Photo: WENN
An unusually deep and diverse hum circles tonight's performance, with an unorthodox multi-generational turnout. This can be explained; the outsider might label My Morning Jacket as Fleetwood Mac lost in the early 2000s, but the crowd's fevered anticipation suggests to expect something far less simple than that. My instincts don't prove me wrong.
From the opener 'Wordless Chorus' the uninitiated are drawn cult-like into what feels messianic in terms of engagement. With a strong performance that flits from ethereal vocal harmonies to Warhol-inspired guitar freakouts, there is more a sense of faith healing taking pace tonight than a regular concert, capitalised in the rapturous applause given to 'Believe (Nobody Knows)'.
At times, the prog rock nature of the performance makes it difficult to escape comparisons to the soundtrack to a 70s blue movie. But something musically and soulfully more profound seems on hand at every moment to make this gig slightly out of the ordinary.
Even when 'Tropics (Erase Traces)' strays too close to Bon Jovi's 'Dead Or Alive', there's the power of 'In Its Infancy (The Waterfall)' in its epic church choir-like crescendo of layers to lend majesty to proceedings.
Continuing at this intensity to the latter point of the set, by the taunting 'Only Memories Remain' its all I can do to stop my mind descending into an introspective mash of colours and transcendental experiences from the waves of sonic textures with which I'm being bombarded.
To say that the intrigue in My Morning Jacket lies in their throwback style or counter culture approach is not enough. Watching an act where both 16 year-old boys and 60 year-old women are in the front row, clearly getting incredible value out of a performance, is ineffable, delightful and rare enough to suggest something much deeper is going on for the people who have turned up tonight.
I certainly tip my hat to flawless musicianship and songwriting craft, yet I leave feeling like the casual observer in a place of worship to which I have no knowledge or reference. An oddly profound experience, but one I'd not rush to experience again.
