Formerly a member of Dead Can Dance, a unit that attracted widespread acclaim for its eclectic range of influences (but usually lumped in under the `World' music category), Brendan Perry is now a solo artist, albeit one who still depends on a band format for his live gigs. Perry's recent debut solo album, Eye of the Hunter, points the direction he has decided to take, one far removed from the occasional errant fussiness of his erstwhile band.

The immediate impression is that Perry and his superlative band of musicians have taken Scott Walker and John Barry to their hearts. Evocative instrumental passages and sonorous vocals are the order of the evening, but what follows is something else altogether. With some judicious, telling cover-versions (by Tim Buckley, Fred Neil) used as buffers, it is Perry's own material that strikes hardest. From a strictly and crudely commercial sense, Perry doesn't seem to have much in common with the likes of, for example, Echo & The Bunnymen and (eek!) U2, but amid his multi-cultural influences and overtly serious presence there clearly lies a dark and brilliant pop sensibility. Plaintive and responsive, Perry sings from and of the heart. The perception of him and his music as "difficult" is shallow, typical of those who wouldn't know a pop song if it bit them. Onstage studiousness and cerebral air aside - which perpetuate his perceived commercial unviability - this was a quiet but confident concert from an undervalued artist.