The Daily Spin II

Elderbrook | Simmer Down

Welcome back to the Daily Spin. For the uninitiated, this is the series in which I review an album every day of 2025.

As was the case two years ago, my favorite song from each album can be found at the playlist linked here.

Album: Simmer Down (2015)

Artist: Elderbrook

Link:

When considering Simmer Down, I get the sense that perhaps this EP was left on the stove just a little too long. Though it’s got high points - ‘Could’ is particularly strong as a sparsely peppered infusion, and ‘Rewinding’ goes in the other direction to display a surprising versatility - most of this record winds up feeling a little stale and unsolved.

As with other electronic music, there is an issue of false depth here - too frequently, this all boils down just a little too close to the quick here, where it feels like it’s trying to provoke some greater sense of thought over vocals recorded in a bathroom. It’s impressive that the music sounds as good as it does given those technical limitations, but it doesn’t do anything to dispel the cornball allegations, and that’s what hurts this EP the most.

Rating: 6/10

Best Tracks: Could

Worst Tracks: How Many Times