THE Arctic Monkeys strutted onto the Metro Radio Arena stage on Thursday for the first of a two-night stay.

Opening with 4 stars out of 5, Arabella and Brianstorm, frontman Alex Turner was in fine form.

Clad in a red sateen bomber jacket, white vest, skinny grey trousers and a pair of Cuban heels, the charismatic Turner was front, centre and thoroughly in the spotlight throughout.

Pausing only for a brief anecdote about the days when he used to "meet a lass at Scotch Corner" the Sheffield star raced through crowd favourites Teddypicker and Dancing Shoes before a mellow mid-section involving the band's newer material.

By the final two songs of the encore - I bet that you look good on the dancefloor and RU mine - Turner had ditched the jacket to cheers from the bouncing fans.

It was a cracking finish to a slick, stylish performance that despite the dip in pace mid-way through, left the crowd on a high.