Ryman reports

[megisnotreal]

Meg was hot

Thanks for noticing.  8)

And the guy who does all the mic checks is Dave; he runs the sound equipment.

[BH]

I introduced myself to Bruce last night, actually. I shook his hand and wanted to know his real name, so that I wouldn't have to yell "HOTWHEELS MAN!"...

Now what's the guy's name who does the sound checks? You know, the guy who goes, "YEAH, YEAH, YEAH. HEY, HEY. YEAH, YEAH."

Seriously, though, those guys are the unsung heroes of the band for all the hard work they do before/during/after the shows.

Quite right.  
I met some of the crew after the Astoria show & thanked them for their great work. Jim's guitar guy (is that Bruce? short hair, Slayer T-shirt, lots of tats) couldn't understand why I was thanking him but they do a great, great job that deserves to be acknowledged.

Give it up you guys, you're still not getting backstage. ;)

[Angry Ewok]

I was taking my seat as I was reading that, and totally missed the fucking chair. Nice one, haha.


Yeah, but press passes are fine, too.   :P

[dragonboy]

Give it up you guys, you're still not getting backstage. ;)

;D

[CC]

new pics in the gallery.

[primushead]

Yey!  Thanks for new pics CC.

[suebeeboo]

I really quite enjoyed reading this and identified greatly with your description of how you've come to the place you have with mmj. My own experience was a lot similiar, though it still moves was the album that hooked me. I liked your description so much, though, I quoted you in my blog on the matter.

Thank you kindly for sharing :)

I really enjoyed reading that post too!  And I too, was hooked by It Still Moves, but I LOVE ALL of their music! The early recordings are so awesome!  I am so psyched for the shows in Chicago and Indy - what a LONG and dreadful wait it's been for this puppy!  I've been listening only to Ray Lamontagne, just to take an MMJ break so I'll be TOTALLY BLOWN AWAY when I see them live again - FINALLY!  Then I get to see Ray here in Chicago at the Vic Theater on Tuesday, 11/28!  I have so much to be THANKFUL for this THANKSGIVING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   ;D  ;D  ;D  ;D  ;D

[Anu]

Here's a longer, more polished review, building from what I already posted. This will be submitted to the webzine Interference.com

My Morning Jacket
Ryman Auditorium,
Nashville, TN
13 November 2006

Earlier this year, I paid premium dollar for tickets to see top, touring bands as diverse as TOOL and Coldplay. As much as I love both of these acts, they did not entirely live up to my appropriately high expectations. When we as fans throw down the equivalent of a paycheck on a show and travel, we should get something eternal. However, a trend is emerging of too short setlists, even for groups playing arenas and charging more than fifty dollars a seat.

I hate to invoke the moralistic concept of a work ethic when it comes to something as adamantly anti-work as rock music, but frankly, for most bands, their "dayjob" has night hours and provides our fix of geeking and freaking—and a damn decent job it appears to be. So, if I'm going to spend a day's or a week's work on a night with my favorite artist, I want the group to—how can we say this delicately—"put out" for more than an hour and not replicate the exact song sequence for every night of a tour.  
 
I share these anecdotal comments about other bands and how they could give their fans more because this demise of a decent setlist is antithetical to what My Morning Jacket (MMJ)—Jim James, Two-Tone Tommy, Patrick Hallahan, Carl Broemel, and Bo Koster—give up every night. These five badass, mothertruckin' Kentucky boys love their work and keep working to please and increase what's still a small and devoted fanbase.
 
After releasing the live double album and accompanying DVD Okokonos, MMJ didn't have to tour. They could have kicked back for a few. MMJ spent much of 2005 and 2006 on tour; gigs are already scheduled into 2007. Jim didn't have to wear a suit and tie Monday night, but he did, because he was going to church. That's what a show at the Ryman is like, y'all, and with unrivaled acoustics and ambiance, the place must be experienced in musical immersion to be fully respected.

