monday's mandatory music

so i think what i'm going to do for all of you (well more for me, because i love thinking about music, searching through hundreds of youtube videos, and reading album reviews)is start a monday column where i give a little blurb on an album that i think is essential in my music collection and therefore should be essential for yours. yeah i think that highly of myself ;)

so to kick it off i want to present to all of you My Morning Jacket's 2005 smash hit entitled 'Z'.

'Z' was the 1st 'MMJ' cd that i bought back in early 2006. 2006 was a phenomenal musical year for me. it was my coming of age year. the groovy sounds of jam bands had become my staple and had developed into an almost exhausted resource. around the same time that i purchased 'Z', i purchased another album that helped in my personal music evolution (i wont give away the title or the band since it too will probably make the MonManMu column) and together these albums lifted off my proverbial jam band blinders and revealed the seemingly endless musical horizon a head of me.

there is a hypnotic element to the sounds of My Morning Jacket. this element shines through immediately in the opening track, 'wordless chorus'. its here that you are introduced to the band and their unique innovative style of rock and roll (call it what you'd like - to me its bread and butter rock n roll). the album continues and you start understanding the reggae influences the track 'off the record'. its a hybrid blend of beats and guitar that only they can pull off. for the harder rockers out there i would point you to 'anytime' and 'what a wonderful man' where the band presents the listener with a beauty infused edgey guitar heavy style.

but the one truly unique element of 'Z', and MMJ for that matter, that permeates through out the entire record is the voice of the bands front man, Jim James. his vocal range is unbelievable from a haunting growl to a the airy loftiness of a high pitched harmony, this man has got it all. dont believe me? give 'into the woods' or 'gideon' (youtube video below) a listen and then disagree. if that is not enough for you then i would recommend the bob dylan cover, 'going to acapulco', from the movie I'm Not There.

regardless if you run out and buy 'Z', or download it immediately, or not - that doesnt matter. the important thing is that you listen to new music. constantly.

this is an amazing clip from the Letterman show featuring MMJ and the Boston Symphony!


Gideon. What Have You Told Us At All?
Make A Sound, Come Down Off The Wall.
Religion - Should Appeal To The Hearts Of The Young.
Who Are You? What Have You Become?
You Animal. Come On.
What Does This Remind You Of?
Truly. Truly We Have Become.
Hated And Feared For Something We Don't Want.
Listen. Listen. Most Of Us Believe That This Is Wrong.
You Animal. Come On. What Does This Remind You Of?
What Does This Remind You Of?
Animal. Come On.