Cleo Sol is widely celebrated for her work with mysterious music collective SAULT, but her solo work brings many of the soulful qualities of that group’s work to her songs while imbuing them with intimacy. Her 2021 album Mother was a look at the complicated bond between mother and child, sparing no detail. That album, alongside Heaven, was created with SAULT chief architect Inflo, and while there are musical similarities between the two albums, the latter is built around minimalist jazz compositions, giving her voice plenty of room. Album opener “Self” is a prayer of sorts, backed by an interlocking piano melody and bassline. Sol beckons a higher power, singing, “I'm growing every day, release me from this pride/Turn anger into peace and lead with my inner child.” On “Old Friends”, piano once again leads the way, accompanying Sol's almost desperate lament over growing apart from a lifelong confidant. She sings, “Sometimes, I think if I was more stronger/Sunshine, my smiles would last longer/You had my trust and we had choices/But you told my secrets to strangers.” Throughout Heaven, Cleo Sol finds grace in the choices she makes, leaving the rest to the unpredictability of the divine.
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