Review: Northern Lights

[LaurieBlue]

My Morning Jacket builds on foundation of southern rock

http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=252246&category=ARTS&BCCode=HOME&newsdate
  
By GREG HAYMES, Staff writer
First published: Friday, May 28, 2004
 
 review
 CLIFTON PARK -- A big buzz band on the indie circuit, My Morning Jacket made its Capital Region debut at Northern Lights on Wednesday night, proving that sometimes the music really does live up to the hype.
The band, based in Louisville, Ky., took the stage in full southern-rock mode, long hair flailing and guitars furiously churning, as they tore through "One Big Holiday" and "Dancefloors," both from their latest album, "It Still Moves."

They wore their southern musical heritage on their sleeves. There was no doubt that veteran rockers Lynyrd Skynyrd and the Allman Brothers Band were major musical influences on the quintet, but they've carved out their own niche, thanks largely to the band's singer and songwriter, Jim James.

James -- who played the entire 90-minute set with a fake parrot strapped onto his left shoulder -- possesses a captivating voice that's part early Neil Young and part David Gates (the crooner from '70s MOR band Bread). Drenched in reverb, that voice soared and floated over the solid wall of guitars with irony-free passion and surprising authority.

But My Morning Jacket was no one-trick pony. It might be fun if all the band did was restore the Southern Rock Guitar Anthem to its previous glory, but doing so wouldn't make them a great band. On Wednesday, MMJ utilized southern rock as a foundation, constructing majestic songs with such building blocks as shimmering psychedelia (the swirling "Steam Engine"), hook-laden pop (the final encore of "Mahgeetah") and swooping blues ("Strangulation").

You're not likely to hear My Morning Jacket on mainstream radio just yet, but in this age of ever-increasing musical fragmentation, this is definitely a band that can cut across musical genres and pull together a huge audience.

Opening act singer-songwriter M. Ward turned in an equally mesmerizing performance, as he and his band -- playing in various combinations -- eased through selections from his eclectic CD, "Transfiguration of Vincent." Opening with a string-snapping solo acoustic guitar blues instrumental, he was soon joined by a five-piece band for the rockin' "Vincent O'Brien" and the Dylan-esque "Helicopter." Best of all was a radical reinvention of David Bowie's "Let's Dance," transformed into a haunting ballad by Ward and MMJ keyboardist Bo Koster. MY MORNING JACKET with M. Ward Where: Northern Lights, Route 146, Clifton ParkWhen: 9 p.m. WednesdayHighlights: The swirling maelstrom of "Steam Engine" and the majestic "I Will Sing You Songs"The crowd: About 250-300 fans crowded up close around the stageUpcoming: Australian punkabilly combo the Living End takes the Northern Lights stage tonight with Stand Up Citizen and Small Axe opening the show.
 

[Kearnesy]

well, i am going to see them tonight and this just revs the engine a little more...

rock!