*SPOILER* New Album Discussion

[sweatboard]

I just wanted to go ahead and start this thread so people don't post where people might accidently read it.  I don't actually have the album yet and I just got to work so....I'm now embarking on what will probably be the longest 8hrs. of my life.  Oh wait, is that my stomach getting sick, it feals like I might have a fever. ;D

[fiftymillimeter]

I'm now embarking on what will probably be the longest 8hrs. of my life. ÊOh wait, is that my stomach getting sick, it feals like I might have a fever. ;D

i know, right?

*taps foot, twiddles thumbs

[utonynashm]

hmmmm

[aMillionDreams]

*Spolier Alert.  You've twice been warned*

wow! I'm not sure what to think.  I always have to listen to their albums more than once to really get a feel for it, but I'm pretty sure I liked it.  There were some songs that were simply amazing (knot comes loose, wordless chorus), others I'm not so sure about (into the woods, anytime).  All of the album versions of the songs I'd already heard didn't disappoint.  It's too bad Oxen isn't on the album , but I wouldn't really fit, so I see why they left it off.  Hope to catch it on a b-side.  
The style of the album is definately a departure.  Sounds more like hi-fi Month of Sundays stuff rather than the new mmj album, but that's not a bad thing.  I think it's great that they can continue to evolve,  This album reaches to the upper stratosphere and achieves weightlessness at moments.  
It did kind of suck to not have the linear notes.  When are those going to leak?

[darkglow]

aMillion, listen to "off the record" backwards.. you can hear a voice saying very random things.. i'm not joking

[darkglow]

it's towards the end.. well towards the beginning if you are listening to it backwards

[aMillionDreams]

I heard that, and I thought about listening to it backwards, but I don't know how.  Maybe I'll wait for the vinyl.  It is very 'Stawberry fields forever'.  Can you tell what he's saying.  It's not "Tom is dead", is it? ;)

[darkglow]

something like "burn burn burn" and then after a while it says "there's only two ways (something)" and then a bunch of other stuff i havent made out yet

[aMillionDreams]

Strange! does the music sound decent in reverse.  I thought maybe they were hinting for us to listen to more of it backwards, perhaps.  Does it sound like Jim's voice or someone else's?

[darkglow]

that song sounds amazing backwards.. not sure about the rest yet.. but no it doesnt sound like jim's voice

[ratsprayer]

hey there fellow worst.fans.ever.  haha, just kidding.  i notice we three musketeers are only willing to come forward now?  i feel its an album that will take multiple listens to absorb some of the changes.  dondante exploded all my expectations, as i made sure i listened to that one first.  lay low is a stand out.  im not sure about anytime, probably my least favourite by far.  i love in to the woods, except for the drums that seem to offset the texture of the rest of the song.  more thoughts later after my three hour late night drive!   :D

[Bennett]

****BIG SPOILERS*******

just listened to the album in its entirety and there are elements to the album that are different to anything they've ever done. I really don't think you can compare this to any other record they've put out. Luckily some of the new sounds are they pulled off perfectly. (i'll get more into it later) so here's my thoughts of the album track by track.

Wordless Chorus

the first words out of my mouth when the song finished were "holy shit". it's really just incredible. if i had to compare it to anything it would probably be mmj trying to be the flaming lips and then jim morphing into some 70s r&b singer by the end. you really have to hear it to understand. 9.5/10

It Beats for You

when i heard it live, i thought it kind of dragged a bit and was repetitive, luckily they've taken care of that in the studio. and was that actually somebody whistling at the end of the song? but still with a record of so many good tracks, this one gets kind of shoved to the back, imo. and it's not a bad song by any means. 7.5/10

Gideon

some great guitar work on this one. love the kind of space type feel to it. add in some catchy lyrics and nice vocals from jim and you've got a great song. 9/10

What a Wonderful Man

great rocker that for the most part sounds the same live, but i noticed something that appears on some of the other songs on the album. it seems that they were messing with jim's reverb a bit. in some songs (like gideon, dondante) the reverb seems normal, but in this song and others (lay low, off the record) it seems tuned down a bit. i'm not saying it's a bad thing, jim has a great voice with or without the reverb, it just takes some getting used to. 9/10

Off the Record

Great kind of reggae type rocker. one of the best on the album. really like the way the lyrics flow and the little keyboard part in the middle. though i'm as intrigued as anybody else to what that voice was saying at the end. 10/10

