Not only does I Made This For You by The Mountains and the Trees give warm fuzzies to fans with a personal dedication to the buyer inside the sleeve, it also provides a refreshing, enjoyable and thoughtful listening experience.
Jon Janes, the mastermind behind this folk-pop experiment, projects his sincere and honest view of the world through tracks such as the dark and vivid “Fear of Ghosts” and the melancholy “Wedding Song.” With the same arsenal of folk instruments, he then meanders through “Minimum Wage Lovers,” a song that any lovestruck university student could make into their anthem, and maintains the heart of his content even through the upbeat “Up & Down” and “Travellin’ Song.” Although Janes makes up the true core, the constant added flavours of backup players and vocalists like the Valleys & Seas Orchestra is a the perfect adhesive.
If you’re looking for a formidable Canadian storyteller with a true heart of folk and the banjos and mandolins to back it up, you need to own this album.