New MMJ fans...take some advice

[Nikkogino]

I see there are more and more new fans coming in here, which is great.  I have some advice for you though...and it is important enough to start a new topic:

Do not pass off MMJ's first 2 albums!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Please, please, please, buy these albums.  I was listening to The Tennessee Fire today for the first time in a while and it is so amazing!  The bad production makes the songs so personal and magical.  Man I love this cd...it is very pure.
And if you haven't given At Dawn a try yet I envy you.  I remember a year or two ago when I was new to the band and everyone was saying "At Dawn is the greatest...you are so lucky that you are going to be able to listen to this album for the first time."   I didn't believe them...I should have.  AMAZING!!!

Anyway, this thread was merely a vent for me to let you newbies know:  you absolutely HAVE to get these two albums.  Don't be satisfied just with It Still Moves and/or Z.  I know TTF and At Dawn are hard to get (if you don't have an indie record store) but do what you can...you won't regret it.

Okay, sorry guys...had to get this off my chest.

[EAZYE]

well said

[Ghosts_on_TV]

Yeah, TTF look me the longest to get my head around, but man...what an album.

[ycartrob]

At Dawn was the first one I heard and one of my all time favorite albums of all time. Simply amazing.

[dragonboy]

I agree with Ghosts & Tracy. At Dawn was the first Jacket CD I heard & has been my fav album of all time since. It took me a while to fully appreciate TTF but it's well worth putting the time in. I Will Be There When You Die & By My Car are 2 of my fav Jacket tracks.

I noticed that Nikkogino said that they're hard to come by. Amazon.com has them both in stock & they're both on sale right now:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00000J7NL/sr=1-4/qid=1156732473/ref=sr_1_4/104-2436674-8452753?ie=UTF8&s=music

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00005IBZT/sr=1-3/qid=1156732473/ref=pd_bbs_3/104-2436674-8452753?ie=UTF8&s=music

[Nikkogino]

I agree with Ghosts & Tracy. At Dawn was the first Jacket CD I heard & has been my fav album of all time since. It took me a while to fully appreciate TTF but it's well worth putting the time in. I Will Be There When You Die & By My Car are 2 of my fav Jacket tracks.

I noticed that Nikkogino said that they're hard to come by. Amazon.com has them both in stock & they're both on sale right now:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00000J7NL/sr=1-4/qid=1156732473/ref=sr_1_4/104-2436674-8452753?ie=UTF8&s=music

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00005IBZT/sr=1-3/qid=1156732473/ref=pd_bbs_3/104-2436674-8452753?ie=UTF8&s=music

Yeah, I meant they are hard to get in person...some people dislike ordering online (I personally like the instant gratification of going to the store).  But yeah, those are great deals and I really hope some of these new listeners take advantage and give these two albums a shot.

My faves off of TTF:  The Bear (obviously), Old September Blues, Picture of You,

[BH]

Don't stop there!  Chapters 1 and 2 can be very rewarding with some patience.

As far as TN Fire goes, for some reason, it sounds best to me in the winter.  Don't get me wrong, it always sounds good.  Maybe becuase that is when I first heard it but I don't know.  I think we talked about this before, but you know how Jim says that the albums are meant for certain times of the day.  It works for times of the season for me too.

Tennesee Fire - Night Time -Winter
At Dawn - Morning - Spring
It Still Moves - Afternoon - Summer
Z - Havn't really thought about this one but maybe 2 AM and trying to keep your head from spinning? - Fall is the only thing left so.....

My apologies to California for not having seasons.  Ya know when the weather is good all year long you really can't appreciate it.

[Jernigan]

I agree, chapters 1 & 2 are really rewarding if you give
it a minute. I had my favs I would skip to in the begining, and didn'treally listen to the rest, but know I love both of them, all the way through equally.

At Dawn was the last full album I had purchased by the band, I sort of went backwards, started with Z, and worked
my way down.

The only thing I can think about is what a tool I am for never having heard the music ( at dawn ) until now. Why did life make me wait so long?

Oddly enough, as new and foreign as it was to me......I still found it very familiar, and comforting at the same time.

[realdeal]

I see there are more and more new fans coming in here, which is great.  I have some advice for you though...and it is important enough to start a new topic:

Do not pass off MMJ's first 2 albums!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Please, please, please, buy these albums.  I was listening to The Tennessee Fire today for the first time in a while and it is so amazing!  The bad production makes the songs so personal and magical.  Man I love this cd...it is very pure.
And if you haven't given At Dawn a try yet I envy you.  I remember a year or two ago when I was new to the band and everyone was saying "At Dawn is the greatest...you are so lucky that you are going to be able to listen to this album for the first time."   I didn't believe them...I should have.  AMAZING!!!

Anyway, this thread was merely a vent for me to let you newbies know:  you absolutely HAVE to get these two albums.  Don't be satisfied just with It Still Moves and/or Z.  I know TTF and At Dawn are hard to get (if you don't have an indie record store) but do what you can...you won't regret it.

Okay, sorry guys...had to get this off my chest.

"bad production"???

Z was bad production....

[BH]

Oh no, here we go again...... ::) :)

[megisnotreal]

You know, I have been a huge MMJ fan since 2003, but for some reason, I never joined the forum until today. Huh.  ???

Anyway...

I agree. The Tennessee Fire and At Dawn are incredible. The first time I heard "I Will Be There When You Die," I cried.

