Meditations—my new album is available now

The culmination of 5 years of finding my style..

Sep 02, 2023

Meditations, the latest album from London-based composer Simon James French (SJF), is available for download on Bandcamp now.

STREAM MEDITATIONS

This release is an amalgamation of the last 5 years of work. Work that began with my Soundscapes Radio series all the way through to a handful of albums, including Motion and Wander the Night Japan. Each release slowly getting me closer to the sound I hear in my head; moving ever nearer to the music I long to create.

Meditations came after a serious bout of creative block that subsisted for longer than the usual blip you get after you release something into the world. In the absence of music, I turned my attention to working with my hands and filled my time with woodworking and DIY instead. Wander the Night Japan was such a huge project that it drained me of creativity entirely and I felt I needed something more hands-on.

But slowly, I began chipping away at a new track and the seeds of Meditations were sown. Composing and fleshing out ideas in Ableton Live usually comes quickly, but with this release, it was a far slower process and in hindsight, I think that was me wanting to make the best release that I possibly could. I also hired the help of my good friend Henrique Matias to be a second pair of ears and master the record. His insights were truly priceless and made the album what it is today.

And finally, I partnered with Japanese incense company BRANCH INCENSE to create a beautiful limited edition incense to pair with the release. A scent inspired by the album and created with the intention of burning whilst listening. Creating incense inspired by music is something I’ve long wanted to do and I’m thrilled that Airi san could make this happen. Thank you Airi!