Most Anticipated Album of the Year

For me, October 4th marked a special day on the calendar. No, it was not the first official day of fall, which happens to be my favorite of the four seasons. Neither was it the beginning of Octoberfest celebrations, which assuredly began in mid-September in some regions of Germany. Nay, twas the release date for My Morning Jacket's new rock odyssey, entitled Z. To me, that sounds like a great name for a final album, but let me assure you that this young band from Louisville, KY has plenty of gas left in the tank. This is their second great album in a row, hopefully with many more to come.

I bought the album the day it came out and have had it in my car stereo, or at least within right hand's quick reach, ever since. I keep hoping that someone will hear me blasting "Off the Record" and compliment me for my good taste. It hasn't happened yet, unfortunately. That song, #5 on the CD, is by far MMJ's catchiest tune yet. Jim James, the lead singer, starts off the jam with his unforgettable echo-ing space voice, crooning about "mak(ing) it up to you at the penny arcade." The chorus hits hard with an almost rock-reggae upstroke strumming pattern that just makes you want to headbang and sing along- "Keep it...off the record". I'm glad they kept this one on it. The only song on the disc I had heard before was track 2, "It Beats 4 U", which they played at Bonnaroo. Unfortunately, I did not have the pleasure of seeing them there, but everyone says they stole the show.

The other standout track is #8, Lay Low, which has a hypnotic introductory guitar riff that would have sounded at home on their previous album as well. Z definitely picks up where It Still Moves left off, continuing to push the limits of good old fashioned southern rock. For anyone unfamiliar with MMJ, countless Neil Young comparisons have been made, though I would say those are mostly about James' vocals, the guitar parts more like the Allman Brothers, and the overall sound more like a band years ahead of their time. My Morning Jacket, to most of their fans, is a band that defies categorization. Although they are usually lumped into the jam band genre, to me they are much more futuristic sounding and diverse in their tempos than most bands I admire from that scene.

If you don't have this album yet, or their previous masterpiece It Still Moves, I highly recommend both of them. And if you haven't seen this band live, I recommend jumping on the bandwagon before they sell out the coliseum in your neck of the woods. They are about to appear in Cameron Crowe's new movie Elizabethtown as guess what, a southern rock n' roll band that covers "Free Bird".

You can purchase My Morning Jacket's latest album here: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000B5QWNI/ref=nosim/kristianstrom-20

You can purchase their previous masterpiece here:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0000C0FBM/ref=nosim/kristianstrom-20

For a touring schedule or additional information about them, go here:
www.mymorningjacket.com