SAULT have officially released ‘Acts of Faith’, their surprise album from earlier this year.
The mysterious collective first shared ‘Acts of Faith’ in July, with the whole album available as a single 32-minute .wav file. Since then, fans have requested an official release.
In the lead-up to Christmas, they took to their official Twitter/X account to share a short clip of album closer ‘Pray For Me’, on December 20.
Then, on Christmas day, SAULT shared a link to the album and its cover, writing: “ACTS OF FAITH- Album officially released today.” You can listen here.
‘Acts of Faith’ debuted last December, when SAULT played their spectacularly immersive first-ever live show. The performance also included appearances from Little Simz and Michael Kiwanuka.
Shortly afterwards, the collective suggested that there would be several more concerts around the world in the near future, although these have yet to materialise.
According to a social media post, the shows were to showcase their album ‘5’ in New York, ‘Black’ in Los Angeles, ‘Untitled (Rise)’ in Canada, ‘11’ in Germany, ‘Air’ in Paris and ‘Earth’ in Africa at some point.
SAULT have never officially confirmed their bandmembers; however, producer Inflo is generally regarded as the leader, with Cleo Sol, Kid Sister, Chronixx and more providing uncredited vocals.
In January, André 3000 said that he had plans to record a collaboration with the group and confirmed that he had spent time in the studio with them.
Speaking to BBC Radio 6 Music, the OutKast rapper said: “A musician friend turned me on to them when they were in their secrecy stage. So he connected me with them.”
“You know, we hung out, went to the studio, messed around a bit… yeah. And once I was turned on to them, I kind of listened to what was done before. I think they’d only had like one or two albums out at that time.”
Host Gilles Peterson then asked Benjamin if he had recorded any music with SAULT, and whether fans could “look forward to” hearing it. “We can look forward to it in the future,” he responded.
In a four-star review of 2021’s ‘Nine’, NME wrote: “Once again, Sault demonstrate the power of words and just how impactful music can be. It’s impossible not to feel affected by the stories being told.”
“Despite ‘Nine’s sadness, Sault channel optimism and hope for a brighter future into their songs. Coupled with twinkling piano keys, the album’s poignant closing words offer a lifeline: ‘Don’t ever lose yourself / You can always start again’.“
NEWS
Celebrated playwright and comedian Ben Elton has approached Noel Gallagher about creating an “Oasis jukebox musical”.
The two recently crossed paths at the Queen Budapest premiere at London’s BFI Imax. During their conversation, the We Will Rock You writer expressed his interest in building a stage production around Oasis’ songs.
The Sun newspaper’s Bizarre column reported that the guitarist laughed and pointed him towards his brother Liam, saying: “You better ask our kid.”
Someone close to Liam suggested casting the singer would be a challenge, claiming no actor could "match" his "swagger".
Built around Queen’s songs, We Will Rock You enjoyed an impressive run, becoming the Dominion Theatre’s longest running musical and earning a place among the West End’s longest running productions. It also received the Laurence Olivier Award for Most Popular Show.
Interest in Oasis remains enormous, with 11 million people signing up for the Oasis Live ’27 ticket ballot.
After the Live Forever band returned to touring last year for the first time in 16 years, their famous rivalry with Blur became the subject of a stage comedy.
In The Battle, Gavin and Stacey actor Mathew Horne portrayed Andy Ross, the Britpop music executive who found himself in the middle of one of British music’s most memorable feuds.
He said: “This play is right in the sweet spot of my teenage cultural experience. I’m thrilled to be exploring this iconic era in music on stage with such a talented creative team involved.”
The production revisited August 1995, when Blur and Oasis went head to head by releasing Country House and Roll With It on the same day, each hoping to reach Number One.
Blur secured the victory with sales of 274,000 copies, compared with 216,000 for Oasis.
That chart contest fuelled years of public jabs between members of both groups, although relations have become less hostile over time.
A UK tour had been planned for the production, but its remaining performances were cancelled following the Birmingham and Manchester engagements in February and March this year.
Oasis Live ’27 begins on May 21 at Glasgow’s Celtic Park, with 42 concerts scheduled, including a record six performances at Knebworth.
