Jimmy Edgar

"This crowd is full of cunts," utters a friend.

Yes, yes it is. As less than fifty people mill around London's scabby Rhythm Factory, an east-end scenester retreat, famed for its impromptu Babyshambles shows and riotous Selfish Cunt gigs, Jimmy Edgar, Detroit techno's mack daddy, plays a vital, life-affirming set of mind-bending beats, glitch and synth.

Of the gaggle of people in this room, approximately eight are paying attention, the rest choosing to stand around talking, possibly about how badly promoted this show is (and it really is).

However, for those eight, what unfurls is nothing short of spectacular. Performing a set heavy with tracks from his new (and equally impressive) long-player, Color Strip, Edgar breathes a new kind of soul into what could easily be a soulless electronic display. One of the LP's less enthralling prospects, 'My Beats', becomes an undeniably awe-inspiring track, evolving from the slightly flat recorded performance to one tonight filled with energy and vigour.

On that notion, the better tracks from the record get even better, right? Well, yes, and then some. The encore of 'Hold It, Attach It, Connect It' is as epic as it is danceable, as fun to stand and watch as it is to uncontrollably spasm around the sparsely-populated dance floor.

For anyone with even a slight soft spot for electronica or techno, Jimmy Edgar is currently one of the most forward-thinking, accomplished producers in the world. Tonight's performance of his post-modernist take on To Rococo Rot leaves a few of us breathless and jubilant, and as for the rest of the room? Well, it's their loss...