Hello, everyone! Before I get into talking about these albums, I just want to give a little bit of an update on the future of Simon Talks Music. I know I’ve given a few of these ‘updates’ recently, and then I’ve ended up not totally doing what I said I would do in those updates, but at least for now I feel like I’m finally back to semi-consistently working on reviews, although I’ve still got more reviews I started a while back which I want to get caught up on.

Anyway, I typically prioritize quantity over quality in my reviews, which … well, it’s a bit of a controversial approach, but it’s what I feel works best for me. And when I find an album I’m more fascinated by, then I’ll usually put a bit more effort into the review, but if I just don’t like the album all that much I don’t really feel like it’s worth putting that much effort into the review. And yeah, some of these reviews are totally half-assed, but I’m not claiming to be an expert, I’m just some guy writing about how much or little I like these albums, with at least some sort of explanation, even if only a brief one.

I’m hoping to move Simon Talks Music to video form … hopefully sometime this year, although we’ll see about that. It could be as soon as in the next couple of weeks, or it could be a while still. I’m not sure yet. But I do plan to post my list of the best hit songs of 2015 on this blog sometime soon, as I’ve been making some progress on it.

Anyway, let’s get the reviews started!

In Waves by Jamie xx:

Believe it or not, this is my first time listening to an album by Jamie xx or The xx, at least as far as I can remember.

And honestly, a lot of this album just feels forgettable and not that interesting. It’s the kind of dance music which fits a certain vibe but just doesn’t really draw me to go back to it, without a lot of standout tracks.

And then there’s “Dafodil” with the annoying horns and a bunch of extra details in the instrumentation which I think just lead to a busier mix than I would have liked.

But there are also some stronger moments such as “Treat Each Other Right”—not only is there a great transition from the opener to this track, but it’s a really good track which is really well produced and I think uses repetition really well.

And I also do really like the instrumental track “Still Summer”, and there are some other good moments, but while I like the production and mixing on this album for the most part, which has a really nice smooth feeling … I don’t know, something seems missing here. Strong 6.5/10 for me.

Final Thoughts
Rating: 6.5/10
Favourite Tracks: “Treat Each Other Right”, “Still Summer”, “Life”, “Breather”
Least Favourite Track: “Dafodil” 

Endlessness by Nala Sinephro:

So, this is my first time listening to an album by this super critically acclaimed jazz artist. And I’ll admit I’m not super familiar with a lot of jazz music, but I do want to explore the genre a little bit more.

And this is probably one of the most critically acclaimed albums of the year so far in any genre. It’s an instrumental jazz album that has a lot of synthesizers, and it’s fairly mellow for the most part.

And I do like this album, mostly because I find the production really strong, and it’s quite well mixed, and I think it has a really nice atmosphere … but it kind of feels more like background music to me than anything.

Now, with that being said, “Continuum 2” is absolutely gorgeous, with some of the most beautiful strings on the album.

And there are other tracks that I really like, such as “Continuum 6” with the really nice ascending synth melody.

But … I don’t know. I can’t tell exactly what it is, but something feels missing here. I kind of feel like I ‘should’ like this album a lot more than I do.

Maybe it’s the occasional synth feeling a little too sharp in terms of the production (even though I like most of the synth timbres); “Continuum 7” comes to mind, even though I really like the melodies in that track and it’s got a good atmosphere.

It feels hard to describe this album all that well, but some of it can kind of feel like an otherworldly experience … and you’d think based on that description that I’m praising the hell out of this, but that ‘other world’ isn’t necessarily the most captivating or enjoyable.

I feel like with the right visuals to accompany this, it could really fit in some sort of show or movie or something, but it’s not really an album I’d want to throw on just to listen to it.

So, for me this is a 7/10. It definitely is a reminder that I want to listen to more jazz music … and again, I do think this is good. I just wouldn’t call it great, in my personal opinion. But it’s also not a genre I understand super well … I mean, I feel like most genres aren’t.

Final Thoughts
Rating: 7/10
Favourite Tracks: “Continuum 2”, “Continuum 6”, “Continuum 7”, “Continuum 8”
Least Favourite Track: “Continuum 3”

Whirlwind by Lainey Wilson:

I’ve actually never listened to a full Lainey Wilson album before this. She had one of my favourite hit songs of 2023, and she was a guest on my favourite song from Post Malone’s new album, and I’ve heard quite a few songs of hers—although not a lot that I would really recognize by name—but this is my first time listening to one of her albums, and I wasn’t totally sure what to expect …

And there are some tracks here that I really like, such as “Good Horses” with the great Miranda Lambert feature, and some gorgeous piano, and the vocal melodies are really strong as well. And while it’s quite a simple song, I like the sentiment of the narrator always feeling a draw to go back to familiar territory.

