IT’S BEEN some year for the multi-talented Ben Drew, aka Plan B. Having received a wealth of awards and recognition for his number one album The Defamation Of Strickland Banks, his star has risen and risen and the penultimate show of his current tour proved to be as explosive as it was thrilling.

Introduced by bafflingly impressive beat box artist Faith SFX, Drew’s brand of Motown as imagined by the Kray twins switched from the tender to the visceral, with many tracks benefitting from mercilessly distorted guitars. The Recluse and Stay Too Long in particular were exercises in how to wind up a crowd and watch them go berserk.

Whilst the sound cleverly referenced the great black music of the 1960s (single Prayin’ an example of the bombastic, melodramatic soul of that time), each detail on stage was also carefully seen to, from the finely- tailored suits to the theatrical red curtain at the back of the stage. Were it not for the scores of smartphones being held up, one might just have thought it was 1964.

When not rocking out, Drew played to other strengths; intelligent R ’n’ B with a twist; Charmane being a particularly cautionary tale of love gone very sour indeed.

Coming back on for an encore of soul covers (My Girl, Stand By Me, Tracks Of My Tears) corrupted by colossal dubstep beats, the crowd were whipped into a mad frenzy. Any sceptics were well and truly converted.