I got into Arthur Russell 20 years ago.

Also, the new one appears to have sold 5k+ copies on Bandcamp, which seems pretty remarkable for an almost-zero-promotion "mystery" band.

“don’t waste my time” was on an episode of YOU last season

if i had a staff slot somewhere i would have written about 5, 7, and this one upon release... as it is i included 5 and 7 in my top 10 last year. cutting staff jobs and farming new music discovery out to freelancers has had a pretty terrible effect on what gets covered!

the radio station I just got hired for has the album in heavy rotation fwiw. I need to go back and check their first two releases tho

both this and the Keiyaa album feel very post-When I Get Home to me

I still like the first 2 better, but have been listening to all 3 plus Cleo Sol a whole lot the past few days.

Paste wrote something extensive. It's categorized as a feature, not a review (and thus doesn't come up as part of their "review" section). But it says "review" in the URL.

It is by a staffer, not a freelancer:

https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/sault/sault-untitled-black-is-review/

Not vouching for the piece (haven't read it), just documenting some American press.

that's great!

fwiw the link showed up dead for me so I had to google it and googled link, which workd, shows exactly the same url you posted. Very strange.

The final slash seems to not be a part of the link in the url posted here, and appears to make all the difference.

my bad, hopefully this works:

https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/sault/sault-untitled-black-is-review

dammit!

this album is so so so great. i'm hearing parallels with D'Angelo's Black Messiah in some ways, not just because of the subject matter but in the way it's loose, formless, but also extremely confident, like an expert collage.

damn I just realized my post is the only measure of Keiyaa on ILM. This is in a similar vain as the new Sault but better imo: https://keiyaa.bandcamp.com/

It's so good!

andy k did an amg review: https://www.allmusic.com/album/untitled-black-is-mw0003397217

This band tick so many of my boxes that it's shocking I haven't really dived too deep into their three albums. I've decided I need to buy one of them on vinyl. Which should I get?

Start with '5' and '7' then also 'Untitled'.

Seriously though, it's all amazing. '7' is my personal fave.

OK, had not listened to Kiwanuka until I knew of the link, but it's lovely.

I haven't listened to 'Untitled' yet but '7' is all-time imo

It has to have been said, but in addition to Sault x2 + Kiwanuka, Inflo's magic is deep in Kittle Simz 'Grey Area'. Dude made 4 of my 5 top 5 records in 2019...

I should listen to Little Simz album then!

This Little Simz album is great.

I pretty much endorse any project that Inflo has been attached to. He’s a brilliant musician and producer.

And yes that includes a Kooks album!

FWIW, on the latest Sound Opinions episode, Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot call the new album a "masterpiece" and "album of the year."

With DeRo on our side, how can we go wrong?

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