Bluestaeb is a German/French producer who has been releasing music for a few years now. His last album, Rodalquilar, came out in 2015. He now comes back with his third full-length album, Everything is Always a Process.

For this album, Bluestaeb decided to explore the neo-soul side of things, trying his hand at some smooth modern R&B. Overall, it’s a fun album to listen to with some warm bass lines and easy grooves, as Bluestaeb uses live instrumentation to work between jazz and R&B in his arrangements. Over the course of the album, we get some guest spots from Noah Slee, Ash Shakur, Harleighblu, Pete Flux, Melodiesinfonie, and S. Fidelity, who bring in a mix of singing and rapping to the project. The whole album sounds nice, and there’s no real weak spot to the album, but on the flip side, there’s not a true standout moment, either. Everything is fine while you’re listening to it, but the album is just lacking a moment where something really grabs your attention and makes you pay attention. There’s not a particular riff, or hook, or guest spot where the music moves beyond this kind of generic R&B that’s inoffensive, but just a little bland. It’s frustrating, because you can recognize the talent in the instrumentation, but the arrangements never let anything shine. There are good guest vocalists, but both melodies and lyrics just feel generic, and as a result become forgettable. It feels like there’s a good album hidden in there somewhere, Bluestaeb just needs more time to develop this into something more memorable.

Bluestaeb has talent as a producer and multi-instrumentalist, but his foray into neo-soul leaves a little to be desired. He’s not showcasing any new ideas or strong convictions with his songwriting or arranging, and as a result this album just leaves me wanting more, because I know he’s capable of delivering on a higher level.