‘Such Jubilee’ by Mandolin Orange is filled with pretty songs

Sometimes in music – as in life in general – simplicity can go a long way. Take Mandolin Orange for instance. This band is a duo whose music is rooted in bluegrass. While the melodies may be comparatively simple with only two instruments and vocals, the playing is anything but simple. Andrew Marlin and Emily Frantz show real skill on their instruments from the first notes of the new album. “Old Ties and Companions” certainly sounds like it features more than two instrumentalists. When you listen to this song, you’ll probably wish you could play anything with the same skill as these two.

Mandolin Orange specializes in making strikingly pretty songs. “Settled Down” is a particularly good example. The harmonies in this song are amazing, as is the instrumentation. The fiddle brings a sort of lonesome sound to the song. Perhaps the best way to describe this song is to say that it’s one of those songs where you want your surroundings quiet so you can focus on the song. Frankly, you can pick any song on this album and you’ll find a very pretty song. However long the two members have been making music together, they are so polished that it sounds like they’ve been making music together for a long time.

Frantz takes the lead vocals on “From Now On” and does a splendid job of it. She sounds a bit like Lucinda Williams – but not quite as rough. Her sweet voice is a great compliment to the fiddle and mandolin in this song.

This is a tremendously crafted album filled with good songs that will get you thinking and singing along. The skill of Marlin and Frantz comes through in all of the songs, but you know that the real treat would be to see this band live so you can witness just how good they are at what they do. The roots of the music are definitely in bluegrass, but you can’t call this a strictly bluegrass album. It’s a combination of bluegrass and folk. No matter how you classify it, it’s just a really good album. This is an album that you’ll want to listen to repeatedly. The thing is that if you do listen to it repeatedly, you’ll probably hear something new every time. Other bands would do well to take a lesson from Mandolin Orange about how to do more with fewer members. Such Jubilee will be available from Yep Roc Records on May 5.