The sounds of Himalayan winds, sacred mantras and water rippling in the holy river Ganges, invite us to Peradam, the new album by Soundwalk Collective with Patti Smith. The album, which features guests including Anoushka Shankar, Tenzin Choegal and Charlotte Gainsbourg, is released via Bella Union...

I love Patti Smith. I love her voice. I love her music. After listening to Peradam I'm finding myself falling out of love with her. And that makes me sad.

Like the previous album, Mummer Love, Peradam uses someone else's work as a jumping off point. This time it's René Daumal’s early 1940s novel Mount Analogue. In his book, Daumal mapped a metaphysical journey to “the ultimate symbolic mountain” in search of meaning. The French writer, critic and poet introduced the idea of the “peradam”, a rare, crystalline stone – harbouring profound truths – that is only visible to seekers on a true spiritual path.

And maybe that's why I didn't get on with it: I'm not a seeker on a true spiritual path. I'm just an average bloke looking for some engaging music.

And while it seems like you're getting quite a lengthy album for your money - the 9 tracks (54 min, 36 sec) are really drawn out by the sounds of nature. You can almost hear the producers in the studio: "We haven't got enough material here. What on Earth do we do?" "Ooo I know let's stick a handful of long sound effects tracks of nature and the natural world on the album. Brilliant!"

It didn't enlighten me, excite me, enrich my life or entertain me. It just felt like a load of hippy bullshit.

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Nick Smithson