Just after 8pm, George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic take the stage and we're immediately told there will be no sitting down tonight. They're not kidding, either! George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic's opening number is as energetic as any closing, encore track; the only way we can tell it's the beginning of the show is the sound mix, which badly needs adjusting.

It's a wild scene up there on stage as well. The backing vocalist far stage right, Brandi Scott, sports a giant cat head and sings through one of its eyes. Bad hair day? Cold sore? Another Parliament Funkadelic member (who we later identify as Carlos "Sir Nose" McMurray) is randomly perched on the drum kit taking some footage. Lige Curry's bass gets us lubed up straight away and then in come the loopy keys thanks to Danny Bedrosian. Once DeWayne "Blackbyrd" McKnight's guitar solo hits we're fully invested and waving our arms left to right on command. Some fine headwear is paraded up there as well, including a fuchsia Vivienne Westwood hat not dissimilar to Pharell's iconic lid.  

There's a lot of, "Say WHAAAAT?" and, "Make some NOOOIISE!" calls. Tracey Lewis Clinton nails the gangsta look complete with grills, ginormous pendant, shades and pimp hat. After temporarily disappearing off stage, our formerly cat-headed backing vocalist, Scott, returns unveiling an exquisite lilac 'fro, but sadly her mic doesn't work for the majority of her featured section. Where to start with saxophonist Greg Thomas - say WHAT!? That's some circular-breathing voodoo magic right there and when you look around the theatre many in attendance are pulling stank faces, reacting to his crazy skills.  

Clinton parks it on an upstage platform and navigates two of his supreme backing vocalists, Tonysha Nelson and Patavian Lewis, into the spotlight to take lead vocals for one number. He generously directs our attention toward various Parliament Funkadelic members across the course of the evening and smiles broadly, shaking his head in acknowledgement of their brilliance and guiding our desired responses: waving arms side to side, flinging one arm up in the air on the beat or clapping in time - all excellent arm workouts. Another of McKnight's guitar solos features super-fast phalanges! And then drummer Benjamin "Benzel" Cowan joins in with beats so sharp they hit us like unexpected punches to the gut.

And the points of interest just keep rolling out. McMurray, a dancer/contortionist with zero body fat who wears white fur-fabric pants and matching wide-brimmed hat, mounts amps to demonstrate gymnastic moves and we've never before seen such an impressive Adonis belt. Punters yelled out for this song earlier, but when We Want The Funk lands "there's a whole lot of rhythm going 'round". The joyful smile on Cowan's face while the band turns it out all around him is contagious. Man, it's hot in here! Even our scalps are sweaty.

After a few teasing barks, we score Atomic Dog - "Why must I feel like that/Why must I chase the cat" - and Scott is back with cat-head firmly in place. During this song, a young lady is selected by McMurray from the front row to dance on stage and Clinton himself joins in the 'menage a trois' routine.

At show's close, we're told CDs will be sold from the stage and also that the after-party is at Cherry Bar. The endless energy reserves of George Clinton & Parliament-Funkadelic should be bottled and sold.