Forever Living Originals Vinyl & CDs

Review: 29-year old Simbiatu Ajikawo aka Little Simz had a breakout year in 2022 that saw her complete a sold out tour and win some big awards (Mercury Music Prize, Mobo, Ivor Novello and Brit) as well as the public's affections. She takes a bold left turn here with 'No Thank Yowl, an album of defiant punk rock that is sleek and dynamic and serves as a "two-fingered salute to conformity and fame". It's a confident record from an artist at the top of her game, all recorded with her go to collaborator Inflo. She says, "emotion is energy in motion. Honour your truth and feelings. Eradicate fear. Boundaries are important."

Review: First released on streaming services back in December, Little Simz fifth album, No Thank You, finally makes it onto CD. Chances are you've already heard it, but if not, we can confirm that it's a genuinely brilliant set that more than lives up to the dizzy heights of its Mercury Prize-winning predecessor, 2021's Sometimes I Might Be Introvert. Constructed in great sonic detail by long-term production partner InFlo - all sultry strings, head-nodding R&BV beats, sampled horns, background and chorus vocals from Cleo Sol and warming bass - the ten-track set contains some of Little Simz's most potent lyrics - all of which are delivered with the kind of seamless, London-accented flow that we've come to expect from her. Another triumph from one of the UK's greatest MCs.

Review: SAULT's body of work is almost untouchable. The mysterious collective has turned out plenty of it in the last couple of years with no fewer than four fantastic albums. This one is a complete left turn, though, which ditches the edgy alt-rock, sou land jazz for an altogether more subbed and symphonic sound. It is a soaring astral soundtrack with plenty of wide open spaces, grand arrangements and plenty of uplifting and celebratory sounds drawn from hugely spiritual choral music and contemporary classical.

Review: British collective, Sault, have made quite the name for themselves since their emergence in 2019. Headed up by producer, Inflo (known for his work with Little Simz, Michael Kiwanuka, Cleo Sol, Jungle and Adele), the collective boast an amorphous sound that encircles r&b, house and disco, and now combined with classical and choral elements too. With an impressive eleven studio albums to their name, the latest edition to the collection, Aiir, is a gloriously stripped-back sequel for their more sumptuous classical companion piece, Air. Nestled somewhere between a sense of paranoia and nostalgia, billowing choral vocals and rising oscillating orchestration give this release an unsettling yet alluringly transportive quality. Despite impressive critical success, Sault is largely a media enigma, featuring an array of mysteriously unnamed collaborators who, as one can imagine, are most likely highly acclaimed artists in their own right.