Let’s Talk - Still Dreaming

Review by Karl Magi

Overall Album Impressions

Let’s Talk’s "Still Dreaming" travels down synthesized pathways full of twilight glow and nostalgic contemplation, touched by a generous helping of soulful expression. Matt Burks fuses a superb mixture of different retro influences, tremendous songwriting and vocal performances that are irresistibly alluring. When one adds the high production quality and layered synth work, the album only grows in interest. As the songs move around me, a transportation occurs and I am relocated to a retro-future realm full of emotion and imagery.

At "Still Dreaming’s"’ heart is the fusion of lyrical excellence and vocal power. Whether it’s Matt Burks or collaborating vocalists, each performance carries true feeling and heartfelt interpretation. The vocals are rich and take hold of the listener with conviction, especially when coupled with the songwriting skills on display. His songs are crafted and honed to deliver their messages with clarity and punchy strength. As a whole, these elements propel the music effectively.

Production quality is another hallmark of "Still Dreaming". Matt Burks demonstrates his skill at producing engagement through melody and clear sound. Each song is maximized to feel and sound the best it can, allowing all of the complex auditory layering to shine through. Each of his melodies is distinctive and full of imagery, while the instrumental mixture weaves through with dynamism and real depth. At the end of the day, this album is a treat for the ears.

Another quality I find admirable on "Still Dreaming" is its broad range of musical influences. Along with expected ’80s sounds, there’s a healthy dollop of soul and funk mixed in, along with some vintage rock influences. All of these combined sounds add to the feeling of a retrofuturistic world made up of many different threads.

My Favourite Tracks Analyzed

“Dialtone Daydream” shines into being as freely dancing tones hover ethereally, transporting me with a soaring synth. The melody slips like a neon glow above night-shadowed streets. Crisp snaps intermingle with delicate light as shining notes flicker and glimmer. Bursting with horn-driven brightness and actively variable percussion, the track skips along easily.

Suffused with luminosity, I spin and arc through open space. Metallic and radiant tones ring out to create brilliance, like purple light on wet pavement. Technological-sounding trumpets climb, pouring out iridescence and encouragement, tinged with a jazzy twist. Below the shining, dynamic synth’s computerized exhalations, rebounding weight pounds and slashing notes add clarity before the twisting energy slowly moves into open, gliding space and fragile sounds levitate into quiet.

Sailing in on a reggae groove, “Aqua” flows with tropical breezes. A sunset mirage spills in and casts an umber glow across the musical landscape. A catchy horn line flashes like a Jamaican band by the poolside while levitating sonorities glide like a suntanned swimmer splashing into aquamarine water.

Moving underneath, the backbeat speaks of white sand and relaxation, transporting me away from wintery landscapes to equatorial sunlight. Every musical element traces like gentle hands on golden skin while the heartbeat is joined by shiny brass, narrating a story of escape and tranquility before the music ends.

“Danger” jumps vibrantly into life with a funky shimmy and a melody full of irrepressible vigour. Matt Burks’ vocals slide with all the sensuality and mellowness of caramel while the beat is composed of uniquely ear-pleasing percussive elements. Boogieing down, the foundation joins Matt Burks' meltingly expressive performance, wrapping me up in a musical wash of chilled-out pleasure.

Rebounding with grooving weight, percussion rattles and thumps before it fades. With consummate ease and soulful passion, Matt Burks creates a mood of sonorous liveliness which permeates everything before the song closes.

Despite all of his best intentions, the storyteller is still “tryin’ my luck, givin’ in.” He realizes that some things never change and asks the song’s subject, “You gave up everything for nothing, was it worth it?” As familiar as he is with danger, which he knows far too well and “no stranger to the storm,” he’s afraid he might not survive this time.

Unable to help himself, our narrator adds that “it’s a self-destructive kind of thing” as he continues on, losing his mind. He asks when he’ll learn, because “it’s the same damn thing every time.” Inquiring of the song’s subject if it’s everything they imagined and dreamed of, his final question to them is, “Would you trade it all back for some semblance of meaning?”

A late-night mood of pure relaxation floats as “Don’t Give Up On Me” comes alive. A baritone which is full of chocolatey tones and unadulterated fervency carries yearning in a melodic line deep with need. A rhythmic pulse moves with silken ease and Matt Burks demonstrates his impressive range, his voice soaring. 

Sensuality and depth of feeling roll out of the vocals, blanketing me in emotion. Fluting tones drift out with gliding elegance as enchantment moves from the vocal performance. Drums stutter while the chorus exudes a velvety feeling, sexy and slow-burning, dominating the performance before breathy notes float into quiet.

If the song’s subject lets him in, our narrator will “say all those little words you wanna hear,” as he adds that “when you feel that heart start to disappear, know the air you breathe will be crystal clear.” He’s hopeful that the other person won’t give up on him and if he’s given a little more time, “we could go and find a little light in a world so dark.”

The storyteller notes that “we’re all the same in a little house on a quiet street,” but when the song’s subject feels flames blazing underneath and realizes they’ve gotten in too deep, he says, “I hope that you don’t give up on me,” as the radio plays, “Do your lovin’ now, but the signal is getting weaker, waiting alone for the light to turn green.”

“Nothing In Between Us” cruises in with a coasting beat and unctuous tones vibrating in silky interrelationships. Smooth passion infuses Matt Burks’ performance as it eddies with caressing sensations. Heart beating in the percussion, pure affection in the chorus, the music sparkling with freedom. 

