Magnolia Electric Co. 'Josephine'

Back in 2003, under the guise of Songs:Ohia, Jason Molina made one of the great alt.country records, 'Magnolia Electric Co'. As near as anything gets these days to in-his-prime Neil Young, it was an album of power and grace, a beautiful, searing complete piece of music, that was just about perfect. I played it over and over on hot summer nights that year, with the windows open. It was all good and I thought Molina would just get better and better.

Since then however, his output has been somewhat patchy. Largely sidestepping the powerful stuff and concentrating on mood pieces or sketchy country numbers, he hasn't made a great album since. 'Josephine' arrives with a lot of fanfare, high hopes and a back story. MeCo bassist Evan Farell died whilst ideas for this album were being forumulated and the finished album serves as a tribute to him and his hopes for the record. It is a concept piece of sorts, the loss of 'Josephine' representing the loss of Evan and Molina centres most of these songs of themes of loneliness, loss and heartbreak.

But the first thing you notice when you hear opener 'O Grace' is a fuller and more varied sound. 'O Grace' is upbeat and accessible with harmonies on the chorus and sax and piano used. The first few tracks continue down this path, with the title number being catchy, short and snappy with some crashing guitar, although the lyrics are sombre "oh what a fool I've been".

He follows this with several dusky, acoustic numbers that would not be out of place on a Molina solo record, lonely and bruised. There is more variety to come though, 'Hope Dies Last' employs harmonies and a great bassline, 'The Handing Down' kicks off with a fiery guitar riff and settles down before producing some satisfying feedback mid-song, it will satisfy those who crave the riffs Molina gave us on numbers like 'The Dark Don't Hide It'.

Molina also gives us the two most unlikely songs of his career, to varying success. 'Little Sad Eyes' is a organ-led, doo-wop style interlude, sounding lazy and inconsequential next to some of the more considered material and 'An Arrow In The Gale' is an interesting closing track, short and sweet and with Beach Boys harmonies and split vocals.

Whatever styles and ideas Molina tries on 'Josephine' the lyrical themes remain the same. "I've been as lonely as the world's first ghost' he sings and the overwhelming themes are of loss and regret. This isn't as gloomy as it sounds and the sound of the record, particularly with the frequently used harmonies ("Oh Josephine" is a recurring refrain) presents a sense of hope.

After years of seemingly avoided making a straightforward album, by releasing various live albums, compilations and boxsets, Molina has shown that he is perfectly capable of producing a consistent, cohesive LP. 'Josephine' references all of the different phases of his career, whilst being the most varied and full recording he has produced to date. This doesn't quite scale the heights of 'Magnolia Electric Co' but it is a very good, thoughtful and passionate record.

8.5

['Josephine' is out now on Secretly Canadian on cd and lp. Magnolia Electric Co play UK dates in September.]