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My Morning Jacket was one of the most satisfying surprise finds for me in recent years. Jim James, MMJ's singer/songwriter/guitarist,
is the band's oddball epicenter, leading the band with his Kermit the Frog meets Jerry Garcia vocals. However, the way that
his sound meshes with the rest of the band's spacey/experimental indie rock feel is ultimately powerful. The four other members,
whose combined hair could probably cover the entire surface area of their native Kentucky, manifest a solid podium for James
to project from. After hearing some of the band's earlier LPs, it becomes immediately obvious that Z marks a huge creative
step forward for the back, leaving many of their Southern, Americana ways behind them in the old silo as they journey into
more otherworldly territories. The album certainly shares elements from the other distinctive artists; the arena-rock scope
of Radiohead, the twangy, Southern vocals of Neil Young, and a bit of the lovable wackiness of the Flaming Lips. However,
in creating such a forceful hybrid of sounds the band also expands and creates something of its own. In all actuality, Z is
a tremendous achievement not only for My Morning Jacket, but more generally for the future of rock music as we delve further
into the 21st century.
Key Tracks:
Gideon
Anytime
Lay Low
Final Verdict: 9.8
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