There’s a life’s worth of lessons in Solange’s third album, three years in the making. She’s long been engagingly outspoken on issues of race, and from the title down, A Seat at the Table is an intensely personal testament to black experience and culture; the likes of F.U.B.U., Mad, Don’t Touch My Hair and interludes in which her parents talk about their encounters with racism go deep. Sonically, the album’s take on modern psychedelic soul is languid, rich, lifted by airy, Minnie Riperton-esque trills on the gorgeous likes of Cranes in the Sky or the darkly glimmering Don’t Wish Me Well; it’s a world away from 2008’s peppier, poppier Sol-Angel and the Hadley St Dreams or 2012’s indie-crossover-hit True EP. Guest spots from artists as diverse as Lil Wayne, Sampha, Tweet and Kelela only serve to amplify Solange’s fascinating voice. It’s safe to say that though big sis Beyoncé has run her close recently, she’s once more the most intriguing Knowles sibling.
