Andrew Bird is a one-off. Whilst many decent pop musicians have a classical and/or jazz upbringing on guitar or piano, I can't think of a single violinist who has made the crossover. His early career spent as a jazz musician, Bird made the crossover to what is essentially pop a few years ago, after coming across the possibilities that electronic music open up.

Much of the live show is spent in awe of the talent of this man. Using a series of loop pedals which normally are hooked up to a guitar, Bird starts most songs with a simple pizzicato or gently bowed rhythm. Building the textures up, it's very off-putting to watch as the change from one line to another happens, so whilst the music continues, Bird is playing something else, but this adds to the brilliance of the performance. The rhythms he builds up too, deserve praise in themselves. Like a lot of Steve Reich's work, the stress of various lines hits you, building up a complex system of accents, creating rhythms that I would love to believe would evoke some beautiful dancing if ever played in a club.

Once the rhythm and bass are set up with the violin, Bird adds melodies and further harmony over the top often with his guitar and violin, but also with a glockenspiel and whistling. His voice is also very confident, and beautifully suited to the music he plays. It's also through singing that we catch a glimpse of his jazz background; his style is much improvised, as he creates new melodies every verse and chorus.

The live set then, is simply incredible. This is the final night of a long tour, and Bird is obviously very weary. His onstage presence though is charming, and although he looks slightly ill at ease with the whole set-up, his arms flailing as he changes instrument, his head in his hands as he summons up melodies, he remains composed enough to tell us about his songs and what his often enigmatic lyrics might mean. Many of his songs are about childhood - one is about a sketch from Sesame Street - and how the progress of science will never be able to explain the fragility of such things.

There are points in the set when you could be listening to classical music, only for it to be melded into a beautiful pop song thirty seconds later, and it is this kind of ability and innovation, that so few bands seem interested in pursuing, that I believe marks Andrew Bird out as a truly brilliant composer.

I must stress though, that it is very difficult to explain in words what he sounds like. I urge you to have a look at his website www.andrewbird.net and have a listen, as he is the sort of decent chap who puts up songs and live sets on his website.

I'd also like to say that the venue itself, the Luminaire, is a charming little place. A lovely layout and ambience seems to lead to a venue full of beautiful, interesting people. The support bands, Women and Children, and Absentee, are similarly lovely, but rather than ramble on about them here, I will go and see them next month and tell you about them then