the new Sault raises questions above all ★★☆☆☆

That at least took some getting used to, and possibly a bit of a shock, when last week on the battle of Good Friday the album Air from Sault appeared on the streaming services. The sixth album by the mysterious company around British producer Dean Josiah Cover (also known as Inflo), who was also extensively acclaimed in this newspaper, did not start with crackling hip-hop beats, languid funk or sultry soul, but with classical strings, horns and choral singing in crescendo. . reality is it called the opening piece Air, and you had to check if you clicked correctly.

Was this a joke? The 45 minutes that followed soon proved not to be. Anyone who is allergic to choral singing in a high soprano setting, surrounded by splashing strings and winds, should pass this album by. But even if you are open to it, it is hard work. There’s a moment in heart a kind of handhold and the harp gives the rather hysterical music some air. But then the chorus starts again. The vocals are completely wordless except for a small part, and that slowly but surely gets on the nerves.

What does Sault actually mean? There is no clear answer, in the only text, sung by Sault veteran Cleo Sol. ‘Life will always bring its pressures’, a choir sings in Time is Preciouswhile Cleo Sol’s voice really breaks the music open for a moment as if a flower is blossoming.

But then you still don’t know exactly what you’re listening to on two-thirds of the album. No matter how often you play the album, the question of what exactly Sault wants with this remains unanswered. Apart from the sparse vocals of Cleo Sol in two songs, there is really no resemblance with other Sault work. Rather, it is reminiscent of Philip Glass’s operas, Alice Coltrane’s symphonic jazz (thanks mainly to the harp) and, more recently, the bloated and masterly epic (2015) by tenor saxophonist Kamasi Washington.

Inflo has created a new, own world on this sixth Sault album. You have to be interested in that. Irritation eventually turns into admiration, but the real conviction is not there after a week.