Tuesday, December 12, 2006

My Morning Jacket – Roseland Ballroom – New York – Nov. 30th


Off the Record

It's hard to pinpoint just what kind of a band My Morning Jacket is. Are they an "indie" band? When they broke into the critics' hearts with 2003's It Still Moves, the Converse crowd was the first to pick up on them. Are they Skynyrd-style Southern good ol' boys? Their long hair and Louisville, Kentucky roots probably bring some bourbon and pickup trucks to the parking lot. Or are they a jamband? There were pervasive Phish t-shirts and the pungent odor of pot and patchouli at the show here.

My Morning Jacket, however, seems to cut across these prosaic designations and – with their increasingly tight performances and new live double album Okonokos – are cementing for themselves a reputation as a fanfuckingtastic live band.

Jim James (born James Olliges – so, no, his name [goddamn it!] isn't James James) is in firm control at the helm of the quintet and his uniquely resonant, cutting, and haunting voice is the band's hallmark. James stood before a wooly mammoth stuffed animal and, at another point, a grizzly bear (harkening back to the cover of Moves). He chose his personifications well: his wild, bushy hair headbanged to and fro all evening while he tore into his guitar, grabbed the microphone like prey, fanged out his lyrics, and stomped around in his skeleton Moon Boots.

When heard live, the lyrics teeter between tongue-in-cheek and outright boastful on songs like "Wordless Chorus," where James sings, "We are the innovators. They are the imitators." This doesn't exactly get it right; My Morning Jacket is a fusion band. They're not a paradigm shift, but rather a mishmash of genres. Patrick Hallahan's drumming is especially fast and vigorous and Two-Tone Tommy's bass pops wildly – at their best (ok, their very best) they remind of early Moon and Enwistle. Yet, it's impossible to put your finger on one particular element or style (except for James' signature voice). They may be the first Southern country indie rock jamband.

Their studio albums (particularly At Dawn, Moves, and their most recent, Z) are strong, but it seems they would best be served heeding the words of "Off the Record," which they smashed through at Roseland: "You've got to know that we will change and keep it off the record." Keep it off the record, MMJ, and keep kicking ass and taking numbers live. It still moves.

40 comments:

Anonymous said...

order tramadol no prescription can u buy tramadol online - tramadol hcl liver damage

Anonymous said...

buy tramadol uk buy tramadol order cheap tramadol online - buy tramadol england

Anonymous said...

buy tramadol online mastercard overnight tramadol dosage canine weight - online pharmacy tramadol cheap

Anonymous said...

buy generic tramadol no prescription buy tramadol online dogs - where to buy tramadol

Anonymous said...

purchase ativan ativan side effects memory loss - ativan overdose in children

Anonymous said...

buy tramadol saturday delivery tramadol-ratiopharm 100mg/ml tropfen - buy tramadol for cheap

Anonymous said...

order tramadol tramadol online 99 - buy tramadol online safe

Anonymous said...

buy tramadol online cheap tramadol 0 1g - tramadol online no prescription overnight

Anonymous said...

buy lorazepam ativan dosage cats - 6 mg ativan overdose

Anonymous said...

ativan online ativan withdrawal forum - ativan and alcohol detox

Anonymous said...

tramadol no prescription is tramadol hcl a narcotic drug - best place buy tramadol online

Anonymous said...

buy tramadol cod fedex buy tramadol online from india - tramadol rxlist

Anonymous said...

buy clonazepam online how to buy klonopin online - percocet klonopin erowid

Anonymous said...

buy generic ambien online can you purchase ambien - drug interactions of ambien

Anonymous said...

buy tramadol with paypal tramadol 100mg safe - tramadol 100mg erfahrungen

Anonymous said...

tramadol online ordertramadolonline.org - is buying tramadol online legal

Anonymous said...

order tramadol no prescription ultram online c.o.d - buy tramadol dogs uk

Anonymous said...

clonazepam no prescription many mgs klonopin get you high - klonopin and alcohol seizures

Anonymous said...

buy cheap ambien ambien eating during sleep - ambien under tongue

Anonymous said...

soma online soma fm lush - soma jobs

Anonymous said...

buy ativan online ativan vs xanax for sleep - buy ativan online cheap

Anonymous said...

buy klonopin online canada klonopin wafers prescribing information - klonopin methadone erowid

Anonymous said...

buy ambien cost of ambien prescription - safe buy ambien online

Anonymous said...

soma online medication soma carisoprodol - soma san diego wikipedia

Anonymous said...

klonopin pill 2mg klonopin color - klonopin and alcohol effects

Anonymous said...

order ambien online no prescription ambien sleep shopping - ambien withdrawal xanax

Anonymous said...

buy ambien online legally ambien neonatal withdrawal - ambien side effects kidney

Anonymous said...

buy cheap ativan ativan overdose signs - lorazepam 1 mg erowid

Anonymous said...

generic carisoprodol soma comquest discount code - soma san diego rules

Anonymous said...

buy ambien online ambien cr cost without insurance - many ambien high

Anonymous said...

tramadol online tramadol hcl 500mg - buy tramadol online cod

Anonymous said...

tramadol online tramadol hcl extended release - tramadol dosage opiate withdrawal

Anonymous said...

klonopin online klonopin lunch - klonopin overdose pregnancy

Anonymous said...

soma pharmacy buy soma online fedex - soma cube

Anonymous said...

buy tramadol without rx buy tramadol overnight delivery - buy tramadol online without prescriptions usa

Anonymous said...

buy klonopin online generic klonopin vs name brand - klonopin withdrawal lexapro

Anonymous said...

order tramadol online without prescription tramadol 50mg grasscity - inurl forum buy cheap tramadol

Anonymous said...

buy tramadol free shipping tramadol 50mg dosage for dogs - buy tramadol online legit

Anonymous said...

cheapest soma buy soma louisiana - buy soma generic online

Anonymous said...

buy tramadol online can you order tramadol online - tramadol online tennessee