Dua Saleh – Of Earth & Wires

After collaborations with Travis Scott, Bon Iver and Amaarae, and success with their international debut, Dua Saleh’s talent precedes them, building high expectations for the newest album, Of Earth & Wires. The record arrives today with the weight of that momentum, all at once sharpening and expanding on their poetic and resonant sound.

The LA-based Sudanese-American artist has been praised by the likes of NME in their music career and is also known for their breakout role in Sex Education‘s third season. Of Earth & Wires, which first took root while they were filming on-site in Wales, brings together spirituality, fragility and grit, reflecting on notions of home, hope and humanity. It also emerges from a feeling of the world ending, as Saleh gravitates toward the sonic duality of warmth and wildness in the wake of the conflict in Sudan and AI’s proliferation.

Opening the album on a powerful track, 5 Days sets this dual tone for the album, bringing a bare and delicate composition that collides with raging dissonance in an exquisite way. It showcases their vocal ability and lyricism, before crashing into a primal scream of autotune and shimmering instrumentals. Produced by Billy Lemos, the album possesses his playful production style and threads together Saleh’s variety of inspirations, from electropop to Sudanese folk. Flood is a great example of this; an upbeat, catchy melody punctuated by sitar flourishes and synths. Saleh reunites with Bon Iver for this song, making the most of Justin Vernon’s falsetto that complements their lower register well. He goes on to feature in Keep Away, and seductive album highlight Glow, two more tracks equally intricate and collaborative.

Throughout, the album comes back to a sense of urgency, as Saleh’s shape-shifting sound explores their fear for the world at this moment. Firestorm, loosely inspired by the devastation of the LA fires, is a sweet melodic piece backed by the Trans Chorus of Los Angeles, that looks towards love in a time of distress. This optimism permeates the record as the singer pulls on every root in their life to craft this versatile, heartfelt album.

Ending with a memorable number, All Is Love stuns with an excellent arrangement, the full breadth of the artists’ talent, and the wisdom of poet Aja Monet’s closing verse. It summarises the album’s complexity and sense of hope, leaving the listener with the message that love outlasts humanity’s worst.