Geist

"The singer-songwriter's fourth album is largely focused on spiritual shifts and ruptures. Throughout, Geist presents a quiet, lovely, undramatic rendering of the dramatic ... Lay is the kind of songwriter who doubles as a spiritual guide, kindly and patiently directing the listener towards their own sense of inner tranquility. As if leading by example, the songs on Geist gradually decelerate, until, by album's end, Lay's simplicity and dilatoriness become the source of her power".

Read review

"A veteran of in-your-face garage rock bands (...), Shannon Lay solo has done a full 180 from her previous sonic incarnations. Lay garnered rapt attention for August, her hushed folk album of 2019. With Geist (...), she has returned with a set of songs even more assured and contemplative. This is no mere indie-folk musician foregrounding a stripped-back aesthetic. Lay's voice may often be sun-dazzled and multitracked, but it is also confident, privileging harmonics and atmosphere over DIY spit and sawdust ... "Sure" celebrates the finding of love, and a cover of Syd Barrett's Late Night reminds you of the breadth of the references behind Lay's artistry".

Read review

"If Shannon Lay's solo expression has been a steady blooming across three albums, Geist represents its full-blown folkish splendour. Not that it's at all showy - subtlety is her watchword - but these 10 (mostly acoustic) songs shine with a luminous intensity".