My Morning Jacket at the Merriweather Post Pavilion: How to Rock Out
First, find yourself a chill crew of music loving friends – preferably ones with a rooftop porch, grill and plenty of cheeseburgers. It’s okay if they decide to warm up with a little bro music, some OAR, some Dave. Look around, make sure the weather is in the eighties and there is not a cloud in the sky. Also keep an eye on at least two of your friends so that they can safely drive you to the Merriweather Post Pavilion and back.
Before you leave for the concert however, pack extra food, fill your flasks and secure other nourishments. A great trick is to find a relatively close parking lot not associated with the MPP. This way you can avoid exiting traffic and the cops. Arrive at the concert grounds somewhat early so that you have first picks on lawn spots. Make sure you’re not behind one of those giant poles. Take a few moments, or hours, to meditate on the grass.
Finally take in Jim James’s chilling voice – the only distinct feature of My Morning Jacket. Their strength is their ability to hide distinctions by blending. They blend genres of music – rock with indie with folk with country – and then add a touch of psychedelics. They blend the aural experience with the visual experience. This blending is done so masterfully you forget to separate the senses, and genres in your mind. Without separation their performance induces a synesthesia. You perceive the stage lights to be directly linked to the tonal fluctuations in the music. This is what made the concert so incredible, they found a completely novel way to introduce a sensory experience.
Ha, anyway, personal favorites were “Touch Me I’m going to scream”, and “Wordless Chorus.” “Wordless Chorus” introduced me to My Morning Jacket. Some song he sang in a black cape and others in a civil war style jacket. I was only disappointed that they never played “Librarian”!
Tags: My Morning Jacket
This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 4th, 2010 at 12:18 PM and is filed under Baltimore, Concerts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