And then there’s “Whirlwind” which has such great production, with the snares having a lot of punch, and the guitars and keyboards really bring forward this feeling of adventure, and it’s just such a joy to listen to, with so many great lines throughout the song which fit really well melodically!

“Counting Chickens”, while kind of silly, is also just really cute and lightweight in a way that really clicks for me, and that electric guitar really adds a nice touch! And it’s got a pretty strong chorus, too!

And I really like how funky “Ring Finger” is. It’s not a style of country music I’m really used to hearing all that much, and I think this song is a lot of fun!

And then there’s “Devil Don’t Go There” … and look, I can totally understand why this song might not work for someone, considering it kind of seems like one of those ‘how could you possibly leave me’ songs with no regard for the other person’s feelings. But I also think that’s kind of the point … it’s supposed to be pissy in a way that isn’t ‘morally right’. And there’s also the implication that the ex mentioned in the song did something really bad, and you’re just left wondering what that is—it’s up to the listener who the bad guy in the situation really is. And considering it’s also one of the best produced songs, and has a lot of great vocal melodies, I actually think this is a great song, and one of my favourites here!

But outside of that, I think the rest of this is pretty good and that’s about it. Really, for the most part, this album is just simple country songs, and I like the genre enough that an album full of simple songs without a whole lot to them can really click for me … but when the production is this inconsistent and when there are songs like “Country’s Cool Again” which just kind of baffle me, I think it leads to an album that, considering the handful of great songs that are here, is a good album. But I wouldn’t call it a great album.

So, for me, Whirlwind by Lainey Wilson is an album I’ll probably go back to in pieces more than as a whole. I’ve definitely heard better country albums this year, and again I don’t think this is all that consistent, but I’ve added some tracks to my personal playlist.

And I think it’s worth noting that maybe there’s more to these songs lyrically and/or musically than I realize. I’ve never claimed to be an expert. It’s just that to my personal interpretation, this just feels like a pretty simple album.

And there are for sure some creative moments lyrically, such as the closing track “Whiskey Colored Crayon”, even though I don’t love that song sonically.

But again, this album just didn’t totally wow me as much as I would’ve liked. Still really damn good, though, and I’d recommend checking it out. I’m going to give this a strong 7/10, and I’d highly recommend at least the tracks that I listed in my favourites!

Final Thoughts
Rating: 7/10
Favourite Tracks: “Good Horses”, “Whirlwind”, “Counting Chickens”, “Ring Finger”, “Devil Don’t Go There
Least Favourite Track: “Country’s Cool Again”

RED FUTURE by Snotty Nose Rez Kids:

Here’s a new album by an Indigenous hip hop duo from BC whom I’d never heard of until recently because I went to see them perform live. And after listening to a few songs of theirs from other albums, I do want to listen to those albums, because it sounded really good!

But this album on the other hand … well, it’s not bad. There are a lot of good messages, a lot of which are about taking pride in being indigenous, but a lot of this album feels underwritten. I mean, a song like “FREE” is a perfect example, where as much as I agree with the message of the song, the chorus is literally just ‘I just wanna be free’, and it feels kind of lazily written. And yeah, this whole post is lazily written, but I never said I have a problem with lazy song writing, I’d just rather listen to some music I find a bit more interesting. If you’d rather read more interesting music reviews than this, I understand.

There are some really good guest features on this album, too, such as Tia Wood on “SHAPESHIFTER” and Drezus on “LET YA HAIR DOWN”, as well as others.

And I like some of the melodies here, too, such as the chorus of “BURN”, and I don’t even mind the production on this album for the most part, with a lot of the instrumental timbres working as a really good foundation for these songs.

But the biggest thing that holds me back from liking this album more is the autotune, which really takes away from the power these songs could have, and it just feels more artificial than it should, especially in a song like “DEVIL’S CLUB” in which there are some really weird autotuned moments.

