Jason Simon

About

Comparisons to Ben Chasny are inevitable: Chasny plays in Comets on Fire, a psychedelic rock band that critics liken to Blue Cheer. Jason Simon plays in Dead Meadow, a kaleidoscopic outfit that also garners parallels to Blue Cheer. When unplugged, Chasny records avant-folk songs under the name Six Organs of Admittance. Simon’s recordings on his eponymous 2010 solo album are similarly acoustic, prismatic musings with alternate tunings and a languid approach to songcraft. But where Chasny often lets his guitar’s voice upstage his own, Simon retains his frontman status—from the country dirge opener “Let’s Begin” to the droney twang of the hypnotic closer “The Clear Light.” Fans of The Brian Jonestown Massacre’s <i>Bringing It All Back Home Again</i> and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club’s <i>Howl</i> will find instant familiarity in “Hollow Eyed and Howling,” a shadowy serving of dark Americana. Echoes of Neil Young’s instrumental score for Jim Jarmusch’s 1995 film <i>Dead Man</i> haunt Simon’s “The Dust Does Blow”: a desolately beautiful piece punctuated by a creepy old pump organ.

via Apple Music