Released: September 15, 2023
Will Johnson has quietly assembled a stunning run of releases since putting the indie-rock institution Centro-Matic to rest back in 2014. The four album run from 2012’s Scorpion to 2019’s Wire Mountain easily rivals the best work from his former day-job. While Johnson threw a bit of a curve with 2020’s El Capitan (a lo-fi collection in the vein of Springsteen’s Nebraska), No Ordinary Crown is a full-fledged return to his indie-rock roots.
Gone are any trace of El Capitan’s hushed vocals and delicate arrangements, replaced with a dynamic batch of fuzz-drenched rockers. The album-opening “Along the Runner (No Ordinary Crown)” sets the tone for much of what follows, pairing a mid-tempo, backbeat-driven arrangement with some Neil Young-indebted lead work. “Sinker, Sinking” flat out rocks while the epic, simmer-to-a-boil “In Granada” is an instant classic that grows better with each listen.
From there, the album shifts between mid-tempo alt-country (“Tempest Time Again,” “Conduct”), haunting instrumentals (“Alta (Warped Kite),” “Inverio”), and blistering post-punk workouts (“The Conductor Calls,” “Swine”). The album closes with the haunting ballad “Of Passengers and Plight,” an evocative number that finds Johnson pedaling some Christmas-tinged melancholy to great effect.
It may sound like a disparate mix of styles, but the results are surprisingly cohesive. Part of what makes Jonhson’s solo work so satisfying is the way he effortlessly blends lo-fi strummers with amped-up detours. With ten tracks clocking in at thirty-four minutes, No Ordinary Crown just might be his most focused, concise work to date.
From the writing to the performances to the production, Johnson is in fine form here. His seemingly ageless voice has lost none of its grit, and lines like “I heard my mother’s voice, through the pitch of a frozen night” and “I leave these gifts in hope, there in the trailer” are a testament to his unrivaled lyrical prowess.
It’s rare for an artist to maintain such a high level of consistency while indulging their every artistic whim. In the case of Will Johnson (and his several dozen releases), No Ordinary Crown is proof that the man is still writing and recording his best work. Hats off.
Have I told you lately how impressed I am with you ????