Warmth and powerful caring swirl around me with all of the feeling within the soul-infused, honeyed voice of Matt Burks. Brilliant summer sun spills above rhythmic tones before a guitar carries laid-back but melodically graceful notes, while intensity of emotive power moves from the vocals. Coming to an end, the song is driven by a funky low end into silence.

“We have the time, we have the power to see us through,” as the song’s subject tells the narrator that no one’s seen them like he has. He adds that it’s true and all that’s left is them with no separation. He says, “There’s nothing between us except my eyes and your eyes, my breath and your breath,” as they are hand in hand and chest to chest. He goes on to say that they’d be much better off if they “dropped the act forever,” and “you’d be honest and take off your armor if I drop mine too and I do.” They are left face to face with nothing between them.

Reverent tonal patterns flow as a saxophone echoes with unadulterated emotion to bring “Simulacra” into being. Impassioned fervency erupts from both the silky sax and Matt Burks’ equally gliding vocals. A metronomic pulse underpins the suddenly fiery leap of the vocals, reaching heavenward, burning with conviction in the chorus. Expanding intensity suffuses the superb performance, stabbing like a knife to my heart.

A widely drifting melody calls, capturing the aching ferocity trembling inside the lyrics. Pounding below, rhythmic percussion supports all of the blazing feeling while the notes that steadily undulate blur with streetlight gleam. The saxophone again slices through everything with pure soul, tender and easy, before the song ends.

Saying that “the city lights will burn you bright as fire,” our storyteller adds that every siren song will make you fall. He says that “the gods can’t help you, only mock you.” As he addresses the simulacra, he says that they would love you if they could, save you if they should. He continues, “If they could touch you they would, if they could heal you they should.”

“You’ll see faces in the dark, your body is haunted by your heart,” and the images you’re seeing are “just ghosts, mirages,” as the narrator says that there is neither truth nor proof because “they were never real.” He concludes by saying, “You know how I feel, simulacra.”

“Easy Sleeper” burns slowly with a seductive beat, soon joined by breathy desire and a voice full of warmly fiery feeling. Wriggling silkily, a fluting line intertwines with the creamy vocals, capturing the sultry allure inside the words. Ardent tension kindles inside the vocals as the lead singer uses her flexible, expressive performance to create enchantment.

The laid-back groove and sexy sensations captivate me while the vocals caress. In a computerized sonic tangle, a synth twists technologically. As it weaves through the music, the lead singer's voice pulls at the heart while twisting notes shimmy into silence.

As she shares her bed with many questions, our narrator says, “I’m hating the easy sleeper,” as she restlessly wonders if she could be easy to love. She tells the song’s subject that “when you say you want me, honey, don’t say it’s a job you gotta do. I want you to want me because you love me the way I want you for you.” She adds, “It’s so easy, easy sleeper.”

Thinking she was the one who had to “get over myself,” it wasn’t until the song’s subject walked in and told the storyteller that she shouldn’t say she wants them like it’s a job. She repeats that she wants to be loved for how she wants the other person for themselves. To conclude, she says, “I wanna believe you, I’m tryin’ to and I want you to mean it.”

Above locked-in percussion, a glimmer touches with a pulse of sunset warmth as “It Tastes So Sweet” becomes a bopping flow. Ethereal gentleness slips through the lead singer’s voice, full of intense need, while the funk guitar contributes to the groove. 

Fierce desire mingles with softness, reflected in the vocals, while disco reverberations permeate the low end. An engaging welter of feeling pours into my heart, guided by the popping underlayer and booty-shaking guitar. The vocal performance washes through the music, gripping and full of affection before quiet descends.

“Crawling through the woods on fire,” our storyteller gets closer and is pulled under. He tells the song’s subject that “the more that I see you, the more I need you.” He’s hiding from love and life, avoiding the light, as he adds, “I keep you hidden till the night ends and you can sink your teeth in.” He needs the other person’s poison, which tastes so sweet “if you sink your teeth in.” He concludes that he’s running from love, life and light.

“Something To Believe In” echoes with shouting voices and enigmatic sonic sensations moving in a haunting line. A solid beat rocks up in the music as a synth slips before Matt Burks catches mysterious, fascinating lyricism in his soulful voice. 

A gripping performance dominates the music, reaching with enchanting power as guitar slashes and the shuffling, sliding beat moves beneath it. Full of ghostly luminescence, the melody gets into you and won’t let go, so catchy and compelling. 

Erupting with distinctive vitality, Matt Burks’ vocals are joined by a haunting guitar before the track comes to an end with strumming notes and an impression of early blues before the music fades.

“It gets old when you talk to the sun in a tongue understood by no one,” and the narrator wonders if he can really hear what’s being said. He questions whether there’s a reason he’s still awake and the sun tells him, “I’ve got you written in a black book by a railroad track, you see I know your fate.”

In response, our storyteller replies, “You’ve got to listen, I’m a songbird with a brand new track you underestimate,” adding that he’ll give the sun something to believe in as he will “put up a basement full of demons.”

The narrator says, “Realize you’re a slave to your mind, break free, now give me something to believe in.” He goes on to say that each day when he talks to the moon, “pale as a ghost in the afternoon,” tragedy has a hold on his mind, “but I can see the light between the lines.”

Conclusion

"Still Dreaming" is an auditory journey that dances through retro eras in a free and intensely enjoyable manner. The way vocals, melody, auditory architecture and songwriting all come together results in a joyful exploration of human emotion and pleasant nostalgia.