Keeping up with Will Oldham is like selling condoms in a nunnery: you can try all you want, but you'll end up broke. Having already released three EPs and a singles collection this year, not to mention a few guest appearances, Oldham probably said to himself, "What's one more?" But there's a significant difference between Get on Jolly and his other recent outings: this is his first under the moniker Bonnie "Prince" Billy since last year's devastating masterpiece, I See a Darkness. Anyone who's heard that record can understand why I passed on his other 2000 releases, but simply had to buy this one.
Your suspicions about the EPs title are probably correct. Joined by the Marquis de Tren-- aka Mick Turner-- Oldham has created yet another slow, somber, minor-key mood piece. The opener, "2/15," begins with an ambling bass reminiscent of Turner's full-time band, Dirty Three. The cautious pickings of an electric guitar move in along with an organ, but that's all-- not just for the song, but pretty much for the whole record.
Oldham sings, of course, and on "2/15," he sings about singing. I can't help but wonder if he's talking to his fans when he says, "I know you take pleasure in my singing." But I also can't help but find meaning in the final line, "My life can only break out in songs that have no purpose." Not that this 21-minute, six-song EP is purposeless; it just lacks any apparent direction or palpable momentum.
Still, since this is, after all, Will Oldham, Get on Jolly is a worthwhile listen. Although it sounds as if he's singing in a tiled bathroom, Oldham's delicate, shaky voice is as distinct and touching as ever. On "25," he slowly admits, "All other desires that distract me day and night are empty to the core," with Turner's background vocals providing stability. And on "81," he manages to sing, "Hidden in the heart of things/ You make flowers into edible things," with a minimum of awkwardness.
Following on the heels of this glacial spoken-word track, "64" is the record's most engaging number, if only because it contains consistent guitar chords and cymbal splashes. The closer, "66," also features cymbals, but they're more haphazardly employed. And Get on Jolly ends just as it began: quietly and discretely.
Can you sense my struggle to describe this album? If you've read this far, then you've read three more paragraphs than necessary. But since you're still here, you might as well see me through a final summation: if you need some Oldham music to listen to during that 20-minute period of time between arriving to work and actually working, Get on Jolly serves the purpose nicely. Of course, if you're really in the mood to listen to him, chances are, you have time for one of his better full-lengths.
