Z - Philadelphia Inquirer

[LaurieBlue]

http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/entertainment/12843003.htm

Posted on Sun, Oct. 09, 2005

New Recordings

Pop

My Morning Jacket
Z

(ATO ***1/2)

As they refined and distilled their reverb-drenched brand of country ballads and dueling-guitar rock over the course of their first three albums, My Morning Jacket became the indie-rock band of choice for the jam-band crowd and the jam band endorsed by indie rockers. Z, the Louisville, Ky., quintet's fourth full-length, will come as a surprise to both camps: it's a joyful set that ventures into slinky soul backbeats, densely layered vocal harmonies, and terse, immediately catchy melodies.

Like Flaming Lips' The Soft Bulletin and Wilco's Summerteeth, MMJ's Z is a pop record made on the band's own terms. Even at its most compact - the 2:26 "What a Wonderful Man" rivals the Polyphonic Spree for giddy euphoria - Z makes room for bursts of heavy guitars, and Jim James' soaring, echoing vocals link the warped blue-eyed soul of the aptly named "Wordless Chorus" to the spacey guitar jam of "Dondante."

- Steve Klinge
My Morning Jacket will perform at the Theatre of Living Arts, 334 South St., Wednesday and Friday at 8 p.m. Tickets: $20; $18 in advance. Phone: 215-922-1011