While British musician Emma-Jean Thackery has been around for a few years now, she really had a breakthrough moment when her album, Yellow, dropped in July of last year. It was a wonderful combination of jazz, soul, and R&B, with great grooves and outstanding musicianship. Following that big project up was always going to be a bit of a task, so Thackery has zigged and zagged over to a smaller, experimental project called Talking Therapy.

Talking Therapy Ensemble features Emma-Jean Thackery on vocals, trumpet, and percussion, Binker Golding on saxophone, Matt Gedrych on bass, and Dougal Taylor on drums. As implied by their name, this is an experimental jazz-based musical project that also serves as something of a therapy session at the same time. Moving between free jazz, crust punk, blues, and beatnik poetry, the ensemble is letting loose musically and emotionally in a very raw and improvisational fashion over the course of four tracks. In lesser hands, this project could have easily fallen apart and just become a mess that isn’t very fun to listen to, but with this ensemble, you’re being challenged at each turn with wild musical ideas. They also come together to make something really thought provoking and emotionally resonant, whether it be a wailing trumpet solo or punk drumming pushing the beat forward. On top of this, Thackery takes the less-is-more approach to vocals, just giving you some key phrases like, “I Didn’t Want To Wake Up Today,” which set the songs in motion and get you in the position to let your mind wander as the music stirs up your emotions.

Talking Therapy is a short, yet very impactful release. In just four songs, the ensemble is pushing musical boundaries and getting their listeners to think about their own mental health. It’s unexpected, but most certainly welcome.