Songs: Ohia
“The Big Game Is Every Night” (Demo)
Magnolia Electric Co. (Reissue) (out now on Secretly Canadian)
When Jason Molina passed in March at the age of 39, the overwhelming response focused more on resigned sadness than shock. The prolific, prodigiously gifted songwriter’s battles with alcoholism and other unspecified health issues have been well-documented, and he shared that struggle honestly in almost all the music he ever made. Ten years on from its original release, Magnolia Electric Co. feels as relevant as ever, when you consider our country’s current financial, social, and military realities.
I could have picked nearly any of the album’s post-industrial hymns but this new demo, to me, captures the Indianapolis native at his absolute best: reflective, haunting, and devastatingly poetic. It’s a heartbreaking reminder of a man’s talent and torment — displayed in equally crushing measures. RIP.
