Led by The Rapture and LCD Soundsystem, a new wave of dance-oriented bands has emerged from New York's stale garage-rock scene and with them comes eight-piece funk-punk act !!!, arriving at the Concorde on the last date of their two-month UK/European tour.

Having listened to !!!'s second album, Louden Up Now, I found the music to be not nearly as funky, trend-setting or full of ecstatic, building energy as the press had led me to believe.

In fact, camp, hushed-voiced, George Michael-type B-sides seemed more their style.

Still unable to distinguish one album track from another after the fourth listen, and feeling shortchangedby the hype, I was not looking forward to the show.

Yet when the music began, after all eight band members were finally assembled on stage, it was a far heavier and more danceable sound than that of the band on record.

All manner of percussive techniques, besides the usual drums and bass guitar, were used to create the promised build-ups and wall-of-sound frenzies.

Drumsticks were beaten on the nearest available surface, loaded rhythm guitars provided the driving grooves and even the odd bout of unintelligible beatboxstyle vocals added to the funky undercurrent.

!!! have described their previous live shows as DJ-esque affairs, with one continuous jam.

Although !!! chose not to follow the DJ format on this occasion, it was clear that, like DJs, they were feeding off the crowd's energy and enthusiastic reactions.

Lead singer Nic Offer formed an amusing double act with another group member and, looking like a punk-rock version of Sonny and Cher, the two bent towards each other to emphasize the vocal bond.

Offer continued to be the most charismatic, with his bare-chested monitor-hopping and choice of infectious dance moves.

I still couldn't tell the difference between individual tracks.

Yet as Offer raised his arms in tandem with the lighting display, shaking the sweat repeatedly out of his hair in time to the floor-shaking beats, it finally became clear why !!! have received such positive press.