More melancholy acoustic ballads-- who needs 'em, right? Well, me. On a drab, overcast day spent thousands of miles away from the one you wish to be with most, nothing seems to fit quite as well as the somber sounds of minor chords strummed delicately on an acoustic guitar alongside tranquil and expressive vocals. And this is one of those days.

Songs: Ohia's ethereal Axxess and Ace is a natural choice to compose this precise type of musical backdrop. This is that rare kind of album that won't grab you until you've reached a certain mood, at which point it will unexpectedly brandish the switchblade it was hiding in its back pocket and carve its initials into your heart. The initials primarily responsible for Axxess and Ace are "J.M.," standing for Jason Molina, a 26 year-old songwriting prodigy who fashions folk songs with a plausibility and earnestness which belies his age. Molina wields an emphatic, powerful voice which lends itself well to the solemn candor of his compositions. But unlike so many would-be folk prophets, Molina radiates an immediate endearing sincerity.

In this sense, Axxess and Ace's sound greatly resembles that of Palace Brother Will Oldham. Admittedly, Molina is more emotionally explicit and vocally polished than Oldham, but the two both employ the same sparse musical structure and evoke the same mood. Like Oldham's I See a Darkness, Axxess and Ace's moving choruses, recalling enigmatic lands of perpetual dusk and love unrequited, are achieved with only acoustic guitar, vocals, and the occasional sparse drum or bass.

Many of these tracks feature remarkable backing vocals by the gifted Edith Frost which imbues them with a level of sexual tension befitting the romantically jaded and perplexed lyrics. On "How to Be Perfect Men," Molina croons "Be mine/ Until you're reminded of something better," a statement fairly indicative of his exhausted bewilderment at love. Before the stunning climax of "Come Back to Your Man," Molina reveals that "There are demands on spirit and flesh/ And I've made the effort to survive them." At 26, a poor young minstrel already weary of the emotional demands of romantic ardor.

Axxess & Ace isn't necessarily remarkable for its musical precision and innovation in composition, but for its striking authenticity-- the free form of Molina's songs is an asset. The various musicians who performed on Axxess and Ace hadn't actually heard any of Molina's planned compositions until the day they were recorded, and the album is recorded almost completely live. Thus, the feel of the album is unrehearsed and genuine. Axxess and Ace is a fine addition to the collection of any refined music aesthete and an empathic companion to any contemplative mood.

-Taylor M. Clark