Saint Heron

{{Infobox album

| name = Saint Heron

| type = Compilation

| artist = Various artists

| cover = Saint_Heron.jpg

| border = yes

| alt =

| released = {{Start date|2013|11|11}}

| recorded = 2013

| venue =

| studio =

| genre = {{flatlist|

}}

| length = {{duration|m=47|s=08}}

| label = Saint Records

| producer =

| prev_title =

| prev_year =

| next_title =

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}}

Saint Heron is a compilation album released by Solange Knowles' record label, Saint Records, on November 11, 2013. It features the original recordings of several contemporary R&B artists, including Knowles (who also curated the project), Jhené Aiko, Cassie, BC Kingdom, Jade De LaFleur, Kelela, Kingdom, Petite Noir, Iman Omari, Sampha, India Shawn and Starchild.{{cite web|title=Saint Heron by Various Artists on iTunes|date=11 November 2013 |url=https://music.apple.com/us/album/saint-heron/736149318|publisher=Apple Inc.|access-date=November 18, 2013}} The intent of the album was to "feature, highlight and align a new movement of contemporary, genre-defying R&B visionaries" and to serve as a "segue into the diverse evolution of these independent artists as they share their voices and words as only they can – through pure, unadulterated music."{{cite news|title=About Saint Heron|url=http://saintheron.com/about/|accessdate=October 22, 2013|work=Saint Heron|date=October 22, 2013}}

Background and release

On May 14, 2013, Solange Knowles revealed that she had launched her own record label named Saint Records, which she would be using to release her third full-length album and future music projects distributed through Sony.{{cite news|last=Nessif|first=Bruna|title=Solange Knowles Launches New Record Label, Releases Latest Track Featuring Kendrick Lamar|url=http://uk.eonline.com/news/418855/solange-knowles-launches-new-record-label-releases-latest-track-featuring-kendrick-lamar|accessdate=May 14, 2013|work=E!|date=May 14, 2013}} On October 22, 2013, Knowles announced the first release from her label, a compilation called Saint Heron, featuring twelve original songs from a list of "very contemporary left-of-center R&B artists," including Cassie, Sampha, Jhené Aiko, Petite Noir, BC Kingdom, and Knowles herself among others. The first song to be released from the project was "Go All Night," by American singer and songwriter Kelela, which had been teased on her 2013 Cut 4 Me mixtape.{{cite news|title=Solange Announces R&B Compilation Featuring Cassie, Kelela, Sampha, Jhené Aiko, More|url=http://pitchfork.com/news/52734-solange-announces-rb-compilation-featuring-cassie-kelela-sampha-jhene-aiko-more/|accessdate=October 22, 2013|work=Pitchfork|date=October 22, 2013}} The artwork for Saint Heron was conceptualized and created by media artist Rashaad Newsome. The release was preceded by the opening of the label's official website, which was then updated with various music news and interviews about the album.{{cite news|title=Saint Records Announces Saint Heron|url=http://saintheron.com/music/saint-records-announces-saint-heron/|accessdate=October 22, 2013|work=Saint Heron|date=October 22, 2013}} The compilation was available digitally, on vinyl, and on CD on November 12, 2013.

Talking about the project's concept for Billboard, Knowles stated: "Honestly everyone I've had on Saint Heron I've been a fan of for awhile now, and have been introduced to their music either from friends or this kind of assembling from across the internet. And really I just kinda wanted to celebrate these awesome, sometimes overlooked, incredibly gifted R&B artists and have them come together and celebrate the art form and the diversity of the art form," expressing her desire to make it a cohesive record while "individually everyone sort of interpreted rhythm and blues in a very different way from artist to artist."{{cite magazine|title=Solange Talks 'Saint Heron,' Becoming A Label Owner|url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/the-juice/5800663/solange-talks-saint-heron-becoming-a-label-owner|accessdate=November 22, 2013|magazine=Billboard|date=November 22, 2013}} To promote the release, Knowles hosted a launch party and trunk show at retail space, showroom, and gallery Opening Ceremony in Soho, New York City.{{cite news|title=Lamborghini Mercy: Solange Releases 'Saint Heron' at OC|url=http://www.openingceremony.us/entry.asp?pid=8840|accessdate=November 11, 2013|publisher=Openingceremony.us|date=November 11, 2013}} "I really wanted to make a record you can smoke to," Knowles said, while claiming curating the track listing was "definitely a creatively fulfilling experience. All of the artists on this compilation are so extremely talented and are really defying the genre of R&B in their own ways. And the songs are all so unique but still flow together as one body of work. I love how airy and experimental it gets." The track "Indo" also marks Knowles’ first full solo production credit.{{cite news|title=Solange dishes on her new record label, her upcoming album and more|url=http://popbytes.com/solange-dishes-on-her-new-record-label-her-upcoming-album-and-more/|accessdate=November 11, 2013|publisher=Popbytes.com|date=November 11, 2013}}

