Josephine

Personnel: Jason Molina (vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar); Wallace Cochran, Jeffrey Stolz (vocals); Jason Groth (acoustic guitar, electric guitar, baritone guitar, saxophone, tambourine, background vocals); Pete Schreiner (acoustic guitar, electric guitar, baritone guitar, bass guitar, tambourine, bells, background vocals); Mike Brenner (lap steel guitar, dobro); Michael Kapinus (cornet, piano, Mellotron, vibraphone, background vocals); Mark Rice (organ, drums, percussion, background vocals); Jonathan Cargill (background vocals).
Producer: Magnolia Electric Co.
Recording information: Electrical Audio, Chicago, IL.
JOSEPHINE is the first proper Magnolia Electric Co. album since 2006's FADING TRAILS. In 2007, the limited-edition, four-disc SOJOURNER box set was issued, but it contained mostly released material, demos, and alternate versions of material recorded elsewhere with numerous lineups. Frontman and songwriter Jason Molina is accompanied by a fairly large ensemble, though the palette of instruments still centers around piano, guitars, drums, dobro, and lapsteel. The music is strictly alternative country-inflected rock, and the arrangements are standard. That said, there is a great comfort in Molina's limited approach to making music. Standouts on this set include the gorgeous title track, with its Neil Young meets old-time parlor music feel and its dynamite lyrics, to the mournful "Shenandoah" with its sweet meld of steel and electric guitars, to the snarling opening to the spooky "The Handing Down." In sum, JOSEPHINE is radically different from Magnolia Electric Co.'s preceding records, but it doesn't need to be. Molina has a consistent--if downcast--view of the world in his songs, and the canvas he uses to express it does so perfectly.