Mentions of The Low Anthem have scrolled across my glowing screen often as of late, but I sat oblivious to the band’s charms until last week. I happened upon their Lake Fever Sessions videos and now I am completely enamored. All of these videos are worth your time, but pay special attention to “This God Damn House.” It is something special.
With a menagerie of instruments–a beat up pump organ, a duct-taped baritone and a clarinet– the band creates a deceptively large orchestral-folk sound. It’s simple but full and comes with surprises. The organ’s foot pumps provide a strange but fitting rhythm that clicks just beneath the song throughout. And, the song’s last few bars take an ethereal turn when a pair of cell phones takes a whistled melody to another world.
Centro-Matic frontman Will Johnson has joined Magnolia Electric Co.’s Jason Molina for what will likely be the most understated indie supergroup of the year. The duo, under the name Molina & Johnson, releases a long-awaited self-titled LP next month.
Johnson’s aching melodies and weary delivery are at the forefront of the album’s opening track, “Twenty Cycles to the Ground.” But, Molina’s backing harmonies are a nice addition, providing levity by filling the crags in Johnson’s voice.