Critical reception

{{Music ratings

| MC = 75/100

| rev1 = Exclaim!

| rev1score = {{Rating|7|10}}

| rev2 = NOW Magazine

| rev2score = {{Rating|4|5}}

| rev3 = Pitchfork

| rev3score = 8.1/10

| rev4 = Rolling Stone

| rev4score = {{Rating|3|5}}

| rev5 = Spin

| rev5score = {{Rating|8|10}}

}}

Saint Heron received positive reviews from contemporary critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 75.{{cite web|url=http://www.metacritic.com/music/saint-heron/various-artists|title=Saint Heron — Metacritic Reviews|publisher=Metacritic|accessdate=December 3, 2013}} Miles Raymer of Pitchfork gave the album an 8.1 rating out of 10, commenting, "It may have taken her a while to get to the point where she can pull such a gesture off, but in this insurgent territory, Solange reigns supreme."{{cite news|title=Various Artists - Saint Heron|url=http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/18778-saint-heron/|accessdate=November 18, 2013|work=Pitchfork|date=November 18, 2013}} Ryan B. Patrick of Exclaim! wrote: "Saint Heron is a statement, a musical manifesto with a collaborative vision for today's R&B."{{cite news|title=Solange - Various - Saint Heron|url=http://exclaim.ca/music/article/various-saint_heron|accessdate=November 12, 2013|work=Exclaim!|date=November 12, 2013}}

Anupa Mistry of Spin remarked that "What's interesting about Saint Heron is that it trips giddily over the line between relatively conventional approaches and more heavily processed, speculative stuff, but takes no pains to make an overarching statement,"{{cite news|title=Solange Hijacks the 'Indie R&B' Narrative on Her Great New Comp 'Saint Heron'|url=http://www.spin.com/2013/11/solange-saint-heron-kelela-jhene-aiko-sampha/|accessdate=November 11, 2013|work=Spin|date=November 11, 2013}} while Will Hermes of Rolling Stone noted the album "can verge on its own kind of formula, but high points are high."{{cite magazine|title=Solange Hijacks the 'Indie R&B' Narrative on Her Great New Comp 'Saint Heron'|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/saint-heron-20131202|accessdate=December 2, 2013|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=December 2, 2013}} At Now, Holly Mackenzie stated, "The first release under eclectic singer/songwriter Solange Knowles's boutique label, Saint Records, the younger Knowles weaves a collection of alt-R&B songs together seamlessly."{{cite news|title=Saint Heron - Now Toronto Magazine|url=https://nowtoronto.com/music/album-reviews/saint-heron/|accessdate=November 21, 2013|work=Now Toronto|date=November 21, 2013}} Stacy-Ann Ellis of Vibe added, "The compilation is a definite breathe of fresh air; a true break from the trap and twerk tracks we've been bouncing to lately. The album flows with lyrical lounge music and mellow melodies—the perfect sexy time score or hookah-huffing soundtrack."{{cite news|title=Vixen Review: Solange's Compilation CD 'Saint Heron'|url=http://www.vibe.com/2013/11/vixen-review-solanges-compilation-cd-saint-heron/|accessdate=November 13, 2013|work=Vibe|date=November 13, 2013}} Aimee Cliff of Dummy Mag gave the album eight out of ten, saying "While the album sometimes suffers for its lack of direction, it's surely only because so many directions are posed by this collection of forward- and sideways-thinking tracks."{{cite news|title=Album of the Week: Various Artists - 'Saint Heron'|url=http://www.dummymag.com/reviews/album-of-the-week-saint-heron-saint-heron|accessdate=December 11, 2013|work=DummyMag|date=December 11, 2013}} Clare Considine of The Guardian praised the project, "a beguiling compilation bursting with originality," applauding the movement of singers lyrically "freeing themselves from the clichéd roles attributed to them by male writers."{{cite news|title=R&B's new wave are determined to be more than just eye candy|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2013/nov/22/solange-r-and-b-new-wave-of-women|accessdate=November 22, 2013|work=The Guardian|date=November 22, 2013}} Centric ranked Saint Heron at number one on their "13 Best R&B/Soul Mixtapes & EPs of 2013" year-end list.{{cite news|title=The 13 Best R&B/Soul Mixtapes & EPs of 2013|url=http://www.centrictv.com/entertainment/music/articles/2013/12/20/the-13-best-r-b-soul-mixtapes-eps-of-2013.html|accessdate=December 20, 2013|publisher=Centrictv.com|date=December 20, 2013}}

