Sojourner

Magnolia Electric Co.SojournerJason Molina writes songs; that’s essentially all he cares to let us know for certain about himself. Sure, your cousin Steve writes songs also, and that kid who used to live down the street from you has been in the local paper a few times for his songs, but those guys don’t write the kinds of songs Jason “Hold On Magnolia” Molina does. Known for his short albums, short stature, short live shows and long list of typically lengthy songs, Molina has for a decade now been one of the most active and consistent songwriters on the planet, releasing no less than 12 official albums and seven EPs along the way under various monikers, including last year’s Fading Trails.

While Fading Trails certainly kept the Crazy Horse torch burning in new ways, the album was far from perfect, unquestionably due to its design. In a classic case of working too hard, Molina recorded three albums (Nashville Moon, Black Ram, Shohola) and an EP’s (Sun Session) worth of material over four separate, dissimilar recording sessions, coiling together from the sessions the nine-song tracklist now known as Fading Trails. Individually, most of the songs were great, but in the context of a long-player record, the album felt uneven and thus didn’t offer the repeat value of his last few albums. Somewhere along the way, thankfully, Molina decided to release the four aforementioned sessions as individual albums; talk about returning to your gut in style.

After some Internet speculation Molina announced that he’d be releasing three albums, an EP and a 20-minute documentary film packaged together in a bulletproof wood box before the end of the year. Molina’s label, Secretly Canadian, eventually announced that the box set, Sojourner, would also include not only a poster, postcard liner notes, a Magnolia Electric Co. medallion and a small bag of Neil Young’s sideburn hair from the 70s, but also loads of indie street cred, as the label only planned to release 10,000 copies of the set.

Sojourner sold out faster than most folks could cash their paycheck, heat their debit card up, sign online and place an order; faster, even, than most publications could even get their reviews to the press. Meanwhile your cousin Steve sits, scratching his head, trying to figure out how one man originally from Commontown, USA (also known as Lorian, Ohio) can record 33 tracks and invent bulletproof wood in the span of 12 months. Molina, who is now based in Chicago (but still armed with his strange Ohio accent), is a rare find, and by that, I mean that he lives his life as much for his craft as one can. Rocker hair, rocker swagger, rocker groupies, rocker press and rocker lifestyle be damned, Molina is a lean, mean artist, and you hear it in each of Sojourner’s long-pondered songs, all of which appear to be written from indeterminate perspectives, or possible from the viewpoint of a composite of Molina’s peers. This element of Molina’s writing seeps through more than ever through these four sessions, making for a mysterious, dark batch of material.

Recorded with Molina’s touring band, Sun Session is an organically produced four-song EP recorded at Memphis’ famous Sun Studios. The eerie “Talk To Me Devil, Again” starts things off on a dark, aching note as Molina sings “Devil unwind what’s empty / Devil unwind my heart / Devil make the two ends meet / Devil when I fall / Talk to me Devil, again.” Also included is a better-than-ever version of “Hold On Magnolia” (originally included on the final Songs: Ohia album), the longing “Memphis Moon” and the slow-burning, organ-based “Trouble In Mind,” which is one of the best of the best in this particular wood box.

Completing Molina’s trilogy of sparse, solo home recordings is the eight-track Shohola. More or less a blueprint of well written songs that never quite made it to the studio, Shohola is proof of Molina’s tireless work ethic. While many songwriters ache and burn over each song, Molina literally has extras laying around.

Full of Molina’s usual seemingly personal, always cryptic lyrics, the Steve Albini-produced Nashville Moon is not just Molina’s best album yet, but easily one of the best albums of 2007. Twelve solid tracks long, Nashville kicks off with the excellent “Lonesome Valley,” “Montgomery” and “Don’t Fade On Me,” all of which were on Fading Trails, before heading into a rocked-up version of “Hammer Down,” which originally appeared on 2005’s What Comes After the Blues. Next up is one of the box set’s best moments, an upgraded version of “No Moon On the Water,” which was originally available via a very limited edition 7” single. Never you mind the above “one of the best albums of 2007” declaration, Nashville Moon is the best album of 2007. It rocks and rumbles it’s authentic sound with an amount of genuine soul, spirit and know-how that no one else in 2007 can rival.

Less straightforward than Nashville Moon but still true to Molina’s everyman stride, Black Ram sits well with other Molina-released curiosities such as Ghost Tropic and Didn’t It Rain, but easily twice as accessible. Featuring excellent production from David Lowery (Camper Van Beethoven, Cracker), Black Ram features more fleshed-out compositions than any of the other discs, featuring the classical guitar work of Rick Alverson, the mellotron and pedal steel playing of Alan Weatherhead, Lowery on bass, the whistling of fellow Chiagoan Andrew Bird, the singing of Molly Blackbird and the percussion and harmonium work of Miguel Urbistondo. Though two of the tracks on Black Ram did appear on Fading Trails, the remaining material appears to be all new, including the amazing “What’s Broken Becomes Better” and “Blackbird.”

After just a couple of listens, much of the material on Sojourner feels just as warm and familiar as the two dozen Neil Young albums you’ve been listening to for years. Decades. If you’re one of the fortunate 10,000 who nabbed a copy of this gem, you’ll surely agree that it’s one of the most essential purchases of 2007. If you missed out, something tells me Secretly Canadian will release at least a couple of these discs individually in due time, hopefully Nashville Moon and Black Ram, either of which demand album of the year consideration, depending on how you like your Americana.   9/10

Written by G. William Locke