Evil Urges
| Evil Urges | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | June 10, 2008 | |||
| Recorded | Avatar Studios, New York City November 2007 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 55:39 | |||
| Label |
ATO (US/Canada) Rough Trade (UK) Spunk (Australia) |
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| Producer | ||||
| My Morning Jacket chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Evil Urges | ||||
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Evil Urges is the fifth studio album by My Morning Jacket. It was released by ATO Records on June 10, 2008. The album was nominated for the 2008 Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album, ultimately losing to Radiohead's In Rainbows.
Writing and recording
Writing began in Colorado, while recording was done in Manhattan. According to producer Joe Chiccarelli, the demos he was sent, which were "very groove-oriented with hints of old-fashioned R&B", suggested a more urban record than previous albums, and as such he recommended the band record in an urban environment that had some "life and vitality". After looking into various options including Vancouver and San Francisco, the band eventually decided to record in New York.
Singer and lead songwriter Jim James said that the band wanted to get away from "normal rock and roll sounds" and emulate more of the band's live sound. Many of the songs were previewed at the 2008 South by Southwest music festival.
Promotion
My Morning Jacket played "I'm Amazed" and "Evil Urges" on Saturday Night Live on May 10, 2008. At the Bonnaroo Music Festival in June 2008, the band played a near four hour set, playing all songs on the album except "Look at You" and "Remnants".
The season six premiere of The CW's teen drama One Tree Hill was titled "Touch Me I'm Going to Scream" and featured the songs "Highly Suspicious" and "Look at You."
On November 22, 2009, the American Dad! episode "My Morning Straitjacket" featured the band members playing themselves. The episode utilised four songs from Evil Urges: "Touch Me I'm Going to Scream Part 2", "I'm Amazed", "Highly Suspicious" and "Remnants."
Critical reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 67/100 |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |
 
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| The A.V. Club | B |
| Entertainment Weekly | A |
| The Guardian |
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| Mojo |
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| Pitchfork | 4.7/10 |
| Q |
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| Rolling Stone |
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| Spin |
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| Uncut |
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Evil Urges received mostly positive reviews from contemporary music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 67, based on 31 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".
Accolades
| Publication | Country | Accolade | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rolling Stone | US | 50 Best Albums of the Year | 2008 | No. 4 |
| Spin | US | 40 Best Albums of the Year | 2008 | No. 16 |
| Paste (magazine) | US | 50 Best Albums of the Year | 2008 | No. 16 |
| Blender (magazine) | US | 33 Best Albums of the Year | 2008 | No. 12 |
| WXPN Philadelphia | US | 50 Best Albums of the Year | 2008 | No. 4 |
| WERS Boston | US | 50 Best Albums of the Year | 2008 | No. 10 |
| Q | UK | 50 Best Albums of the Year | 2008 | No. 4 |
Track listing
All tracks are written by Jim James, except where noted
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Evil Urges" | Breakdown: My Morning Jacket | 5:14 |
| 2. | "Touch Me I'm Going to Scream Pt. 1" | 3:51 | |
| 3. | "Highly Suspicious" | 3:07 | |
| 4. | "I'm Amazed" | 4:35 | |
| 5. | "Thank You Too!" | 4:29 | |
| 6. | "Sec Walkin" | 3:37 | |
| 7. | "Two Halves" | 2:36 | |
| 8. | "Librarian" | 4:18 | |
| 9. | "Look at You" | 3:30 | |
| 10. | "Aluminum Park" | 3:58 | |
| 11. | "Remnants" | 3:04 | |
| 12. | "Smokin from Shootin" | 5:07 | |
| 13. | "Touch Me I'm Going to Scream Pt. 2" | 8:14 | |
| 14. | "Good Intentions" | 0:06 | |
| Total length: | 55:39 | ||
Personnel
My Morning Jacket
- Jim James – vocals, guitars, bass, drums, percussion, Omnichord
- Tom "Two Tone Tommy" Blakenship – bass
- Patrick Hallahan – drums, percussion
- Carl Broemel – guitars, vocals, pedal steel, lap steel
- Bo Koster – keyboards, programming, vocals, piano, synthesizers, organ, Rhodes, percussion
Additional personnel
- Jim James, Joe Chiccarelli – production
- Michael Brauer – mixing
- Bob Ludwig – mastering
- Artie Smith – drum tech
- David Campbell – string arrangements
Assistance
- Rick Kwan, Colin Suzuki, Will Hensley, Kyle Mc Innis, Lowell Reynolds, Andy Taub
Charts
| Chart (2008) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA) | 56 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) | 34 |
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) | 80 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) | 55 |
| US Billboard 200 | 9 |