My Morning Jacket
My Morning Jacket
Live 2015
ATO Records
Performance:
Sound:
Pressings:

I caught My Morning Jacket’s show at the Greek Theater in Berkeley a couple of weeks back despite my fear of illness and disease, and it might have been the best thing that’s happened to me in two years. I knew I missed Rock ’n Roll shows, but I guess I didn’t realize how much. Durand Jones and the Indications opened, and they were a ton of fun. Everyone agreed. Then, MMJ took the stage, and everything prior to that was summarily forgotten. They didn’t play more than a couple of my favorite songs, and it was still one of the best shows I’ve seen. Or maybe it’s recency bias. Anyway, I was healed. They sold $60 autographed copies of their recently released three-record set, Live 2015, but I just ordered a standard set online when I got home for about half that amount. I’m glad I did, but it’s not a slam dunk. Mostly, it’s a reminder of how much fun one can have when that band is nearby.

This is the group’s first official full-length live set since Evil Urges, Circuital, and The Waterfall were released. So we get our hands on live runs through some of their strongest offerings from those works, including “Evil Urges,” “Victory Dance,” “Tropics,” and “Compound Fracture.” And also a rendering of “Believe (Nobody Knows),” which could have been replaced by any number of stronger show tunes. One might also quibble with the inclusion of the five repeat songs found on Okonokos from 2006.

But I don’t mind the repeats. This lineup was still in its infancy when Okonokos was recorded, and while that set is relentlessly fun and often great, the performances in 2015 show remarkable growth and an almost telepathic synergy amongst the musicians who have been together for the better part of 16 years now. Maybe more. They’ve had plenty of time to get their act together, that’s all I’m saying. The groove that was added to the intro for “Off the Record” on Okonokos is even groovier in 2015, with dueling guitars popping off like Roman candles before that acclaimed spy-thriller riff kicks in. “Dondante” builds to an even greater climax, and the release is even more cathartic than in 2006. Which makes sense as the band stepped into a loop of perpetual growth and exploration long ago. According to what I saw at the Greek show a couple of weeks ago, the version of “I’m Amazed” from 2015 is outdated in 2021 as the band has worked up an even more dynamic version for us all to freak out about.

Unfortunately, the version of 2015 sounds like it was recorded in a cavernous arena. We don’t know if it actually was or not because there’s no way of knowing where each song was recorded, only that this is a compilation of performances from a tour in… 2015. I caught a three-night run at the Masonic in San Francisco, and it was one of the more impressive demonstrations of power I’ve seen by any band ever. I’d like to know if any of those performances made it onto the set, but whatever. I enjoy a good mystery too. Let the good vibes roll.

This appears to be the first installment in a proposed series of live MMJ releases… So we can freak out about that too. Online commenters are besotted with the quality of this pressing, but I’m not. Mine’s a bit noisy in spots, and I can hear it even over all the rocking out. Nothing repeatable or egregious, just a generally dirty noise floor (despite having been through the Degritter). I suspect that 2015 was pressed at G.Z.’s Canadian facility based on the info in the dead wax and the “Made In Canada” info printed in the gatefold. This hasn’t been confirmed, and I could be wrong. Regardless, I’m hoping that one of the more reputable plants gets a shot at the next set. Here’s to hope! And if you can safely get out and enjoy some live music, I think it’s an excellent prescription for what ails you. Godspeed.

Calling Cadence
Calling Cadence
Calling Cadence
hi-res records
Performance:
Sound:
Pressings:

Man, I don’t understand Los Angeles. I’ve been in San Francisco for 16 years, and all I do when I go down to L.A. is stand around wondering if I’m actually in L.A. “Does this count as L.A.?” “Are we in L.A. now?” And so on. I know there’s lots happening down there, but it’s always felt like a giant speak-easy to me. And I never really put much effort into finding the password. I mean, there’s always been a million great L.A. bands clawing their collective way to recognition in order to make a decent living, and maybe even Hit It Big, right? But recently, I was turned on to one that actually has a chance. We connected via one of my most trusted allies in the vinyl industry. Someone responsible for some of the best records I’ve heard, but who kinda flies under the radar and seems to like it that way. So I won’t out them here. But they did me a favor with this referral. Again.

Oscar Bugarin and Rae Cole are the principal players in Calling Cadence. The band’s site advises that they’re backed by a “wrecking crew of musicians that create the foundation of the Los Angeles music scene” on their self-titled debut, which seems like a lofty assignation. Using the words “wrecking crew” consecutively and with regards to an L.A. music collective is ballsy. But they weren’t lying. I mean, the drummer (Josh Adams) played on one of my recent personal faves, Gold Past Life by Fruit Bats, but Beck and Norah Jones probably get his resume more attention. The bassist (Elijah Thompson) has worked with Father John Misty, and the band’s keyboardist (Mitchell Yoshida) has credits for recording with Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros. That ain’t nothing. And it ain’t for nothing either.

