Jamie Lidell - Academy 3 - 01/05/08 by Richard Graham

So, who exactly is Jamie Lidell? That’s actually a pretty tough question. Originally part of the techno duo Super Collider at the beginning of the noughties he then signed to the electronica label Warp where he released his debut solo album ‘Mudlin Gear’. Largely just electronic noise it came as somewhat of a surprise to hear his sophomore offering ‘Multiply’ in the summer of 2005.

Gone in large parts were his electronic offerings and these had been replaced by soul, funk, R&B and dashes of break-beat. Becoming a (unlikely) British cult soul star comparisons were made to both Prince and Marvin Gaye spliced with the modernity of Beck. Taking head of the critical acclaim his third album ‘Jim’ was released in April 2008 and with a heavy inclination towards classic soul and R&B the tag of the new Jamiroquai inevitably followed.

With such an eclectic history you’d expect something groundbreaking to be performed in front of a musically aware crowd. It would seem though, that a recent playlist on Radio 2 has diluted the sell-out audience.

Couples waited expectantly for their new soul hero and taking to the stage dressed in a sharp blue suit he didn’t disappoint. Opening up with ‘Another Day’ he blended gospel with soul and the crowd loved it and clapped along. Now this reviewer loves all the genres previously mentioned. But having been a fan of Lidell for a few years was disappointed by this newfound conformity and appeal to the mass-market crowd. Performing with a full backing band (reminiscent of The Dap Kings) there was no doubting musical ability; however, it was when Lidell nodded towards his past that things began to get more interesting.

As an interlude, the band left the stage and Jamie was finally there on his own terms to entertain the venue. Layering his own vocals over pre-programmed beats a deep house vibe was achieved and adeptly turning this into a crowd sing-a-long with the track ‘A Little Bit More’ showed us the artistic relevance of blurring boundaries between genres. ‘This is when it was just me and my broken machines!!’ he shouted with unrestrained schoolboy excitement. You couldn’t help feel this was where he was the happiest. Still, it was all about the balance and the band returned to the stage to lead us into the encore with the funk/rock rumblings of the latest single ‘Little Bit Of Feel Good’ before wrapping things up with a high intensity version of ‘Multiply’.

Now let’s get this straight. Despite this reviewers misgivings there can be no doubt this was a good gig performed in front of an appreciative audience. However, at times, pastiche was the only way to describe it.

Mr Lidell, we don’t need a new Jamiroquai or a male version of Winehouse. We need you - Jamie Lidell.