Boasting a tall roof and classic Victorian architecture as well as crisp acoustics, the Parr Hall made a stunning venue for the night that was about to unfold.

Hailing from Newcastle, Lanterns on The Lake were seemingly the perfect opening act. With huge soundscape-weaved tracks and plenty of instrument changes, the band quickly found their own place in James’ loyal fan base, embellished by lead vocalist Hazel Wilde’s charm.

Playing a set of six songs, the band brought an eclectic mix of Americana style melodies, Trip-hop driven drums and huge atmospheric bursts of violin and guitar. “Then we’ll be out your hair,” says Wilde as the band prepare for their last song - they seemed like the kind of band that would pick you back up after a long festival day or equally send you to bed in high spirits.

The celebration continued as James gracefully paced onto the stage; a smile on Tim Booth’s face and an already solid stage presence from the band showed a group of artists who knew their worth.

Opening with the tribal drum roar of new track ‘Hank’, the show had definitley begun, any new material nerves cured by the wall of drum sounds. James immediately jumped into another new song, ‘Coming Home Part 2’, which Booth briefly dedicated to his son.

After a couple of track appearances from 2014’s La Petite Morte album, James fans were assured that the gig would be a celebration of old and new as the band dived into ‘Ring the Bells’, summoning the biggest crowd response yet and the first appearance of Booth’s hypnotic dancing. Shortly after, Booth found himself meandering through the crowd as the band performed the title track from the Better Than That EP.

Booth slipped his own thoughts into the contemporary, as mentions of Morrissey and Donald Trump arose in the set. New track ‘Many Faces’ brought the audience together over the tackling of racism. James took utmost pride in announcing another new track ‘Heads’, an EDM beat chorus married with underlying political intent - a brilliant track likely to lie outside of the pattern of the other new material.

Shortly after taking his throne on the drum riser during mid-tempo ‘Five-O’, Booth and trumpet player, Andy, both clambered up onto the venue’s balcony during ‘Born of Frustration’. Slicing through the crowd and connecting sweaty palms at every opportunity, the two met in the middle of the balcony and then switched sides in some unrehearsed, showmanship miracle.

Finishing their initial set with the anthem ‘Come Home’, the gig had become a fully-fledged party and it was clear the band couldn’t really leave it there. Though hopes of an encore were soon confirmed as techs quickly tuned guitars, the crowd wanted to make sure of it and relentlessly stamped their feet as some kind of thunderous lure.

If the crowd wasn’t already satisfied by the 17-song chunk of set, the medley of hits ‘Sometimes’, ‘Nothing But love’, ‘Getting Away With It’ and ‘Laid’ made sure fans were sent home with a good helping. Inviting Lanterns on The Lake back on stage for a guitar and vocal-heavy rendition of ‘Sometimes’, James continued to create a celebration and brought band and audience closer than ever before.

James will play 5 more shows at small UK venues throughout the rest of May.