In May of 2019, an anonymous outfit known only as SAULT released an album of tasteful soul-funk with a scratchy DIY veneer that sounded like an Instagram-filtered reunion of ESG. Biography-shy musicians that bring a retro sensibility to the music of late-1970s, early-’80s roller rinks and B-boys aren’t unusual, from the action-packed exuberance of the Go! Team in the 2000s to the falsetto-streaked brooding of Jungle in the last decade. SAULT, though, were unusually prolific, and they had something to say. With lyrics foregrounding Black identity, June’s UNTITLED (Black Is) seemed like a fitting soundtrack for this summer of collective action against police violence and systemic racism.

“Fearless,” a highlight from UNTITLED (Rise) , SAULT’s second release of the year, once again pairs impeccably stylish, laid-back R&B with a message that meets the current moment. Evoking the lavishness of an uptempo wedding-dance staple helmed by Ashford & Simpson or Quincy Jones, the song’s production consists of swooping strings, an insistent bass groove, and pattering percussion. But bitter reality is never far from the surface, as a female voice sings enigmatically, “All our lives/Simply feels like we’ve been trying to go back/To Africa.” The song’s undercurrents of pain allow what could’ve been mere Spotify-friendly background fare to feel more like music for marching in the streets.