OK, so this isn't really news, per se--anyone who's been to the Palladium recently has seen this on the venue's TV screens--but My Morning Jacket, who our sister paper LA Weekly just deemed the "best live band in the world," officially announced today its upcoming August 23 show at the Palladium Ballroom.
Sure, we're stoked about the show, and we'll let you know about tickets as soon as that info becomes available, but, I have to admit, we're a little lukewarm when it comes to what we've heard of MMJ's new record, Evil Urges. Night and Day editor Noah W. Bailey got his hands on a copy recently and has been jokingly playing it ever since...mostly because, even as an MMJ fan, he can't stand it.
"If you'd like a mix of Prince and Chris Cross, you'll like this," he says. "But I think it sucks."
Worst part is, we all agree. Well, to an extent. Merritt Martin, whose desk is right next to Noah's, has heard it more than the rest of us (Noah's been taunting her with repeat plays of the song "Highly Suspicious" from the disc), and she says: "Well...it is insanely catchy."
But even she's hedging her bets, qualifying that offer with this one: "It's like an earworm," she says. "It just digs itself into your brain. It's kind of like cancer."
So, yeah, there's that. --Pete Freedman