In middle Tennessee, many touring alternative rock acts skip us entirely. It's not uncommon for serious rock nerds to travel frequently to Atlanta, Chicago, and St. Louis if they want to catch shows. But My Morning Jacket has visited Nashville twice this year—and that's not including the three-hour early morning session for a huge crowd under and around That Tent at Bonnaroo.

According to The Fader, riding the adrenaline from the 'roo, "The Jacket is the best live band in rock & roll right now. The arrangements are breathtaking—the band storms through huge shred-sections, then stops on a dime for soaring statements from James's voice." Adding to the waves of critical acclaim, Spin named MMJ one of the top live acts in the business. All this backstory offers some context for what an effervescent and enthusiastic, inimitable and inspired act MMJ has become.

When MMJ took the stage at 8:45pm with an eerie yet appropriate "Nashville to Kentucky," the Monday-night, beer-wielding faithful were rapt and ready for a revival of a rocking kind. For the next 130 minutes, the five-piece rolled through almost the entire contents of the breathtaking, breakthrough album Z, interspersed with less-known gems from the three previous albums It Still Moves, At Dawn, and The Tennessee Fire.

Songs such as goose-pimple producing hymns "Gideon," "It Beats for U," "Wordless Chorus," and "One Big Holiday" were already engraved in me before Monday's magic, and their live renderings only further fortified my faith in them. But some tracks, such as the reggae-tinged "Phone Went West" or the sonically searing "Run Thru" finally came home for me at this show.

Since MMJ is still largely ignored by mainstream rock radio, a two-hour live show is not your typical Greatest Hits sampling of singles, and the setlists change frequently, much to the pleasure of the die-hards. Since MMJ is reputably friendly to fans' taping shows, lots of live gigs are available to stream or download for noncommercial purposes from websites like Archive-dot-org.

In a similar sense, the band cannot simply revolve around its mop-headed maestro Jim James, as some groups give too much play to egomaniacal frontpeople. Each member and each instrument contribute to musically complex and emotionally compelling compositions that change with each performance. Even though the band didn't take its short break until 90 minutes into the show, and the encore took us close to the 11'oclock hour, many fans would have stayed out late had MMJ continued.

While the incomparable Jacket sound draws heavily from southern rock, folk, and reverb-soaked indie-rock, the band possesses an undeniable jam-band ethic and aesthetic. Many fans are likely to indulge in various recreational sacraments as part of the concert experience and seek that ego-dissolving, "face-melting," dionysian moment while crunking it up close to the stage. People so primed also love three-hour sets.

When the music finally overtakes you, there's really no turning back. After Z, I became a frequent listener. After the 'roo, I became a fan. This past Monday night, I left the Ryman a believer.  
 
Setlist
1. Nashville To Kentucky
2. Lowdown
3. Gideon
4. What A Wonderful Man
5. Off The Record
6. The Way That He Sings
7. It Beats 4 U
8. Wordless Chorus
9. Phone Went West
10. Lay Low
11. Dondante
12. Xmas Curtain
13. One Big Holiday
14. Run Thru
15. They Ran
ENCORE
16. Tonight I Want To Celebrate With You
17. The Bear
18. Golden
19. Anytime
20. Mahgeetah
21. At Dawn
22. Bermuda Highway

[folded_fawn]

Wonderful written work.  

The show was, of course, gorgeous.  Nice to talk to some of you there, as always.  I'm working on making it to Louisville.  We'll see what I can do!

[CC]

more ryman in the gallery.

[RedPatokaSea]

Many fans are likely to indulge in various recreational sacraments as part of the concert experience and seek that ego-dissolving, "face-melting," dionysian moment while crunking it up close to the stage. People so primed also love three-hour sets.

My face was definitely melting at Bonnaroo and in DC.  Oh how I love this band.  There are truly no words that can even begin to describe that feeling when you cease to exist as an individual and become the music itself.