I HALF expected Dick Valentine to get his camera out and start taking photos.

“This is the greatest O2 Academy,” gushed Electric Six’s eccentric frontman.

“Look at the ornate architecture.”

Truth be told, the ostentatious Academy seemed a fitting venue for a crew of musicians who are famed for their flamboyant funk rock – all that was missing was a disco ball.

Opening with After Hours, which segued off their latest album Zodiac, Electric Six showed us their dark side, leaning away from disco and taking on a raw, antagonistic sound – the keyboard menacing in the background.

It’s Showtime picked up from where After Hours left off, before Heavy Woman brought dirty, driving rock to the party.

The gig took on a decidedly funkier flavour with Improper Dancing. Halfway through this crowd favourite, the band stopped to sing the opening verse of Glee’s Don’t Stop Believing, before finishing Improper Dancing.

Then there was the matter of Danger! High Voltage, which goaded even stubborn dancers onto the floor – I don’t know about fire in the disco, but it got pretty hot.

Ladies probably didn’t appreciate Infected Girls, but its questionable lyrics were forgotten when they launched into the still brilliant, Gay Bar. Superb.

The encore, which included Synthesiser and Dance Commander, rounded off a gig that didn’t falter from start to finish.

“It’s Friday night and you came to see us, you made the right call,” said Dick.

That we did.