Concert Review: My Morning Jacket at Moody Amphitheater
On April 10, My Morning Jacket showcased its endless ability to innovate and entertain with its iconic discography at the Moody Amphitheater in Austin, Texas.
Written by Joseph Gonzalez
Photo courtesy of Dave Vann
As the sun set on the warm April afternoon, fans of My Morning Jacket eagerly entered Austin’s Moody Amphitheater. The band is known for its passionate, alternative, and psychedelic rock sound with a southern grit stemming from its Kentucky roots. Its latest album, is, was released less than a month ago, but the concert felt less like a promotion of the new album and more like a celebration of all eras of the band — a stunning reminder of the lasting power of the My Morning Jacket.
At exactly 7:00 p.m., opener Grace Cummings and her band took the stage. Most of the crowd didn’t seem too familiar with the native Australian singer, but it didn’t take long for her to win over the crowd’s attention with her powerful voice. Her 2024 single, “A Precious Thing,” boomed through the speakers as the setting sun lit the stage with a golden hue, creating an effect of warmth that shone across the outdoor venue.
Showing her range, the singer picked up the guitar for “Up in Flames,” a folksy and poetic track with Dylan-like storytelling. After a brief and charming story of a cowboy she met at a previous show in Austin, Cummings laughed, “I’m very happy to be in Texas ‘cause shit like that happens!” She wrapped up her sonically diverse and passionate set with the ballad, “Heaven,” leaving the crowd buzzing.
The sun was nearly set when the venue lights dimmed at 8:10 p.m. Straggling audience members quickly filed into their seats, anticipating the band to appear. At 8:14 p.m., a classical string composition played loudly over the speakers, and the band took the stage, the crowd instantly rising to their feet.
Bathed in blue light, the five-piece ensemble took their places behind their instruments. Flanking each side of the stage were stuffed bears, one of the most recognizable iconographies of the band and a nod to the cover of its 2003 album It Still Moves. Behind the group, five square panels with grids of LED lights transformed seamlessly throughout the night into unique scenes, such as a starry night sky or a strobing, psychedelic rainbow.
Drummer Patrick Hallahan triumphantly raised his arms to a huge cheer from the crowd, and the band quickly went into “Lay Low,” from their most revered album, Z. From the very beginning, guitarist and frontman Jim James had instant control of the crowd. Impeccably dressed in black slacks, a white dress shirt with rolled up sleeves, and a black vest adorned with a pink flower and two pins on his upper right side, his full beard and long frizzy hair danced in the night air as he played his iconic V-shaped guitar for the first song.
“Lay Low” built to an intense climax with dual guitar solos from James and fellow guitarist Carl Broemel, the stage lights strobing along with the heavy, dark sound of the song. As the track concluded, familiar notes from keyboardist Bo Koster signaled the start of “Anytime,” another crowd favorite from Z. The catchy track got the already energized crowd dancing and marked the first showcase of James’ iconic wails.
The band dug even deeper into their discography with the tour debut of the country-adjacent “Just Because I Do” from their second album, At Dawn, before transitioning to a song from their latest album,the funky and industrial “Squid Ink.” When it ended, James made his way behind a black table where his renowned omnichord lay. The electronic pear-shaped instrument characterized one of the band’s most iconic songs, “Touch Me I’m Going to Scream Pt. 2.”
The air was full of anticipation, and the crowd erupted as the mysterious opening chords of the ballad started. As the notes of the omnichord ended and the drums and bass came in, James took the microphone and sensually paced the stage as he sang. He carried the air of a Southern Californian cult leader delivering a sermon—strange, sensual, and completely captivating. Near the end of the song, James instructed the crowd to look at the nearly full moon behind them, “Thank you, Moon!” he shouted joyfully.
