Tasha crafts emotionally jarring artwork on "Tell Me What You Miss The Most"

Chicago-born singer-songwriter Tasha’s newest release, Tell Me What You Miss The Most, is an album that, more than anything else, sounds comfortable in its own skin. The music expresses this unique emotion of collectedness and self-confidence, and it is from this place of confidence that Tasha lays out both her triumphs and sorrows on record. It’s extremely cathartic and gratifying to listen to, not to mention the fact that it’s also well-crafted from a compositional standpoint.

The album opens with “Bed Song 1,” which is a tender, intimate song about a lost relationship. The guitar repeats a simple, calming riff throughout the track, which is complemented by the occasional backing violin to enhance Tasha’s soft and whispery singing. It’s an incredibly good way to introduce the sounds of this album. The following track, “History,” tells a similar story in a less metaphorical manner, as Tasha delves deeply into the emotions she felt as a relationship of hers came to a close. It’s an impactful song and one that builds up instrumentation throughout its duration to illustrate an increase in emotional intensity. These two tracks hit extremely close to home for those who have experienced heartbreak in their lives, which is a testament to how authentic and open Tasha is in her songwriting on this record.

Tasha delivers some amazing vocal performances on the songs “Perfect Wife” and “Sorry’s Not Enough” – there’s a particular way that she hangs on notes and plays with a melody that is genuinely beautiful to listen to throughout the entire tracklist. While the approach she takes to instrumentation on these tracks and the rest of the album is rather minimalistic, what’s there is produced immaculately, and every single note can be heard clearly and can make a strong impression on the listener. The guitar tones on “Sorry’s Not Enough” are extremely well done, with just the right amount of reverb to create a dream-like feeling. A similar effect is achieved on “Year From Now,” which also has one of the most fulfilling and gratifying song endings I’ve heard this year. Another area where the production shines on the album is on “Dream Still,” where some gorgeous synths are employed, almost reminiscent of some of Mort Garson’s work on Mother Earth’s Plantasia. This is coupled with some blissful vocal choruses that encapsulate Tasha’s vocal talent better than any other point on the album.

There are few complaints that can be made regarding this album, as most of what’s presented is at least decent if not excellent. Some points on the album feel somewhat unnecessary, like “Love Interlude,” which has a strange position toward the front end of the tracklist. “Burton Island,” while not overtly unpleasant to listen to, is too simplistic and repetitive compared to the rest of the material. However, these moments make up a small minority of the record, and pretty much everything else is spectacular.

The degree to which Tasha is able to clearly and succinctly express herself on this album is genuinely impressive, and a feat to behold for anyone interested in singing or songwriting. There hasn’t been a release this raw and open since the self-titled Lianne La Havas record, which is a good album to compare to this one both in terms of material, subject matter, and musical quality. All in all, Tell Me What You Miss The Most is an emotional gut-punch, and an incredibly well-crafted one at that.