My Morning Jacket found itself at a career crossroads as it prepared to create the record that became its breakthrough. Two members had amicably departed on a prior tour, and their replacements were settling into the group's chemistry. The Kentucky ensemble also felt a desire to change up the approaches that served it well on its first three LPs. Getting out of that comfort zone, making good use of the recent recruits, and inviting a professional producer into the fold paid immense dividends in the form of the critically revered Z.
Sourced from the original master tapes, pressed at Fidelity Record Pressing, and strictly limited to 2,500 numbered copies, Mobile Fidelity's UltraDisc One-Step 180g 45RPM 2LP box set of Z presents the 2005 effort ranked by Rolling Stone as one of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in audiophile-grade sound. John Leckie's outstanding production, which washes the music with organic warmth and cosmic textures, emerges with previously unheard openness, presence, dynamics, and grandness. Songs feel natural, golden, and seemingly endless in scope. You'll hear the subtle nuances and smooth falsetto of Jim James' voice; atmospheric flourishes of the effects pedals; wet splash and big pounce of the percussion; and the seemingly infinite tonality of the guitars like never before. ''Listen, listen,'' James instructs on ''Gideon.'' Fantastic advice for an album that never repeats itself or grows stale.
Mobile Fidelity UltraDisc One-Step Process: Instead of utilizing the industry-standard three-step lacquer process, UltraDisc One-Step (UD1S) uses only one step and bypasses two processes of generational loss. In addition to revealing extra musical detail and dynamics otherwise lost due to the standard copying process, the UD1S technique produces a final LP with the lowest noise floor possible today.
1/2'' / 15 IPS / Dolby SR analog master to DSD 256 to analog console to lathe
