In most bands the keyboard player is more often than not banished to the side of the stage out of harm’s way, but not so in American Prog Rock band Bigelf where Damon Fox takes centre stage imprisoned on both sides by an impressive array of vintage keyboards from Mini Moogs, Hammond Organs and the king of Prog instruments, the Mellotron.

For a fair few years it looked as though Bigelf would be unable to capitalise on the success of their Cheat the Gallows album as internal divisions and personal issues threatened to tear the band apart and after a long period of inactivity it was former Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy who urged Fox to take up the gauntlet once more. Fast forward a couple of years and everything was back on track.

On the second date of their biggest headlining tour so far and their first show in Newcastle, Bigelf were shoehorned onto the small stage of the Academy 2 with bassist Duffy Snowhill and last minute stand-in guitarist, the hugely classy John Wesley from Porcupine Tree. They were perched either side of the stage flanking Fox`s enormodrome keyboard rig that made the bridge of the Starship Enterprise look like an Airfix toy.

Fox himself was the ringmaster of the show decked out in a top hat and enough guyliner to make Johnny Depp weep. With a style coming across like a collision between The Beatles and Black Sabbath, with a judicious hint of ELO, Queen and Sweet, this was a toxic blend of unique and quirky Progressive Rock. The band's latest album Into The Maelstrom was healthily represented throughout the set. It was unfortunate that Harry McQuhae, a major highlight from the album – a heart-wrenching tribute to late bandmate AHB Butler-Jones – was absent from the set.

Mick Burgess