Barry Adamson, standing tall, struck an imposing sight fronting his four piece band at Komedia. Wearing a rather dapper brown suede jacket and snazzy shades he looked like a cross between Ray Charles and Mott the Hoople's Ian Hunter. 

Kicking off with with Up In The Air, a stand out rocking track off his new album Know Where To Run. It was a great start to an entertaining evening.

Adamson's CV is rather impressive: previously a member of influential post punk band Magazine, Nick Cave’s backing band The Bad Seeds, new romantics Visage as well as creating rather impressive film scores for Oliver Stone and David Lynch.

However, tonight was not about the past, it was about the present.

Barry focused on his new album which was recorded at Church Road Studio in Hove.

The accomplished set was a veritable cocktail of styles: a good dose of American rock ‘n’ roll, a dash of jazz and a sprinkle of prog rock, with added croon and even a little schmaltz, well shaken, not stirred.

Bantering with the audience throughout, a mash up of his own song - Jazz Devil and David Bowie and Iggy Pop’s Nightclubbing was a fitting finale.

The appreciative audience left with no hangover, but a rather enjoyable lingering aftertaste.

Four stars