My Morning Jacket: The Waterfall review – initially endearing, lacklustre later

Once noted for their space-rock jams, Kentucky five-piece My Morning Jacket have branched out in recent years, embracing 1980s funk and AOR to the chagrin of many longtime fans. The Waterfall, the first of two MMJ albums scheduled for release in the next 12 months or so, contains traces of their old expansive sound, though elastic soul and soft rock dominate. The first few tracks, particularly the Prince-like Compound Fracture, are endearingly spacious and snake-hipped, but The Waterfall’s lacklustre second half indicates they’ve lost touch with the band they once were.