My Morning Jacket – Is

"Is" is the tenth studio album by My Morning Jacket, released in March 2025 by ATO Records. It marks a key moment in their 25-year career: for the first time they worked with an outside producer, Brendan O’Brien, and mined over 100 demos to find the foundation of what would become this record. The band balances their decades-honed rock, southern and psychedelic strains with a sharper focus on songcraft and melody, choosing tighter arrangements and cleaner production over sprawling jams, which gives the album both polish and emotional immediacy. Tracks like Out in the Open, Half a Lifetime, I Can Hear Your Love, and closing cut River Road frame a record that feels both rooted in MMJ’s past and invested in present truths—about love, time, openness, and what it means to keep growing even after many albums.

Critics generally view Is positively. Many have praised the way the band sounds revitalised, bringing renewed clarity and purpose to their music without losing the expansive, emotive qualities long associated with them. The production by O’Brien is often singled out as a reason the album feels cohesive yet exciting; it tempers excess while allowing moments of texture, dynamics, and heartfelt vocal expression to shine. For longtime fans, Is retains familiar elements—the swooning vocal lines, the lush instrumentation, the knack for evocative atmospheres—while offering enough fresh energy and refined focus to feel like a meaningful next step rather than a retread.

Reviews:

“Veteran producer Brendan O’Brien helps craft the epitome of a modern My Morning Jacket LP. It captures their classic style and sound, but lacks the adventurousness that defines their best work.” – Pitchfork

“This experience is best brought about through careful craft, which My Morning Jacket utilize throughout Is without any sacrifice of their long-running success.” – PopMatters

“My Morning Jacket Is Reviewed: Kentucky combo find new impetus on first album in four years … the result successfully veers from radio-friendly gems … to free-styled riffer Squid Ink and bluesy closer River Road.” – Mojo

“In My Morning Jacket’s new album, Is, Jim James sings, ‘Watching the ending / Remembering how it started.’ He’s talking about existential issues, but he could be talking about his band, given that 25 years and ten records is a good time to take stock (fortunately, there’s no ending here). … This time … they stay focused on songwriting.” – PopMatters