David Byrne & St Vincent a sublime, boundless joy

Electric Arena, Sunday night

Star: *****

It's a tough task for anyone to compete with one of the most intriguing names in music, let alone make a collaborative album with them and, what's more, tour it with double-headline billing. Luckily, David Byrne has a fine back catalogue, so he's well able for the competition.

For anyone who asks, this is the moment of the festival - the pinnacle of Electric Picnic 2013. Two stunning musicians - Byrne and Annie Clark - with a whip-tight band producing effortless mastery in a set that is perfection.

Whether it’s riffling through the Talking Heads back catalogue (Burning Down the House, Road to Nowhere, and a barely believable This Must Be The Place), dipping into Clark’s work (Cheerleader), or marshalling their finest work together (Who, I Should Watch TV), both share the stage with equanimity and finesse.

And what a stage it is. An eight piece brass/woodwind section strut and synchronise dance around every inch of the space; St Vincent’s trademark squally guitar riffs punch well above their weight and cut over the terrific rhythms, synths and samples flooding in from the backline.

This is old-school musical theatricality, performed with impeccable professionalism and control - but most enjoyable of all is witnessing the sublime, boundless joy that Byrne and Clark take from music-making.

Laurence Mackin