A tranquil, heartfelt testament to growth

Shannon Lay showcases the beauty in simplicity on her latest solo release. Geist, named after the German word for “spirit,” intimately captures moments of love, reflection and change within Lay’s life. Recorded in the midst of last year’s lockdown, Geist explores these universal feelings while solidifying Lay’s artist voice in the process.

The album opens with “Rare to Wake,” which establishes the album’s warm tone right away. Soft guitar fingerpicking cushions Lay’s wispy, layered vocals, along with a recurring keyboard, which acts almost like a second voice to Lay’s. “A Thread to Find” follows similar instrumentation, this time adding string orchestra backing and leaning further into keyboard sounds for added texture. Along with these musical choices, one cannot ignore Lay’s lyricism, which utilizes naturalistic elements to illustrate growth and change.

“Sure” shifts themes slightly, focusing on the love Lay has for her partner. Even without taking the heartfelt lyrics into consideration, the track radiates these feelings aurally, set within a lullaby-like waltz and once again featuring simplistic instrumentation. Low strings create bass drones with a deep warmth that envelops the listener like a hug. These drones linger on past the song’s end as if Lay herself doesn’t want these feelings to ever conclude. Following these lulling sentiments of love is “Shores,” which echoes the prior track’s atmosphere. However, a somewhat jarring and aggressively mixed electric guitar feature in the middle of the track pulls the listener out of the rather tranquil trance created up until this point.

The midpoint of Geist features some of its most compelling tracks. “Awaken and Allow” is a masterclass on balancing tension and catharsis. This track opens with stunning acapella vocals from Lay, reminiscent of traditional Irish Sean-Nós songs, highlighting Lay’s folk inspirations. As Lay describes her need to move—both figuratively and literally—droning instruments slowly build underneath. This turmoil reaches a breaking point towards the end of the song, but Lays’ determined vocals never waver. Following this powerful moment is the title track, which leans into the simplicities presented at the start of the album and does so with great success.

“Untitled” harkens back to the intensity found within “Awaken and Allow,” with a slowed tempo and feelings of serenity, yet unsureness. These elements, along with repetitive lyricism, the usage of minor mode and striking percussive qualities, create a haunting atmosphere. Although a bit out of place aurally, its thematic material fits into Lay’s goal of highlighting that growth and change aren’t a solely linear road.

In the latter position of the album, Geist loses a bit of its momentum with both “Late Night” and “Time’s Arrow.” While neither track is weak individually, they don’t stand out like the other tracks. However, the closing instrumental track “July” provides a satisfying conclusion to Geist. With a calm interplay between the guitar melody, string backing, and keyboard texture, this final track begs the listener to find their own contemplations within Lay’s prescribed framework.

In an interview with Spin, Lay says that while writing Geist, she “wanted to embrace what is so special about the music that [she] creates, which is that it requires a certain amount of stillness.” With its simplistic, intimate tracklist and heartfelt personal themes, Geist captures the beauty within this stillness and is a testament to Lay’s own growth both as an artist and a person.