My Morning Jacket - Z

When, after perfecting the art of southern alt-rock over three albums, My Morning Jacket announced they were going to “explore” their sound and “experiment” in the studio, it may have caused some panic among fans. While not quite as drenched in reverb as previous efforts, and arguably even more riff-heavy than 2003’s It Still Moves, Z careered from feverish stadium rock to tender new-age ballads worthy of Neil Young to emerge as a textural, aural explosion of soundscapes that in hindsight felt like a natural progression for this most gifted of bands. (Paul Vickery)