Sault (frequently stylised as SAULT) are a British music collective that make a mixture of R&B,

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and

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

. The project is helmed by producer

Inflo Dean Josiah Cover, professionally known as Inflo, is an English record producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He helms the R&B music collective project Sault, which foregrounds black-centric issues. Career In 2014, British rock band ...

, best known for his work with

Little Simz Simbiatu "Simbi" Abisola Abiola Ajikawo (born 23 February 1994), better known by her stage name Little Simz, is a British rapper, singer and actress. She rose to prominence with the independent release of her first three albums; ''A Curious Tale ...

Michael Kiwanuka Michael Samuel Kiwanuka (born 3 May 1987) is a British singer-songwriter and record producer who is signed with Polydor Records. His 2012 debut album, '' Home Again'', went gold in the United Kingdom and his second album, '' Love & Hate'', debu ...

Cleo Sol Cleopatra Zvezdana Nikolic (born 24 March 1991), better known by her stage name Cleo Sol, is a British singer-songwriter. Working closely with the producer Inflo, she has released two solo studio albums, ''Rose in the Dark'' (2020) and ''Mother'' ...

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and

Adele Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (, ; born 5 May 1988), professionally known by the mononym Adele, is an English singer and songwriter. After graduating in arts from the BRIT School in 2006, Adele signed a reco ...

. Despite critical acclaim, Sault eschew interaction with the media and feature an array of unnamed collaborators. They have never played a live show, given an interview or released a music video in support of their music. They frequently foreground Black-centric issues. Since their emergence in 2019, the collective has released eleven studio albums, with '' 5'' (2019), '' 7'' (2019), ''

Untitled (Black Is) ''Untitled (Black Is)'' is the third studio album by the British R&B musical group Sault, released on 19 June 2020 through the independent record label Forever Living Legends. The album has been met with positive critical reception. Release ...

'' (2020), '' Untitled (Rise)'' (2020), and ''

Nine 9 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 9 or nine may also refer to: Dates * AD 9, the ninth year of the AD era * 9 BC, the ninth year before the AD era * 9, numerical symbol for the month of September Places * Nine, Portugal, a parish in the ...

'' (2021), being released between 2019 and 2021. After releasing the orchestral instrumental album, ''AIR'', in April 2022, the collective surprise-released five studio albums simultaneously on their website on 1 November that same year.

History

2019: ''5'' and ''7''

On 15 February 2019, Sault released their debut track "We Are the Sun" via their record label Forever Living Originals; this was followed up by the collective on 15 March 2019 with "Don't Waste My Time". On 5 May of the same year, Sault released their debut album titled '' 5''. The album cover art is a black background with matchsticks used to denote the number five. This design with the matchsticks and black background can be seen in all of their numerically titled releases, except for 11. Sault returned with their second album four months later called ''7'' on 27 September, which like ''5'', was again met with widespread acclaim.

2020–2021: ''Untitled'' albums, Mercury Prize nomination and ''Nine''

Sault's albums in 2020, ''

'', released in June, and '' Untitled (Rise)'', released in September, both received universal critical acclaim, including a nomination for the

Mercury Prize The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album released in the United Kingdom by a British or Irish act. It was created by Jon Webster and Robert Chandler in association with the B ...

in 2021 for the latter. On 25 June 2021, the band released their fifth studio album, ''

'', which was available for 99 days from its release until 2 October 2021. In the same year, the band were nominated at the

MOBO Awards The MOBO Awards (Music of Black Origin, also known as the MOBOs) are an annual British music award presentation honouring achievements in " music of black origin", including hip hop, grime, UK Drill, R&B, soul, reggae, jazz, gospel, and Af ...

for Best R&B/Soul Act alongside vocalist and eventual winner

2022–present: ''Air'', ''10'' and five surprise albums

On 13 April 2022 Sault released their sixth studio album, ''

Air The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing f ...

''. ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' described it as a "total volte-face" and ''

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'' described it as "a sharp pivot to lush contemporary classical". In October that same year, the collective released a

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-influenced EP, '' 10'' (styled ''X''), consisting of one ten-minute-long song called "Angel". On 11 November 2022, the collective surprise-released five albums simultaneously as a free download, writing: "Here are 5 albums released as an offering to God. Available for free download for five days. The password to unlock all 5 albums is in the message. Love SAULT X." The five individual albums—'' 11'', ''

AIIR ''AIIR'' is the eighth studio album from British funk music, funk band Sault (band), Sault, A sequel to their sixth album, ''Air (Sault album), AIR'', the album was one of five initially released for free via digital distribution on 1 Novemb ...

'', ''

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

'', '' Today & Tomorrow'', and '' Untitled (God)''—feature 56 tracks in total. According to ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'', "It's possible that this is the largest amount of newly recorded music released by a relatively major artist at once."

Members

The line-up of Sault remains a mystery, with unconfirmed members cited as below. *

– producer, various instruments *

– lead vocals *

Kid Sister Melissa Young (born July 3, 1980), known professionally as Kid Sister, is an American rapper based in Chicago, Illinois. She is known for her single " Pro Nails", which features Kanye West, and for her work as a member of the British music colle ...

– lead vocals *Kadeem Clarke

Discography

Studio albums

Extended plays

Singles

Notes

Awards and nominations

References

External links

*
Pass the ''Sault''
by Elías Villoro for ''

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'' (2022-12-01) {{Authority control British contemporary R&B musical groups British house music groups Black British musical groups Musical groups established in 2019 2019 establishments in England Musical groups from London