Track listing

{{Track listing

| total_length = {{duration|m=47|s=08}}

| extra_column = Artist

| title1 = Lockup

| extra1 = BC Kingdom

| length1 = 4:02

| title2 = Jaded

| extra2 = Jade De LaFleur

| length2 = 3:28

| title3 = Bank Head

| note3 = featuring Kelela

| extra3 = Kingdom

| length3 = 4:17

| title4 = Go All Night

| extra4 = Kelela

| length4 = 3:57

| title5 = Energy

| extra5 = Iman Omari

| length5 = 4:01

| title6 = Beneath the Tree

| extra6 = Sampha

| length6 = 3:48

| title7 = Noirse

| note7 = Pional Remix

| extra7 = Petite Noir

| length7 = 4:04

| title8 = Relax

| extra8 = Starchild

| length8 = 2:36

| title9 = Indo

| extra9 = Cassie

| length9 = 5:09

| title10 = I'm Alive

| extra10 = India Shawn

| length10 = 2:38

| title11 = Drinking and Driving

| extra11 = Jhené Aiko

| length11 = 3:54

| title12 = Cash In

| extra12 = Solange

| length12 = 5:14

}}

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from AllMusic.

Daniel Aged – mixing
Jhené Aiko – composer, primary artist
Tim Anderson – producer
Ken Barrientos – mixing
Mikaelin Bluespruce – engineer, mixing
Jim Caruana – engineer, mixing
Cassie – primary artist
Christopher Cummings – composer
Anthony Daniel – mixing
Dot da Genius – producer
Geoff Gibbs – engineer
Corey Gibson – composer, engineer, vocal producer
Jade J – composer, primary artist
Kelela – composer, featured artist, primary artist
John Roderick Key Jr. – composer, producer
Kingdom – composer, engineer, mixing, primary artist, producer
BC Kingdom – primary artist, producer
Solange Knowles – composer, primary artist, producer
Lord RAJA – engineer, producer
Micahfonecheck – vocals
Prem Midha – engineer, mixing
Morri$ – producer
Rashaad Newsome – artwork
Iman Omari – composer, primary artist, producer
Petite Noir – composer, primary artist, producer
Pional – producer, remixing
Sampha – composer, engineer, mixing, primary artist, producer
Eric Scoggins – composer
India Shawn – composer, primary artist, producer
Jonathan Simone – engineer, mixing, producer
Starchild & the New Romantic – composer, primary artist, producer
VHVL – producer
Rommel Nino Villanueva – engineer, mixing
Patrick Wimberly – mixing

Charts

class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" style="text-align:center"
scope="col"\|Chart (2013) !scope="col"\|Peak position
scope="row"\|US Independent Albums (Billboard){{cite web\|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/saint-heron-mw0002588559/awards\|title=Saint Heron - Various Artists - Awards\|publisher=AllMusic\|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160314155520/http://www.allmusic.com/album/saint-heron-mw0002588559/awards\|archivedate=March 14, 2016}} \|39
scope="row"\|US Top R&B Albums (Billboard) \|35

class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" style="text-align:center"

scope="col"|Chart (2013)

!scope="col"|Peak
position

scope="row"|US Independent Albums (Billboard){{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/saint-heron-mw0002588559/awards|title=Saint Heron - Various Artists - Awards|publisher=AllMusic|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160314155520/http://www.allmusic.com/album/saint-heron-mw0002588559/awards|archivedate=March 14, 2016}}

|39

scope="row"|US Top R&B Albums (Billboard)

|35

Release history

class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
scope="col"\|Region !scope="col"\|Date !scope="col"\|Format !scope="col"\|Label !scope="col"\|{{abbr\|Ref.\|Reference}}
scope="row"\| United States \| November 11, 2013 \| {{flat list\| Digital download CD LP }} \| Saint Records \|align="center"\|

class="wikitable plainrowheaders"

scope="col"|Region

!scope="col"|Date

!scope="col"|Format

!scope="col"|Label

!scope="col"|{{abbr|Ref.|Reference}}

scope="row"| United States

| November 11, 2013

| {{flat list|

}}

| Saint Records

|align="center"|