Live Review: MY MORNING JACKET, DAWES @ Palace Theatre

The Palace is half filled with checkered shirts and beards, when amidst angelic light LA country-folk four-piece Dawes hit the stage. Their sound is bright and clear and lead singer Taylor Goldsmith enthusiastically intones his folk tales via croony facial expressions. Goldsmith jumps around during some great solos and if you close your eyes, you're suddenly leaning against a bar, sinking a brewski in Branson, Missouri. When My Time Comes and Million Dollar Bill display Goldsmith's classic songwriting skills and the band's beautiful harmonies. Dawes finish with the nostalgic-yet-optimistic How Far We've Come.

As the number of punters increases, so too does the heat and the crowd is now sweaty and eager for My Morning Jacket to take the stage. The band finally strut out to rapturous applause, as Jim James appears swathed in green phosphorus light and looking like a prophet from the musical future. Wearing a long coat, a touchpad synth around his neck and a hairdo akin to a lion's mane, James plunges straight into the Pink Floydian call-to-arms, Victory Dance. Grabbing his acoustic guitar, he twangs the familiar intro riff to Circuital before strumming the upbeat rhythm for seven minutes of sweet melody.

Waves of blue and purple light flow over the band, which introduces It Beats For You and a hypnotic strobe flicks in time with the drumbeat amping the crowd up again. Here James not only demonstrates how classy the band is but also his quirkiness as they end the song with a kooky statuesque pause that goes on a little too long. Wearing a white towel on his head, James finally engages with his fans but it's impossible to understand what he's rambling on about due to the reverb on the mic.

Off The Record sees the crowd dancing and singing again while James 'vogues' onstage before calming us with the gentle Wonderful (The Way I Feel). Playing all the new tunes – You Wanna Freak Out, Holding On To Black Metal, Outta My System, Moving Away and First Light – shows the strength of the latest album and it's impressive how many people are singing along to every tune. Towel on head again, and this time donning a cape, James and band transition to the rockin' One Big Holiday to end their set. The encore heralds a sea of hands for Wordless Chorus plus James's high-pitched howls and it's safe to say their reputation for amazing live shows remains intact.