Peter Gabriel recently labelled himself 'an old awkward sod', and the opening night of his first UK tour in 10 years pretty much confirmed the self-diagnosis. Rather than give fans who had waited a decade - and paid eye-watering ticket prices - what they wanted to hear, he chose to perform 11 songs from new album i/o. The album hasn’t even been released yet, and only five songs have made it into the public domain via a drip-feed lunar cycle release schedule.

Was the move risky? Adventurous? Maybe a little conceited? Probably a little of each, but somehow it worked - brilliantly. Many of the new songs are lively, dynamic and immediate - particularly Road to Joy, Love Can Heal and i/o - and first release Panopticom is taken to a punchier new level in the live environment. In fact the only issue he could face is whether the album can live up to the stellar live versions.

That’s a concern for another time, but on this night Gabriel and his multi-talented eight-piece backing band performed - with typically dazzling backdrop of video screens and lighting - without a care in the world. He introduced himself as an avatar, but unlike the Abba variety, 20 years older and 20 pounds heavier than the buffed-up real version sunning himself in the Caribbean, and despite the occasional professor-like explanation of new material (this is prog rock after all), everyone on stage looked to be having as much fun as the audience.

That included the addition of trumpet, violin and cello players, all of which brought something new to the mix, pushing the musical boundaries beyond rock into funk, jazz and world music, all supporting Gabriel’s still beautifully soulful voice, which continues to defy the ageing process. The 73-year-old also threw some dubious dance shapes during the uptempo numbers, with a suitably enraptured audience joining in during fabulous readings of Sledgehammer, Solsbury Hill and In Your Eyes. Those songs, along with the likes of Red Rain, Digging In The Dirt and Don’t Give Up, might have seemed like a reward for putting up with all the i/o material, but in truth very few people seemed to mind being subjected to the new tunes, and if anything it made for an even more memorable evening.

Four stars

Reviewed by Steve Adams at Utilita Arena, Birmingham on Saturday 17 June.