Best known for his collaborations with modern day Marc Bolanite, Ty Segall, Mikal Cronin is starting to carve a name for himself with his own homage to the music of old. His debut 2011 LP, Mikal Cronin, was a home-spun affair, a psych-garage rock album that brought the roll back in rock.
This time around Cronin is armed with a full studio production (and major indie label Merge) on the suitably named MCII, a continuation and evolution of his previous work. "The Weight" benefits from the studio soundscape, there’s tight harmony lines and bristling dynamics, but Cronin is wise to not let the song be overdone with studio polish, the raw energy is still there.
RIYL: John Lennon, Elliott Smith, The New Pornographers, Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin
MCII comes out May 7th, 2013 on Merge Records. You can Pre-order it here:
The Art of the Mixtape 