Moonchild's sixth studio album has its hits and misses.
Image: Instagram/@thisismoonchild
American trio band Moonchild’s sixth studio album, “Waves”, feels like a quiet conversation with yourself after life has knocked you around a few times.
Released recently, the 14 track album leans into the idea of riding life’s ups and downs and not pretending everything can be fixed or neatly healed.
This time around, the Grammy nominated band moves away from their familiar love song territory and instead centres on grief, resilience and emotional endurance.
In terms of sound, “Waves” sits comfortably in jazz infused neo soul, but with a noticeably more collaborative feel.
The album features contributions from Jill Scott, Lalah Hathaway, Robert Glasper, D Smoke, Rapsody, Astyn Turr, Chris Dave and PJ Morton to list a few.
On paper, the feature list is exciting but in reality, it does not always translate into something that feels fresh.
There are moments where music becomes a place of comfort, but there are also moments where it feels like the band does not quite land where they intended.
As much as lead vocalist Amber Navran’s raspy and sultry voice has always pulled me in on previous Moonchild projects, this album struggled to hit in the same way, even after sitting with it for a few listens.
I have always believed that the first listen tells you a lot. Whether you fall in love immediately, grow into it, or know it will never click. For me, “Waves” leaned closer to a miss, although not a complete one.
The second single, “Ride The Wave”, which was released in October 2025, featuring Turr, stood out the most for me. The feature felt purposeful and brought more layers to Moonchild’s sound without overpowering it.
More than anything, it became deeply personal during a period where loss felt like it was constantly looming over my life.
After its release, “Ride The Wave” became a soothing anthem for me. It reminded me to keep going, to sit with the pain instead of fighting it, and to ride the wave rather than drown in it, because life’s problems do not simply disappear.
Rapsody and Hathaway return to this album after previously appearing on Moonchild’s standout 2022 project, “Starfruit”.
While their performances are solid, I could not help but wish the band had taken more risks with their collaborations.
Bringing back familiar names made some moments feel safe when they could have been more adventurous. On top of that, parts of the production begin to feel repetitive across the tracklist, which is disappointing.
The songs that stay with me are “Ride The Wave”, “Strong” and “Sweet Spot”.
“Sweet Spot” in particular, for its blend of the bass guitar and flute.
“Waves” is not a bad album. It is thoughtful, intentional and emotionally honest. It ju=0st does not hit the way I expected it to.
That said, Moonchild albums have a way of revealing themselves slowly, and this might be one that grows with time.
For now it sits as a reflective album that understands pain, even if it does not always translate that understanding into something unforgettable.