In a beautiful comedown, the band played the romantic and acoustic “Golden,” then “Time Waited” and “Everyday Magic,” both from is, with James appreciatively telling the crowd that Austin was one of the very first cities to truly embrace the music of My Morning Jacket. The band returned to familiar territory with the philosophical anthem “Gideon.” This was followed by the environmentalist and hippie idealist “Least Expected,” showcasing a 1970s funk sound about the shared connection between the earth and each other.
Keeping a similar theme, next was “Beginning From Ending.” “We all start the same / just a seed,” James sang as he strummed his acoustic guitar. He stayed on the acoustic for a more stripped-down version of “Outta My System.” Brohmel moved to the pedal steel and added tasteful flourishes to a live version that differed from the original electric one. The crowd was entranced as James began the song, singing rebelliously, “They told me not to smoke drugs, but I wouldn't listen / Never thought I'd get caught and wind up in prison.” Delivering one of the most memorable visual moments of the night, the word “LOVE” spawned across the LED light board as the band enthusiastically moved on to “Love Love Love.””
A highlight of the show came with “Phone Went West,” a sonic and visual explosion. The disco ball above the stage scattered shimmering light across the amphitheater as James longingly sang, “Tell me I’m wrong, tell me I’m right / Tell me there's nobody else in the world.” The song got the loudest ovation thus far as the crowd showed their appreciation for the spectacular showing of music and light.
Keeping up the astonishing energy, Grace Cummings joined MMJ onstage to play a partial cover of “Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain” by Elton Britt and the Skytoppers live for the first time on the tour.. The gritty and passionate voices of James and Cummings cast a warm spell over the crowd, their voices combining in a beautiful harmony.
Still with Cummings, the cover transitioned into the dreamy and melancholic “Only Memories Remain.” The artists traded verses, Cummings’ soulful delivery breathing new life into the song’s mournful lyrics. James’s effortless playing stood out in his subdued yet emotion-filled soloing, backed by the perfectly in-sync band, as the jam slowly faded, Cummings left the stage to a thunderous ovation.
A drum machine then started playing a beat, joined by ominous, distorted guitar strums and keyboard flourishes. The familiar sound came together when the opening guitar riff to “Off the Record” kicked in. The almost reggae-like first half of the song folded seamlessly into the more psychedelic second half, leaving plenty of room to enter into an inspired jam. The guitarists played with tones, and Hallahan kept a driving beat as the audience’s mind melted from the entrancing jam. The mind-bending energy remained for the last of is of the night, “Die For It.”
As the droning opening notes to “Wordless Chorus” began, perhaps MMJ’s most popular song, the aisles of the seated sections were full of dancing fans. The crowd threw their hands straight in the air and screamed along to the wordless chorus, while James improvised his own howls over the hypnotic beat. The band huddled around its drummer and hit a triumphant last note, and the distorted guitar of the final chord resonated as the musicians left the stage.
After close to a minute of darkness and a lasting ovation from the crowd, James and Broemel returned to the stage and started the calm, acoustic “Hopefully” — yet another tour debut. Broemel strung a bow across the strings of his guitar, creating a sound that mimicked a distorted cello.
Never known for a simple one-song encore, the band quickly transitioned into the only song of the night from James’ solo career, “State of the Art (A.E.I.O.U.).” The panels displayed the set of vowels as James repeated them in a rhythmic and staccato fashion.
In an implied but highly anticipated move, the band launched into “Touch Me I’m Going to Scream Pt. 1.” The first part of the two-part track is much more succinct than the second, and has a standard indie-rock sound compared to the funky and electronic sound of the latter. James moved freely, dancing across the stage and holding only the microphone. MMJ ended their four-song encore with the energetic and celebratory “Dancefloors.” The driving guitar and strong rhythmic piano drove the concert home as the whole light setup strobed in sync to the beat.
After nearly 150 minutes of music, the band took a bow, and sent the dazed audience into the night with an unforgettable concert experience that merged familiarity and spontaneity in a way that only My Morning Jacket can. The show was a culmination of the band’s over two decades of experience together and sets a high bar for the string of dates they have lined up through early May.