Mason Jennings
In The Ever
Brushfire (2008)

Bob Dylan + Tom Petty + Jack Johnson’s Record Label = Mason Jennings

By Nick Nocketback

Jennings newest effort finds him ditching the old label and finding his old sound. On Jack Johnson’s Brushfire label, Mason has said that there is less pressure. In the past he was told to churn out a hit album—don’t get me wrong, I love Bone Clouds but nothing compares to his 2004 release Use Your Voice…until now. For this album he built a studio in his home in Minneapolis and set down to producing a subtle work of art without “the man” pushing him to capture a new audience. Nonetheless, with a following devoted to good tunes and a couple hit records (at least hit in the indie folk sense) Mason has reattached his roots to that fertile Minnesota soil.
In The Ever offers you all the elements necessary for a true folk record. One man with a gift for writing carefully crafted songs that inspire nostalgic feelings of Beatles records and smoking a pack of cigarettes while crying in the rain, a guitar, a piano used ever so sparingly, and a three piece drum set.
“Something About Your Love” will have you questioning how the Beatles’ influence has transcended generations. A soft touching ballad you’d request on the radio if radio wasn’t owned by Disney Corp.
“I Love You and Buddha Too” is a plaintive track about ones love for all things spiritual and why cannot one love Jesus and Buddha equally—don’t ask anyone at People’s Church, you’ll be stuck there for hours, trust me.
“Memphis, Tennessee” is a Dylan-esque track about a guy born in the mines, a girl born in the beach, and how they can be equals in love, but only in Memphis. It’s true, I met a girl who lived north of Herndon and we could only find love on Shields.
My favorite track, though they’re all quite good, is “Never Knew Your Name”, a piece about a house on fire and getting down low enough to enjoy the flames—a metaphor, of course, about love and it’s hazards. If only love wasn’t so painful and disastrous, we could concentrate on more important things than writing songs and movies about it, like stopping famine or obesity (sounds like the two should meet).