My Morning Jacket at Brooklyn Paramount (Gallery + Recap)
Rob Moderelli on October 20, 2025
My Morning Jacket, photo by Bill Kelly
My Morning Jacket touched down in New York over the weekend for their hotly anticipated three-night series at the Brooklyn Paramount. Two long years after their October 2023 run at the Beacon Theatre, the roots-rock standard-bearers’ triumphant return to NYC was well worth the wait; even within a leg of touring that’s consistently elicited some of the band’s most inventive and powerful performances in recent memory, the Brooklyn run went above and beyond high expectations.
On Thursday, Oct. 16, My Morning Jacket kicked off the series with the third of five special Z 20th anniversary shows, celebrating their landmark fifth studio album by reviving its full tracklist in sequence. After an electrifying trip down memory lane, the band threw in another highlight with the live debut of that album’s outtake “The Devil’s Peanut Butter,” released as part of the Z (20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) reissue earlier in October.
For Friday’s follow-up, MMJ tore through a 24-song showcase of favorites from throughout their catalog. Given their reluctance to repeat songs for the same audience, multi-night runs always bring eclectic setlists, and night two was no exception to the rule: alongside rarer originals like “Remnants,” “Nashville to Kentucky” and “Slow Slow Tune,” the quintet debuted new covers of The Velvet Underground’s “I’ll Be Your Mirror” and Metallica’s “For Whom the Bell Tolls,” the latter of which was bolstered by a surprise guest spot from ace bassist, NYC native and returning collaborator Karina Rykman.
Finally, on Saturday night, My Morning Jacket sprinted through the finish like of their memorable booking with another presentation of certified classics and unexpected covers. After setlist staples life “Spring (Among the Living),” “Holdin On to Black Metal” and “Evil Urges” and less common originals like 2025’s second “By My Car” and their first treatment of The Waterfall cut “Big Decisions” since August 2019, Rykman returned to support a debut cover of Black Sabbath’s “Fairies Wear Boots.” As a final treat, the band slotted two more covers into the encore, debuting Tears For Fears’ “Head Over Heels” before closing on this year’s first treatment of George Harrison’s “Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth).”
Photographer Bill Kelly was present for Thursday’s series kickoff and captured an inside look at the excitement in the photo gallery below. My Morning Jacket’s is tour will continue with eight further dates through Nov. 1; find tickets and more information at mymorningjacket.com.