There are also some tracks like “LET YA HAIR DOWN” with its really catchy chorus and squeaky synths that I really like! And “BBE” also has an infectious chorus as well as the great line, ‘Who ya favourite native? That’s me.’ And speaking of great lines, I really like the line about having this album on replay on “PEACHES” But overall I just can’t say this album fully clicked for me. Again, I’m curious to hear their other music, but I definitely didn’t love this album. 6/10 for me.

Final Thoughts
Rating: 6/10
Favourite Tracks: “BURN”, “LET YA HAIR DOWN”, “BBE”, “PEACHES”, “RED FUTURE”
Least Favourite Track: “NO DOGS ALLOWED”

SHINBANGUMI by Ginger Root:

Ginger Root is the solo project of Cameron Lew, and this is the first album I’ve heard by Ginger Root. I saw it getting a lot of critical acclaim online, so I decided to give it a shot.

And I think it’s mostly well-produced. I like the flashy production on tracks like “No Problems”, “Show 10”, and “All Night”, and I think the mixing on this album is pretty strong.

And there are some good melodies here and there in both the instrumentation and the vocals, and the percussion sounds really strong.

And yet something feels missing here. And honestly, I don’t even think there’s one song on this album which I really feel all that drawn to go back to.

I feel like pretty much every track here feels kind of generic, even though I generally enjoyed this album.

So, for me this is a 6/10. It’s decent, but I can’t say I love it.

Final Thoughts
Rating: 6/10
Favourite Tracks: “No Problems”, “All Night”, “Only You”
Least Favourite Track: “Kaze”

My Method Actor by Nilüfer Yanya:

I remember Nilüfer Yanya putting out a really critically acclaimed album in 2022 which I listened to once when it came out but I don’t really remember any of it at all.

Anyway, I was kind of curious to check out this new album, and … well, there’s a lot to like here, that’s for sure!

And a big part of it is the production, which often really fits with the vibe the songs are aiming for and fits with the lyrical content. For example, a song like “Binding” which seemingly shows the narrator getting bored with life, wanting something more exciting to happen, and I really like the Radiohead-esque guitars, with a sort of brightness in the timbre which gives the song a slight feeling of optimism.

And I really like the guitar distortion of “Like I Say (I runaway)” which helps drive forward the urgency to go with the song’s message of not wanting to waste time in a relationship that doesn’t make you happy, and “Call It Love” is a really good moody song with that cutting synth that shows up out of nowhere and really works with the relatable indecisiveness of the lyrics, as if the narrator is feeling pressure to figure things out more quickly. And I really like the synths that make the closing track feel really uplifting.

And there are other interesting moments, such as “Faith’s Late”, which kind of reminds me of “Dreams” by The Cranberries in the main guitar melody, and the eerie “Ready for Sun (touch)” which almost reminds me a little bit of Halsey in the vocal phrasing and the overall vibe, and I say that as a huge defender of Halsey’s music.

I do think this album could have used more sticky vocal melodies to really draw me to go back to it more, and there are a few bland forgettable tracks, but as it is I still think this is a really strong offering from an artist I’m curious to hear more from. 7/10!

Final Thoughts
Rating: 7/10
Favourite Tracks: “Like I Say (I runaway)”, “Binding”, “Call It Love”, “Wingspan”
Least Favourite Track: “Mutations”

The love it took to leave you by Colin Stetson:

I’m pretty sure this is my first time listening to a Colin Stetson album, despite hearing a lot of critical acclaim for his music. But I saw this described as ambient music, and it might be among the most critically acclaimed albums of 2024.

And I mostly like it, but I don’t think it’s going to have a lot of replay value for me.

I would normally say that the length of this album is part of the reason it didn’t click for me more, but honestly I feel like this is close to working as a full album experience … and yet I just wish there were a bit more variety.

There are a lot of tracks with these huge waves of instrumentation that come and go, and it creates a kind of eerie vibe which I mostly like.

And it does kind of pull you into its world, but I just don’t really feel like it’s exactly where I want to be. This is a good album, but I wouldn’t call it a great one, so I’ll give it a 7/10.

Final Thoughts
Rating: 7/10
Favourite Tracks: “The love it took to leave you”, “The Augur”, “Malediction”, “Bloodrest”
Least Favourite Track: “Hollowing”

The Forest Is The Path by Snow Patrol:

So, curiosity got the best of me with this one. I mean, I wasn’t really expecting all that much out of a new album from the band who made “Chasing Cars”. Don’t get me wrong, I like “Chasing Cars”, but it just felt like they were probably another one of those bands who had that one big adult contemporary hit and probably didn’t really have good albums. But that’s not really fair of me considering that’s the only song of theirs I knew …

And after listening to this album about five or six times, it’s another reminder not to read a book by its cover, because … well, this might be one of the albums that’s pleasantly surprised me the most this year!

