The New LoFi

What is the significance of “57” for the elusive band, Sault – The band that has come out of nowhere and released two albums under-the-radar with only a couple of numbers to give us any clues to who they are

Sault have taken the blogosphere by surprise. No one has any idea where they’ve come from, or who they are. According to their Bandcamp page, they are located in the UK, but nothing has been confirmed. Their Soundcloud page says simply “We Are Sault!” in the description and their location is listed as “Global.” If you Google the band, you get pictures of a town in France mostly. There is a one line-blurb that describes the band as a “trio fronted by London-based musician Dean “Inflo” Josiah.”

What we do know is that the band has released an astonishing amount of work in just a couple of months. Back in May this year they released their debut album simply titled 5 which depicted matchsticks in a chicken-scratch formation on a black background.

Then, before we learned anything about the band, a new album was released just months later in September called 7. This time it was just two matches on the cover to form the number seven.

This all wouldn’t be such a big deal if the music sucked. But here’s the thing: the music is amazing. Sault’s sound is familiar — like you’ve heard the songs before — but you can’t put your finger on just where you’ve heard it. There is a warm rich low fidelity nature to the records. They are filled with retro 70s soul vibes that are reminiscent to strong black women music. Those echoy, far-off vocals are always center-stage with wavy guitars and groovy basslines complimenting the wall of sound. It’s music to send you flying. And now’s your chance to listen to them before all of your friends know who they are.