My Morning Jacket - The Waterfall
- Written by Rob Crozier
My Morning Jacket hail from Kentucky and have steadily built their success over the last ten years. The first thing to really say about the band is that they have a familiarity to them. It convinces the ear that you have heard them before.
This is still the case with their seventh studio album, The Waterfall. This new venture gives us 10 tracks and is driven by lead singer Jim James who also doubles up as the band's creative songwriter,
Opening track ‘Believe (Nobody Knows)’ welcomes us to a sentimental onslaught as Jones implores us to believe. Their sound is difficult to describe as it’s more of a comforting feeling than a particular style. We would definitely describe this album as a ‘grower’ as the more we listen to it the more laidback and warming it becomes.
An fine example of this is the album’s title track. James' lyrics act as an illustration that life can beat us all down. Yet if we stay strong and resolute we can stop 'The Waterfall'. "Roll the dice, set sail the ship and all the doors will open" - obviously a lot easier to sing about it than actually achieve this, however the bands melancholy approach allows us to slip into a hazy dreamy state. In fact the whole album has a melodic, melancholic charm to it which is devoid of genre. It is more concerned with producing feel-good songs for a growing audience.
However tracks such as ‘Get The Point’ and ‘Big Decisions’ indicate it’s not all plain sailing and the trials and tribulations of Jones' love life have proven to be a major reference point for the majority of these new songs. ‘Get The Point’ in particular is blunt in its structure and content as Jones wails “I hope you get the point/I think our love is done”.
In fact the whole album acts as a wistful rollercoaster of the highs and lows of love's great journey, taking in all the aspects of love and relationships. How they grow stale and comfortable and how once they expire and lapse we are left with memories. This is summed up rather neatly in 'Only Memories Remain'.
We would say that this album does not offer us anything new or unique yet it is one of those albums which is comforting and sometimes that’s all we need.