And one of the things that really makes this album click for me is the production, with the really awesome clean guitar timbres, and the percussion which fits the vibe of this album pretty much perfectly.

And speaking of the ‘vibe’ … I don’t really know how to describe it, but it feels like it sums up the idea of living in the present, even when sometimes it can be toxic when it goes too far, such as in “This Is The Sound Of Your Voice”, which … well, I have complicated feelings about that song surrounding its morals, but the glamour of it really shines through in the music!

And I think that musical ‘vibe’ fits well with a lot of the lyrics on this album, a lot of which seem kind of simple, and I think they are—although I may be missing something; there might be more to this—but I think it really works when combined with the music, especially with so many great melodies!

And there are so many great hooks on this album, such as in “Everything’s Here And Nothing’s Lost”, “Never Really Tire”, and “This Is The Sound Of Your Voice”, and lots of others as well!

I feel like this album probably hits a lot harder in the winter—it’s hard to describe, but it’s very much got a ‘winter vibe’ to it—but I still really ended up liking this a lot! I think I’ll give this a light 9/10! Again, I wasn’t expecting this to be this great, but it’s probably one of the best albums I’ve heard all year!

Final Thoughts
Rating: 9/10
Favourite Tracks: “The Beginning”, “Everything’s Here And Nothing’s Lost”, “Your Heart Home”, “This Is The Sound Of Your Voice”, “Hold Me In The Fire”, “Never Really Tire”, “These Lies”, “What If Nothing Breaks?”
Least Favourite Track: “Years That Fall”

Songs of Blood and Mire by Spectral Wound:

So, this band’s 2021 album is one that I remember mostly liking but not really loving, and after relistening to it recently I stand by that.

Now, I’ll admit that while I don’t usually put a ton of effort into each mini album review (considering how many of them I do), this one I put even less effort into than usual, and I’ll admit it’s mostly due to me being lazy.

But also it’s because this album just doesn’t really give me much to say. I mean, I could have tried to look into the lyrics a little bit more, and there’s some good imagery here and there, but for the most part it just doesn’t feel all that interesting to me, although again, I didn’t really look into it all that much.

And musically these tracks just don’t really stand out to me much at all. It’s fine, just not really for me.

Yeah, I totally half-assed this review, and you should take my review with a huge grain of salt, but for me this is a 5.5/10.

Final Thoughts
Rating: 5.5/10
Favourite Tracks: “A Coin Upon the Tongue”, “Twelve Moons in Hell”
Least Favourite Track: “At Wine-Dark Midnight in the Mouldering Halls”

Cascade by Floating Points:

I’m pretty sure this is my first time listening to an album by Floating Points. In fact, I barely knew anything about him until now.

The one thing I’d known about Floating Points was that he made a collaborative album with the London Symphony Orchestra and Pharoah Sanders in 2021, Promises … although I couldn’t even remember entirely who made that album, but I was pretty sure Floating Points was one of the artists—the name definitely rung a bell.

What I definitely remembered was Promises getting a shit ton of critical acclaim and making seemingly pretty much every list of the best albums of that year. I still haven’t listened to that album—although I’m planning on listening to it sometime—but I was still excited to hear this …

And I think it’s pretty good. It’s not the most amazing thing I’ve ever heard or anything, but it’s still some pretty solid instrumental dance music.

And it’s not really an album that gives me much to say. It’s got some punchy percussion, and while it’s not super energetic it is still a fun time overall, with mostly good production and lots of really nice synths, with some sharper timbres in tracks like “Fast Forward” which I really like.

And I like how groovy this album sounds, too, with parts of the album reminding me a little bit of Patricia Taxxon—at least the small amount of Patricia Taxxon music that I have heard.

Again, I’m not really sure entirely what else to say about this album. But it is a really enjoyable listen that I’d absolutely recommend to fans of dance music! 7/10!

Final Thoughts
Rating: 7/10
Favourite Tracks: “Key103”, “Birth4000”, “Afflecks Palace”, “Ablaze”
Least Favourite Track: “Del Oro”