CONCERT RECAP: My Morning Jacket @ The Wiltern, Los Angeles, CA 9/11/12

Maybe I’m feeling the effects of an after show glow, but this one may belong in the same conversation with some of the more standout shows from MMJ’s storied 14-year history. After a none-too-special start, the band ripped through “Lay Low” and barraged the place with a dark, heavy, all business set, heavy on deep improvisation and furious intensity that didn’t let up until the final notes of the show-ending “Phone Went West.” From Lay Low (which hit at approximately 10:00), straight until the encore break around 11:30, there was nary a dull moment, just a powerhouse onslaught that has my head-ringing currently. The encore break provided some much-welcomed lighter fare with “Butch Cassidy” and “Wonderful”, before kicking into an astonishing Band / Prince / Phone Went West trio to ice the cake.

Notably, there was also almost zero banter, each extended tune (even “Gideon” got a big upgrade) seemed to take on a wholly different colour, tone and feel from past versions and one couldn’t ask for much better cover selections, hitting on Elton John (biggest crowd response of the night) and the aforementioned The Band and Prince tunes.

Must listens include “Lay Low,” “Old Sept Blues,” “Strangulation,” “Touch Me I’m Going To Scream Pt 2,” “It Makes No Difference,” “I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man” and “Phone Went West.”

Now the only question is: how will they ever top this one on Wednesday and Thursday?

My Morning Jacket @ The Wiltern – 9/11/12 || Photo by Wesley Hodges

SETLIST: The Wiltern, Los Angeles, CA || Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Circuital, It Beats 4 U, You Wanna Freak Out, Lowdown, I’m Amazed, Lay Low > War Begun > I Will Sing You Songs, Masterplan, Old Sept Blues, Rocket Man (Elton John), Strangulation, Evelyn Is Not Real, Easy Morning Rebel, Anytime, The Day Is Coming, Touch Me I’m Going To Scream Pt 2, Gideon