CLEO SOL レコード& CD

Review: We'll jump at the chance to talk about anyone affiliated with the mysterious SAULT collective. One of their most prominent voices, Cleo Sol, has here teamed up with her longtime producer friend Inflo for her second album, 'Mother'. This 12-track LP spans neo-soul, jazz and folk, and chronicles Sol's turbulent transition into motherhood. Across solitary ballads like 'Sunshine' and radiant folk dirges like 'Know That You Are Loved' and 'Promises', this album sounds purer in contrast to her debut 'Rose In The Dark'. Watch out for the hidden tracks on this vinyl edition.

Review: When she started her career just over a decade ago, Cleopatra Nikolic AKA Cleo Sol was considered a singer-for-hire within the international deep house community. Now, with the assistance of beat-maker Inflo, she's decided to strike out on her own via a quietly impressive solo debut that re-casts her as a genuinely fresh and exciting soul talent. Beginning with the layered acapella vocals and deep, jazzy grooves of stunning opener "One Love", the album sees her brilliantly deliver heartfelt and thoughtful lyrics over hazy backing tracks that brilliantly join the dots between jazz, neo-soul and R&B. While she's undoubtedly the star of the show, Inflo's stripped-back, partially acoustic and largely soft-focus production is also worthy of high praise.

Review: Listen up and pay attention all serious soul heads - Cleo Sol is back with an album which confirms her position at the forefront of UK soul. Sol has a career which reaches back to the late 00s guesting for the likes of Tinie Tempah, but it's within the wider Sault orbit she's forged a renewed presence in recent years. Locked into a productive run of albums which kicked off with Rose In The Dark back in 2020, her latest long player might just be her best as she gracefully glides from piano ballads to pastoral funk, low-slung neo soul bump and beyond. Everything is bound together by her flawless voice and a persistently warm, mellow production, making this sound like a future classic in waiting.

Review: Cleo Sol has emerged on Forever Living Originals alongside the avant-gospel sensation of Sault, and in an understated way she's quickly positioned herself as one of the most compelling, original voices in UK soul. Hot on the heels of Heaven comes her third LP Gold, and it's another masterclass in low-key but wholly intentional production framing some of the most arresting singing and songwriting you're likely to hear all the way through 2024. On Gold especially there's a tendency towards a cosy, in-the-room sound from the live kit and warm keys to the subtle undercurrent of soundsystem mixing attitude, and it makes for an album you'll want to live in for days on end.

Review: Alongside the widespread success of Sault, we've been able to bear witness to the continued rise of core member Cleo Sol as a standout voice in the vanguard of UK soul. Following her two previous albums Mother and Rose In The Dark, Sol stretches out once again with an arresting collection of neo soul, folk and more. Everything is cast in warm, rich tones, from the acoustic lilt of 'Airplane' to the dusky bump of 'Go Baby', but it's the strength of Sol's vocal presence which binds everything together so perfectly. Truly capturing the best of modern soul with wholly justified comparisons to Jill Scott, Erykah Badu and D'Angelo alike, this stunning album has future classic written all over it.

Review: Cleo Sol's arrival in the past few years has been one of the best things to happen to UK soul music in a long time, and she's gifted us two of her outstanding albums in the past 12 months. While ears are reeling from the wonder of Heaven, we're now treated to Gold and it's hard to fathom how so many incredible songs can spill out from one person. There's a dusky, understated quality to this album which makes it so easy to sink into and even in the most stripped down arrangements you can sense the guiding hand of dub giving the music a womb-like intimacy. The playing has a raw, in-the-room immediacy and it flows so naturally it wouldn't be a surprise to learn it was recorded in one take.

Review: Cleo Sol's long-promised debut album, which hit record stores in mid-2020, was a genuinely impressive set: a fine collection of soft-focus jazz, neo-soul and R&B songs that did a great job in showcasing her talents as both a singer and songwriter. Inspired in part by Sol's experiences as a new mother, it's another superb collection of deliciously sweet and soulful songs that should resonate far beyond Sol's growing band of fans. Musically sparse but detailed - think shuffling acoustic guitars, languid beats, ear-catching electronic melodies, twinkling painos and sumptupus bass - Mother is perhaps a more obviously "neo-soul"-themed effort than its predecessor, but that's no bad thing. It has the feel of an album that will be considered a British soul classic in years to come.