Matmos

Cluttered with wires and gadgets, the MAC's more 'relaxed' seated theatre had no time to prepare for the hysterical onset of spine-shivering lunacy. The psychological inducements of Matmos began.

The science-influenced duo, plus guest guitarist J Lesser, fuelled their audience into a cult-like state, with a selection of seemingly-hypnotised members of the public, chanting gibberish into their blanked out glasses and headphones. Think Derren Brown entering the world of Pagan rituals and you're not even halfway there, as the unnerving encounter grew harsher, subconsciously adapting and embodying its victims.

Mesmerising harmonic samples and resonating triangles gave way to hospital imagery and creepy human reflections, spreading a Throbbing Gristle-inspired outlook into the dark ambience of surgical and mental experimentation.

It seems that the Baltimore-based couple knew exactly how to play with people's imaginations, as the much lighter-hearted Rainbow Flag brought back a Zen-like state to the MAC.

Crafting psychedelic spirals against electronic swirls, the uplifted mood expelled out from Matmos's animated facial expressions and bird whistles, allowing a whimsical side to appear from the mentally challenging avant-gardists.

While the exotic funk beats gave a post-IDM feel to J Lesser's astounding guitar solos, warping together a fusion of electro-rock into a foot-tapping frenzy.

Forwarding what Pierre Schaeffer had once begun, Matmos innovatively break through the musique concrete barrier, with the use of bottled water, scraping singing bowls and 'anything goes' percussion, the duo portray abnormality in it's greatest form of entertainment, both extremely uncomfortable and highly eccentric, the unpredictability provides that thrill ride to anybody who is keen to be pushed to their limit.