Review: Jamiroquai, Arena Birmingham

After selling out their first live dates in over seven years within 30 seconds, anticipation for the show was high as crowds wound around the streets of Brindleyplace ready to get their groove on.

Electronic dance outfit Purple Disco Machine warmed crowds up with a technicoloured DJ set packed full or original material and classics that had the crowd whooping and dancing along.

From the moment the soloist left the stage chants began to ring across the room in anticipation for Jamiroquai to enter the stage.

The room was plunged into darkness before being bathed in striking red lights, as an ominous video played, predicting the end of the world due to the rise of robot kind.

A blue LED helmet cut through this doom-filled introduction and introduced Jamiroquai in all of their glory.

"Birmingham, are you ready?" enigmatic frontman Jay Kay bellowed - and they most certainly weren't, as the show that followed was even more dazzling than anyone could have predicted.

From the first notes of opening song Shake It On and throughout the entire set that followed, the outfit were completely faultless.

The music was precision-tight, from the technical basslines to the spine-tingling vocals of the three female backing singers. Though thoroughly rehearsed, everyone on stage made their playing look effortless and flowing which was mesmerising to behold.

In a Sonic-esque helmet and black track suit, Lancashire-born Jay Kay had the crowd in the palm of his hand from start to finish.

Whether showing off his signature dance moves, telling humorous stories from his 25-year career or belting out a track radio-perfect - the vocalist oozed charisma at all times.

"Let me tell you a funny story, I don't have many" Jay said, taking a seat on an amplifier. "Coming to Birmingham today driving down the motorway we pulled up at the NEC and I thought 'this doesn't look right'.

"Then I saw a poster for Michael Ball and realised we were at the wrong venue."

From turning up to the wrong Midlands venue, to stories of being stopped by the police on the Black Country Route and bringing his "mini automaton" daughter out to see what her dad does for a living - Jay entertained the crowd not only with his music, but with his weird and wonderful life.

This tour follows the release of Jamiroquai's brand new album Automaton, and fans were treated to an array of tracks from the space age release such as Automaton, Cloud 9 and the groovy Superfresh.

"We've been doing this now for 25 years, I don't remember much of the middle bit after our first album, but thank you all for being with us throughout Birmingham!" Jay cried, before launching into a set that would span their extensive, glittering career.

Early hits such as Canned Heat, White Knuckle Ride and Runaway enticed the crowd to erupt into a sea of dancing bodies - before smash hits Space Cowboy and Cosmic Girl really whipped up a storm.

Fans were treated to an extra special rendition of Too Young To Die, a song Jay Kay claimed the band had not played for fifteen years.

Each track got given a new lease of life with additional musical sections and experimental interludes - it gave the whole set an intimate feel, as if the crowd were watching the band simply jam in a practice room ahead of their arena tour.

Every song was accompanied by a dazzling light-show and themed video clips centring around the rise of technology and robotics. Twinned with Jay Kay's moving LED helmet - this created quite the fantastical spectacle that at times made me catch myself with my mouth agape.

Leaving the stage to Love Foolosophy, the crowd begged for more and more they got - with the band blazing into a rousing rendition of popular hit Virtual Insanity.

Insanity was the name of the game as every band member danced on stage as if possessed by the spirit of funk - silhouetted against flashing strobe lights and technicolor imagery.

Their two-hour set passed by like a dream. Jamiroquai are still ahead of their game 25 years after they started and it is clear to see why. Everything from their stage movement to almost-missable notes within songs were polished to perfection, while still maintaining the raw passion that drives the band in the first place.