It's strange to me, in a way, that this band's music has had such a profound impact on me...  It sounds so cheesy, but a friend of mine once asked me why I liked MMJ so much, and the first thing I thought to say to her was, "If my heart could have it's own soundtrack, it would be the music of this band."

But... yeah... the first two albums are amazing. I also love to delve into the EP's as well, my favourites of which are Spilt and Chocolate and Ice.

[fitzcarraldo]

It's strange to me, in a way, that this band's music has had such a profound impact on me...  It sounds so cheesy, but a friend of mine once asked me why I liked MMJ so much, and the first thing I thought to say to her was, "If my heart could have it's own soundtrack, it would be the music of this band."

Nice!  Welcome.  :)

[Bam_Bam]

I see there are more and more new fans coming in here, which is great.  I have some advice for you though...and it is important enough to start a new topic:

Do not pass off MMJ's first 2 albums!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Please, please, please, buy these albums.  I was listening to The Tennessee Fire today for the first time in a while and it is so amazing!  The bad production makes the songs so personal and magical.  Man I love this cd...it is very pure.
And if you haven't given At Dawn a try yet I envy you.  I remember a year or two ago when I was new to the band and everyone was saying "At Dawn is the greatest...you are so lucky that you are going to be able to listen to this album for the first time."   I didn't believe them...I should have.  AMAZING!!!

Anyway, this thread was merely a vent for me to let you newbies know:  you absolutely HAVE to get these two albums.  Don't be satisfied just with It Still Moves and/or Z.  I know TTF and At Dawn are hard to get (if you don't have an indie record store) but do what you can...you won't regret it.

Okay, sorry guys...had to get this off my chest.

You can't pass off Chocolate and Ice EP either.....might not be many songs but Sweetheart has got to be one of their best songs.

[Nikkogino]

You can't pass off Chocolate and Ice EP either.....might not be many songs but Sweetheart has got to be one of their best songs.

Yeah, I agree (and I also agree about ch. 1 and ch. 2) but I was focusing on albums.  But yeah, the Split EP with Songs: Ohia is great too.

[tomEisenbraun]

okay, two things, sorta. TTF isn't bad production. it's "low production quality", as in, amazing record on a very low budget. it wasn't made to sound perfect, it was made to sound perfect. ya get my drift? "They Ran" wouldn't be "They Ran" without the tape hiss and amp buzz and Tommy's bass fretting out a little bit. the sounds on that album are so perfect, because it wasn't about capturing every instrument at the exact tone that it was made for, every time. where some metal bands have the same tone the entire album, ya know? TTF is made with every song being done for what it needs to mean. the guitars are never identical, the production is always slightly different. I think the beginning of I Will Be There When You Die is a perfect capturing of the TTF ideal. it starts of with Jim walking (or so it sounds) into a creaky old room and pulling up a chair while playing the intro riff. once he sits down, the bustling stops, as he's sitting still and the song takes shape. it's exactly what it needs to be, and it's a beautiful thing because of that.

that said, Bermuda, Z will always be a fall album. I see it somewhere around twilight, but Lay Low will forever remind of the trees turning orange, it being a little too cold to have my windows down, but not cold enough to stop me from doing so anyways, and absolutely thrashing my steering to the guitar work in this song. Z is Mid-October. It Still moves very well coudl be, too, but Z certainly is. Even with Wordless Chorus, as unfitting as that should be. Wordless Chorus calls back on everything you remember of summer, and helps you realize that it's not just a season, it's life. So feel that way regardless of season.

I can't imagine It Beats 4 U happening without that season occuring. Good lord, I wish it were fall. I miss goosebumps and pretty trees and days cool enough to wear jeans.

C'mon Nashville, I'm ready.

(and back home in chicago, it's 71. high today is supposed to be 75. can i move to Colorado?)

[BH]

that said, Bermuda, Z will always be a fall album. I see it somewhere around twilight, but Lay Low will forever remind of the trees turning orange, it being a little too cold to have my windows down, but not cold enough to stop me from doing so anyways, and absolutely thrashing my steering to the guitar work in this song. Z is Mid-October. It Still moves very well coudl be, too, but Z certainly is. Even with Wordless Chorus, as unfitting as that should be. Wordless Chorus calls back on everything you remember of summer, and helps you realize that it's not just a season, it's life. So feel that way regardless of season.

I can't imagine It Beats 4 U happening without that season occuring. Good lord, I wish it were fall. I miss goosebumps and pretty trees and days cool enough to wear jeans.

C'mon Nashville, I'm ready.

(and back home in chicago, it's 71. high today is supposed to be 75. can i move to Colorado?)

Perfect.  It works out nice then for all seasons, and twilight is probably good too!  I like it.  The only problem we have then, is the fact that we are out of seasons and we better not be out of albums!

[tomEisenbraun]

dude, we'll invent new seasons for the jacket.

[BH]

Or I was thinking, who's to say that they can't start over with another winter album!  

[ycartrob]

Lay Low will forever remind of the trees turning orange

Tom, I don't know what crazy shit happens in Chicago (I, for one, have never even been to Michigan), but if you're waiting for the trees to turn orange in Nashville, then you're gonna have a pretty long wait. I mean, they stay the same color the whole year, regardless of the leaves being on them or not.

What a weirdo...

[Jernigan]

I grew up in Micigan....it's absolutely amazing there during the fall. Here in the Chicago area it's pretty much the same I would say.

Maybe a little nicer back home!

Just thought I'd chime in with that.....

Cheers,
-MJ