Rock fans love fanciful stories about how bands got together, or how they got their names.

So it’s no wonder that if you search for My Morning Jacket online, you’ll see lots of mentions of how the members found a jacket at the scene of a fire, and the initials MMJ were on it.

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Courtesy photo My Morning Jacket will play its sold-out show at the State before heading to New York for a five-night, five-performance gig at Terminal 5.

“Yeah, I’ve heard that one. I’ve heard that (band founder Jim James) said that, but I’ve also heard him say he just wrote it down in a notebook and liked the way it looked,” said MMJ guitarist Carl Broemel. “I would never pin him down and make him tell me the truth. It would be no fun.”

And fun is one of the primary components to the success of My Morning Jacket. While many bands come to Maine and just go from hotel to show, Broemel said he and his bandmates definitely want to see the sights and do some fun stuff when they come to town this week for a sold-out show Friday at the reopened State Theatre.

“We’re definitely going to do something — take a hike, see the area — but I’d rather not say exactly where,” he said.

After playing the State, My Morning Jacket is headed to New York City, where it will play five shows over five nights at a venue called Terminal 5. The idea is that each night, they’ll play one of their five albums in its entirety.

“We played Madison Square Garden in New York, so we were kind of looking at what else we could do in New York,” said Broemel, 36, who lives in Nashville. “This sounded like something that would be interesting for us.”

My Morning Jacket’s music has elements of indie rock, roots rock and country. It’s known for its high-energy live shows and strong albums more than for any particular single.

The band formed in Louisville, Ky., in 1998, and Broemel joined in 2004 after it already had a loyal following. He said the band’s near constant touring, especially in the early years, was a key to the success.

In 2006, MMJ got national attention for appearing with members of the Boston Pops on “The Late Show with David Letterman.” In 2008, it released its commercial breakthrough “Evil Urges,” which hit the Billboard Top 10, and played an epic four-hour set at the Bonnaroo music festival with guest appearances that included guitarist Kirk Hammett of Metallica.

Last year, the band released a live album and played with Neil Young on his Australian tour. It’s currently working on a new studio album.

Throughout its existence, My Morning Jacket has been praised by for having an eclectic and fresh sound.

“We’re a weird rock band,” Broemel said. “We’re all into everything, and we’re all about trying to expand on what is possible with the standard rock band.”

Staff Writer Ray Routhier can be contacted at 791-6454 or at:

rrouthier@pressherald.com

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