We start backstage, I mean the entire Trinity College audience - courtesy of a hand-held camera clutched by none other than Róisín Murphy herself – are backstage in a huddle with her ice cube cool band, who are playing ‘Simulation’, street busker style. That is, replicating its stomping disco jam with marching drums, a keytar and an acoustic guitar. Murphy wearing conical hat, peers in at us, crooning “this is for demonstration, this is only illusion, this my only delusion, this is the real of my wildest dreams”.

They parade onto the stage, a bizarre gate-crashing, twelve-legged groove machine, Róisín decked out in the first of countless resplendent outfits, that almost defy description. But try to imagine feathery lion’s mane headdresses, far reaching scarves, fantastic Balenciaga jumpsuits, Wilma Flintstone style vinyl leather dresses, curtain capes, floor length sparkling coats, furry heels, tinfoil trapper hats, jagged opera gloves and triangular shades – many worn at the same time and you can just about fathom some of the mighty spectacle.

Roisin Murphy Trinity Series 2-6-23

Murphy’s Law states that no matter how weird stuff gets, go with it and you’ll have a fine time of it. The audience that has flooded into Trinity tonight, snazzily hip themselves, certainly abide by said law. At just the third song in, Moloko’s disco-house hit ‘The Time Is Now’, they are in fine voice, bellowing out the chorus – “give yourself unto the moment, let’s make this moment last”.

Wrestling, straddling and head-butting an obliging blow-up doll, Róisín, performing ‘Overpowered’, mutates Trinity’s cricket pitch into a Larry Levan style hedonistic house club. It’s a Grace Jones type sorcery, the audience, in broad daylight, hoofing about, as they would under the protective covertness of a dancefloor.

But, you know, Róisín’s being performing such magic since the heady days of Sheffield’s left-field dance culture in the late-80s. And tonight, we are treated to an awesome mash-up of techno, disco, house, jungle, jazz funk and soul, all delivered with experimental dash and masterful hand.

Roisin Murphy Trinity Series 2-6-23

‘CooCool’, the lead single from her forthcoming sixth solo album, the DJ Koze produced Hit Parade, due for release this autumn, is euphoric. She follows it with another Hit Parade cut, ‘The Universe’, on which she channels a faux eccentric character with cartoon accent, exuberantly describing a trip that goes awry. At song’s end, she laughs at herself, and when she smiles, focusing at us through hair in her eyes, the crowd devours her.

Back on more familiar territory, ‘Something More’, from the Choice-nominated 2022 record Róisín Machine, is superb and flows into ‘Let Me Know’, during which Róisín sits at the edge of the stage and cradlesongs us - “let me know when you’re lonely babe…I don’t belong to you, like you don’t belong to me”.

She flapper dances across deep house doused ‘Incapable’, the band circling the beat, getting faster and faster, the entire crowd, in the palm of her hand, watch her every move. Her command of the stage is reminiscent of Iggy Pop, which is no mere happenstance, Róisín having stated that The Stooges frontman is has much as an inspiration to her as the more obvious Grace Jones. She goes at it like him, from the off, a thousand per cent in, enveloped completely in the show like nothing else matters.

Roisin Murphy Trinity Series 2-6-23

Departing the stage, she leaves her band to carry on the groove, returning decked out in an incredible jumpsuit. The gig gets ratcheted up another gazilli0n notches with Moloko’s smash hit ‘Sing It Back’, it’s like throwing petrol on a fire. ‘Murphy’s Law’ rolls into another Hit Parade newbie, ‘Can’t Replicate’, man, that record is going to be incredible when it drops in September. Its voodoo incantation drives the crowd wild. Róisín dressed like Bowie, dancing like Bez, singing like Bassey, enters into ‘Ramalama Bang’, its mumbo jumbo singed chorus and tribal dance transforming the audience into the opening scene from Babylon.

Róisín thanks the audience warmly and leaves the stage, then one by one the band departs, regrouping backstage, they launch their encore as they did their initial entrance, backstage and re-emerge once again street busker style. They stand front of stage and bang out their curtain call. A marvellous gig, audacious and incredible.