Bugarin and Cole have chops of their own. Bugarin seems to be the lead songwriter, and he’s fearless in that role. He wears his emotions on his denim sleeve, and his acoustic guitar work provides strong roots that allow his earthy voice and the other players to flourish above ground.  Rae Cole’s vocals are worth falling for over and over. I couldn’t immediately place the influence I detected when I first heard her lead turn on “California Bartender,” one of the highlights on Calling Cadence, but I eventually landed on Bonnie Rait. The song drips with a sultry sort of luminescence that sticks in your ears after first listen.

There are exactly zero electric guitars on Calling Cadence, but the songs aren’t lacking for dynamics or variety. Yoshida gets outright space-aged at times, even on a gritty grinder like the lead song and single, “Throw My Body.” “Good Day” is a groover with some underwater Bootsy-inflected funk from Thompson. The band casts a large net and has clearly soaked up inspiration from a disparate cross-section of some all-timers while forging their own sound that could sit comfortably next to Chris Stapleton (“Took a Chance”) or… Michael frigging Jackson (“This Time”). There’s Memphis Soul, and A.M. Gold in them hills too. A veritable smorgasbord of sonic exploration and goodness. Whatever you want.

These folks are clearly going for it. They’re not doing this “just for fun.” To wit, they provided the following info on their site: “The debut album for Calling Cadence is a truly authentic full-analog recording… Recorded on 2” magnetic tape through a Studer A827 tape machine, mixed analog through a 1972 API console, a collection of outboard gear and effects, and mixed down to ¼” magnetic tape on an Ampex ATR 102 tape machine. The ¼” reels were then taken to acclaimed mastering engineer, Kevin Gray, who cut the lacquer from the original master tape. For the ultimate experience of this music, pick up the vinyl.” I recommend you do the same. There’s something here for everyone, even my curmudgeonly ass. The single disc was pressed at RTI, one of my favorite facilities, but one that has been a bit inconsistent of late, in my opinion. Calling Cadence got some of their better work. The noise floor is mostly clean, and there are no repeatable distractions to take you out of the moment. The soundstage is both deep and wide with plenty of space for the notes to spread out and breathe. The release is available for pre-order from Elusive Disc now. But don’t be surprised if Calling Cadence finds you before you find them. Even L.A. might not be big enough to hold them…

Jerry Joseph
Jerry Joseph
The Beautiful Madness
Cosmo Sex School
Performance:
Sound:
Pressings:

I found Jerry Joseph, like a lot of his fans likely did, through his affiliation with Widespread Panic. They’ve been covering his songs for years now, and they’re always setlist highlights for Spreadheads. He’s described them as having been “very generous with their success,” which is a perfect summation. (The man’s a gifted lyricist, what should we expect?) They bring him out to sit in, they record his tunes, they collaborate on originals, and have generally championed him all along. But they wouldn’t have if he didn’t bring the goods.

Now, there’s another band straight out of Athens singing his praises too. According to Patterson Hood’s liner notes, Widespread’s bassist turned the Drive-By Trucker on to Joseph’s magic way back in 1992. That, God help me, is the year I graduated from high school, and it seems like several lifetimes ago. Flash forward to 2020 (God help me and everyone else), and Joseph’s The Beautiful Madness was released with the bulk of the Truckers as Joseph’s backing band along with the odd straggler too. So I’d have had to get it regardless in order to maintain my complete Vinyl Truckers Collection. But Joseph is the rightful star of this show, and the album is easily my favorite of his recorded works that I’ve heard. So far.

It took me multiple tries to get through the entire work. Not because it’s overly long or a challenge to absorb. It’s easily digestible and of a reasonable length. But I have a hard time listening to The Beautiful Madness all the way through without picking up my guitar and playing some songs of my own. There’s an honesty and a vulnerability in these songs that inspires me to try to reach for a similar quality in my playing. It ain’t easy. I can’t get there yet. I’m too closed off and protective of myself. Joseph bleeds and cries in front of us all. He ain’t getting his teeth whitened or shaving the hair off his shoulders. He’s out there, man. Take it or leave it.

Some highlights for this writer include, but are not limited to, the propulsive and moody “San Acacia,” wherein Joseph doesn’t so much implore as demand the listener to “take me as I am.” (See above.) “Good” is a groover with sneaky deep lyrics addressing “some of the darker headlines of our day to day existence,” per Hood’s essay in the liners. Hood’s bandmate, Sweet Baby Jay Gonzalez, provides some tasty synth work on this one that feels like a tablespoon of fizzy candy in your steel-cut oats. And, speaking of cereal, “Sugar Smacks,” ironically, involves no such sweetness. Here, Joseph references all of them marching in the streets that America witnessed while the previous administration smirked and kept shooting. Finally, “Dead Confederate” grapples with some of the Southern dualities that Hood’s band was fighting with back at the turn of this century. The more things change…

So if you’re looking for a new(ish) record that gives you the medicine you need with the sounds you want, The Beautiful Madness is for you. The production is sparse and clear but never too clean. I’d love to give some facility credit for the brilliant pressing quality, but I don’t know who to thank. My two (yellow) discs are damn near flawless. Just like the performances and the songwriting. Even comes with a download code so you can spread the word. Not that Joseph needs the help. But the rest of us might.