Into the Woods

This one didn't click with me. maybe i need to listen to it more, because i didn't have a good attitude going into the listening. it just seems a little too odd for mmj. and the "babies in blenders" line always makes me scratch my head. 4.5-5/10

Anytime

This one is growing on me a bit. Jim just seems a little off, with all the yeeeaaahhhs and some vocal notes. Still dig the solo and the chorus. 7.5-8/10

Lay Low

Out all the tracks i heard live, i liked this one the most, and thankfully it sounds as good in the studio as it does live. love the lyrics, vocals, and especially the transition in the middle of the song. 9.5/10

Knot Comes Loose

Blew me away when i heard it, just a classic soft mmj song. loved the whole band being in there with the pedal steel guitar, piano, acoustic guitar, and shakers. beautiful. 10/10

Dondante

This along with Off the Record, might be the best on the album. It just kicks ass. The "You had me worried" line with the band crashing in, is the best part about "Z" hands down. Classic. 10/10

[sweatboard]

Holy SHIT!!!!!!!!!!!!  To much stuff to comment on but, Wordless Chorus is a really exciting song a departure and a extreamly succesful one at that.  The whistiling on the end of it Beats For You blew my fucking head off.  I know it's Andrew Bird no one on else on earth can whistle like that.  I'm suprised "Anytime" isn't getting the love it deserves.  Sounds like they wrote this one about the time Jim decided to start covering "I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man"  It's one of those songs I just want to shout the lyrics to outloud, mark my words it will soon be a concert classic......"Is this climbing up to the mooon, or is it bailing out to soon."  Great album, A treasure chest of songs filled with unique jem after jem.  Prouction is stellar and very spacy, the music creates an entire universe to submerge yourself in.  You can truly get lost in this record.  I'm really pleased with all the diffrent instrumentation and texture, there is so much going on you could literally hear something new with every listen for years to come.      

[tomEisenbraun]

Wait, so Knot Comes Loose is actually not a reworked version of Oxen?

[sweatboard]

Nope, It's Brand Spankin new.  A beautiful song, quite possibly the most beautiful they've ever written.  

[sweatboard]

I can't get over how amazing the production on this record is.  The vocals are recorded with perfection.  "Off The Record" has a really cool fresh sounding type reverb.  I think the band opened up a whole new can of worms with this album.  I remember Beck saying in an interview that he was glad that he made Mutations and Sea Change when he did before he couldn't anymore.  I guess what he was saying is that instead of becoming pigon holed as a guy that creates sampled music like Odelay over and over, he was able to do the singer songwritter stuff in between Odelay and Guero, and now people look at him more as just a artist with a lot of different ways of expressing himself than associating him with a particular sound.  After Z, I don't think anyone can refer to MMJ as "that southern rock band" or "that alt. country band".  They'll just have to say "that exciting and magical new Rock Band."  If I was going to label the particular sound on this record I would call it interstellar space rock. ;D        

[sweatboard]

I guess at this point I'm discussing the album with myself.  The only thing that makes me sad about listening to the record early is I can't share it and talk about it with everyone. :'(  On a happier note, How bout' Bo Koster.  I think he really contributed so much to this record.  I'm so glad he joined the band.  The piano and organ all over this record is absolutly amazing and really creates a nice atmosphere and mood.  Ok, I'm going to try and stop talking about this record for a while.  

[aMillionDreams]

I think Brian's right about their new sound. I think Jim probably got tired of hearing about how they're the new Allman Brothers and the southern rock thing has got old for me, too and I do have to sit through every interview.  But I assure you that Lynard Skynard never put out an album like this!  I think that the keys are amazing on this record, I don't thnk danny cash could have pulled it off.  The guitar work is great, I just wonder how much of it is actually Jim, he seems to be taking more guitar solos in concert since quaid left the band.  This album definately showcases mmj's' extroverted side of things.  I wonder if it's called Z because its so far removed from everything they've already done.  from A to Z

[Danko71]

Good to hear all these comments. I'm looking forward to hearing it, but I can wait awhile. There's nothing wrong with advance listening in my book. I've seen this John Leckie guy's name pop up a lot more in my rock history reading, now that I'm aware of it, so I'm sure the production is great. I'm glad to see that they've gone in another direction.

[fiftymillimeter]

working on figuring out the messages in 'off the record'É

whoosh, whoosh, burn burnÉ
no matter how É
gruntledÉ
there's only two ways toÉ
oh my jesusÉ
lionelÉ
etherÉ
here's a clueÉ

[still working on it]