The hype: The solo show by My Morning Jacket leader Jim James was so hotly anticipated that it seemed like most people just figured there was no way to get in. And there pretty much wasn’t, since the tiny sanctuary at the 150-year-old Episcopal church in the heart of downtown only had room for 240 people.

The show: As cliché as it is to say that there was something spiritual about seeing the angelic-voiced James performing in a sanctuary with a ceiling that soared as high as his falsetto, there, I said it. It also represented both the quietest, most respectful audience I’d seen all week, as well as the only one where half the people were not texting or working their iPhones during the show. Before James took the stage, singer M. Ward played a short set that included a cover of “Oh Lonesome Me” (made famous by Neil Young) during which he looped his string-scratching slide guitar solo and played an acoustic blues solo so loud it threatened to blow the venue’s speakers out.

Just a handful of songs into his set, James came out to join Ward and the two played a song they recorded together several years ago called “Chinese Translation,” with Ward’s sandpaper rasp perfectly complementing James’ honeyed wails. After a mellow run through the MMJ classic “Golden,” James told the crowd he and Ward wanted to “thank God for letting us use his house.” A few songs later, Ward had to leave for a showcase and James took over, sending some of his soaring wordless choruses up to the rafters during “Bermuda Highway” and playing a space-age love song version of “What a Wonderful Man” on his vintageOmnicord keyboard. James worked out some of the songs from the band’s upcoming album, Evil Urges, including the spooky-sexy “Librarian” and the intense “Smokin’ From Shootin,” which contained the apropos line “Faith can prove what science won’t solve.” The mesmerizing set ended with a fingerpicked “Gideon,” during which James, his head tilted back and his near yodel of a voice aimed at the heavens, seemed as lost in reverie as the hushed audience.

The Verdict: This was as special as SXSW shows get, and you can be sure the people in that room will be talking about (and bragging about) it for weeks and months to come. Whether plugged in and blasting electric guitars through walls of amps or playing hushed acoustic, James’ lyrics and vocals cast a spell that is as close as rock comes to giving praise.

Keep checking in with You R Here for more South by Southwest coverage throughout the festival, plus there’s plenty more over on our sister blog, MTV News’ Newsroom.

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