Will Johnson

“Prolific” usually implies an artist getting stretched a bit thin. Will Johnson’s work spreads across the bands Centro-Matic and South San Gabriel—as well as a couple of solo records and a 2009 collaboration with Jason Molina, simply titled Molina And Johnson—but character usually prevails amid this exhausting quantity. Take any two releases—say, the rousing rock of Centro-Matic highlights like 2006’s Fort Recovery and the dead-spare ballads of his 2004 solo disc Vultures Await—and Johnson’s voice still welcomes both gravel and harmony, paired with songwriting that always seems ponderously considered but never pompous. Both sides of Johnson’s persona are on display on the new Centro-Matic/South San Gabriel split EP, Eyas, as well lumped together in on place on his new solo EP, Little Raider. 

Updated 05/05/2011