Robert Del Naja, Kamasi Washington, Georgia Anne Muldrow and more to feature on new Saul Williams album, Leap Life
Musician, actor, and poet Saul Williams has announced his upcoming album, Leap Life, and shared lead single, "Conspiracy", featuring Gonjasufi and Moor Mother.
Leap Life marks Williams' first solo album in seven years, and his return to Big Dada, on which he released his first solo works, Elohim in 1972, and Twice The First Time in 1998. In that time, Williams has appeared in a variety of films, including Sinners and Lackawanna Blues, as well as making his debut as a director and graphic novelist.
"Conspiracy" arrives as the first preview of Williams' new work, and introduces the first of a number of collaborations on the album, which features additional contributions from Carlos Niño, Massive Attack's Robert Del Naja, Kamasi Washington, Georgia Anne Muldrow and Surya Botofasina.
On Leap Life, Williams follows the philosophy that "the voice is the instrument", which leads him to chant, speak, and improvise across the album, as he draws from hip-hop, West African rhythms, and ambient arrangements. He describes the album as an "attempt to commune with the dead", having observed the conflicts devastating Palestine, Sudan, Haiti, Congo and Yemen and compelling him to tackle the idea of collective grief.
"We’re going to need those spirits,” he explains, emphasising the need for solidarity to achieve liberation. “There’s an understanding that the soldiers in our struggle are not only the visible ones. There are people standing and fighting with us that we may not see.”
Leap Life artwork
Leap Life tracklist
"Baobab Constellation"
"Mazahua"
"I Think I Get It Now"
"Great, Great-Grandmother"
"The Dagger"
"Controlled Is Not Controllable"
"13 Moons"
"Une Photographie"
"Not Everything For Sale"
"Robot Slave"
"Conspiracy"
"Vengeful Spirit"
"Friends I Ain't Met Yet"
"Coming Forth"
Leap Life is released on 28 August via Big Dada
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