R.I.P. Steve Albini who engineered this album, would love some reactions to his other production work since you were a fan of the Pixies! I highly recommend Rid of Me by PJ Harvey and Goat by The Jesus Lizard
A dear friend of mine introduced me to this album. I remember sitting on the banks of the Tennessee River. He was playing a guitar and singing "Hold On Magnolia." He was an engineer and something like a scientific genius, but Molina brought out the sentimental troubadour in him. He passed away a little over a year ago--too young. I'll never listen to this record again without thinking of him. You think something will last forever. It won't.
In the realm of dark depressive indie folk, I can also highly recommend "Purple Mountains" - s/t, "Bonnie Prince Billy" - I See a Darkness, "Smog" - Red Apple Falls, "Kaufmann & Caboor" - Songs from Suicide Bridge, "Silver Jews" - The Natural Bridge and of course "Songs: Ohia" - The Lioness for my favourite Jason Molina related record.
RIP Steve Albini who engineered this and many other classic albums. he passed away a few days ago You should listen to atomizer by albini's band "big black" some of the best noise rock ever on that album
I had no idea Steve Albini produced this album til reading these comments. I knew him from his work with my other favorite band Godspeed You! Black Emperor
If you enjoyed this album you should definitely hear Didn't It Rain and/or Ghost Tropic. Both albums are pretty different than this one but still similar atmosphere-wise.
Ghost Tropic is one of the greatest albums of all time imo, it’s a complete masterpiece of song structure and sound that tons of people have overlooked.
John Henry is an American folk hero. An African American freedman, he is said to have worked as a "steel-driving man"-a man tasked with hammering a steel drill into a rock to make holes for explosives to blast the rock in constructing a railroad tunnel.
LOVE YOUR VIDEOS MY GUY a few recommendations: Process - Sampha (experimental r&b, great production) Nurture - Porter Robinson (light summer electric with fun production) Koi No Yokan - Deftones (very heavy, sexier and heavier radiohead imo) Hypochondriac - Brakence (very experimental emo rap, glitch pop) Reading Writing And Arithmetic - The Sundays (the smiths ish, with beautiful female vocals)
Beautiful album choice! One of my favorites. Another good album you could listen to from Songs:Ohia is The Lioness. I would also strongly recommend listening to The Big Game Is Every Night on your own time. It’s a bonus track for this album, but it really should’ve been on the album imo. It’s probably the heaviest hitting song on here, believe it or not.
After this album, Jason Molina, the main singer and songwriter for Songs Ohia, changed his main stage monicker to Magnolia Electric Co. Under that name he released the live album “Trials and Errors” which is one of my favorite albums of all time and in my opinion the perfect follow up to this album if you want to get more into him
RIP JASON MOLINA RIP STEVE ALBINI wtf i just started listening to this record when i heard albini died and got super hooked up to it and then you release this!! love you
I'll use this opportunity to again recommend the amazing album Black Sheep Boy by Okkervil River whose lead man, Will Sheff, created the cover art for Magnolia Electric Co (and tons of other great art that can be found on his website). It is one of those rare albums where someone had something they needed to say and did so in perfect form.
Will sheff is the lead singer of Okkervil River but the artist who did the Magnolia Electric Co cover is Will Schaff. Very similar names but not the same person
Amazing album! Defintly check out the two extra songs on the deluxe version Whip Poor Will and The Big Game is On Every Night. Two of the best on the album imo. If you want a real sad one, checkout What Comes After the Blues by Magnolia Electric Co (Which is the name of the next Molina project after Songs; Ohia)
what i love about this album most is how subtle and restrained most of these instrumentals are. it makes the moments where it crescendos like at the end of hold on magnolia so impactful. Even in the more intense songs they keep the arrangements themselves simple and melodic.
Love your reactions, very entertaining. Here are a couple gems I think you might particularly enjoy: The Nightblooms - self titled Novak - self titled Mice Parade - self titled Ride - Nowhere The Wedding Present - Seamonsters The Notwist - Neon Golden 18th Dye - Tribute to a Bus The Fall - Perverted by Language Do Make Say Think - Winter Hymn Country Hymn Secret Hymn Explosions In The Sky - Those Who Tell The Truth Shall Die, Those Who Tell The Truth Shall Live Forever Mogwai - Happy Songs for Happy People
First of all, kinda new here, I absolutely love your content. A lot of times I wish I could listen to records for the first time again and your reactions makes me do that in a way so thank you so much! This is one of my favorite albums of all time, Jason Molina was a genius, if you want to listen to something else by him I would higly recommend Didn't it Rain. Also reaction to Ys by Joanna Newsom when (also recorded by Steve Albini, RIP)
Still recommending: Let's Dance by David Bowie. It seems like most people these days just stick to the title track and forget there are other great bangers in the album Also: Songs From The Big Chair by Tears For Fears.
Album recommendations: Waiting to Spill- The backseat lovers When we Were Friends- The backseat lovers Something you needed- Flipturn Shadowglow- Flipturn Songs- Adrianne Lenker Unreal Unearth- Hozier Close to Paradise- Patrick Watson Young Americans- David Bowie Everything so far- Pinegrove RMCM- Richy Mitch & The Coal Miners Good For You- Houndmouth The Land Is Inhospitable And So Are We- Mitski
Goes without saying that you’ve gotta check out more from Molina (Ghost Tropic, Didnt it Rain, Lioness), but you’d also be doing yourself a disservice if you didn’t check out the Big Game bonus track. Easily on par with some of the best of the album. The centrepiece that never was.
WTF I literally just randomly listened to this last night after a friend recommended it like two months ago. Shit was good, I need to relisten cause I wasn’t paying full attention but I really liked what I heard.
Smags, when you gonna do video on Volcanic Bird Enemy? once you told me it's gonna be in april, still waiting tho, love all your videos that's why im looking forward to your reaction to one of the best and unique album of the decade, peace man stay consistent, never change 🙏 ps RIP Steve Albini fucking legend
If you like this I implore you to please do a sparklehorse album specifically Dreamnt for lightyears and good morning spider like Jason he was troubled till his life too soon but his music was amazing.
It’d be really sick to see you check out some Red House Painters or Sun Kil Moon, though Mark Kozalek is a terrible person and a SO, so I’d understand if you don’t wanna support that, but similar vibes just more depressing lmao
This album is incredible! MJ Lenderman’s self titled album sounds very similar to this, without ripping it off. Both are great in their own way. It is not going to win any poll since it’s not well known.
My favourite album ever. Farewell Transmission was recorded in one take, the "listen" bit at the end is Molina telling the band to wind the song down. RIP to him and Albini
