Eternally Even
Jim James
(ATO/Capitol)
Three stars
My Morning Jacket's Jim James takes a melancholy turn on Eternally Even, a dreamy, if sombre, overview of some of life's pressures and challenges. The focus of his attention is clear from the opening track, Hide In Plain Sight: companionship and camaraderie acting as small-scale, but effective balms for the meanness in this world. Considering there are five drummers, including the legendary Jim Keltner, credited on Same Old Lie, the song is a model of restraint, its Rock the Vote mentality summed up by the wisdom of "Nothing is more difficult than changing what's been comfortable". Famed New Orleans saxophonist Charlie Gabriel's contributions add spice to True Nature and In the Moment, as James exposes more of his preoccupations, including future generations and stability among the chaos. All the struggles seem to reach their conclusion on the album-ending title track, as James explains that "life's been completely fair" to him, while wishing the same for the song's recipient. So even if the ride was bumpy, it was worth it.
* Pablo Gorondi / AP
