So for anyone musing why they weren’t quite fulfilled by the last Travis gig they saw, or wondering if there really is more to music than the Stereophonics (please say these people don’t exist), meet the gig of the year.

Rarely in recent years have three bands of equal onstage lunacy toured together and to take your eyes off the action for a moment is difficult, almost a crime, such is the level of bizarre events unfolding.

First up are The Apes, who take aim with their sonic barrage from the twin bastions of garage rock and prog, armed with keyboards and camouflage gear. ‘Throat chieftain’ (© The Apes themselves) front monkey Paul Weil is a cross between captain caveman and a care in the community reject, microphone cord looped around himself and in a tiny T-shirt which starts at his shoulders and ends at his armpits. Added to this, keyboardist Amanda Kleinman appears to be the victim of constant electrocution, convulsing with her head thrown ceiling-wards. Bassist Erick Jackson leaps around like a scolded cat and drummer Jeff Schmid is a blur of Animal from The Muppets-style kit assault. In the face of such a visual onslaught, the slight lack of memorable tunes is just about forgivable.

A lot messier live than on record – a good thing incidentally – here they merely serve as a prelude to the real madness, after Weil has taken several minutes to unwind himself from microphone lead that is.

Most of the crowd are here to see only one band. When million-selling intelligent hardcore troupe At The Drive-In confirmed their ‘indefinite hiatus’ last year there was little indication of the supposed personal divide in the band. And with ATD-I split down the middle, seemingly now never to reform, afro-blessed front duo Cedric Bixler and Omar Rodriguez are back, thankfully this time with something more exciting than dour dub project De Facto.

The Mars Volta are a fascinating blend of Pink Floyd meanderings, off-kilter electronic-influenced drumming and, in killer doses, ATD-I’s patented style of fractured riffing. Bixler is a ball of energy, hanging from the roof, doing handstands, even leaving the stage and disappearing for an awkward few minutes much to the bemusement of everyone, not least the rest of his band. However, where he looked the real deal mental rockstar with such antics in his former outfit, Bixler now brings to mind a slightly unhinged Mexican pimp, thanks to unevenly cut scraggy hair, the beginnings of a moustache and inhumanly tight trousers. Nice.

The set centres around all three tracks off their forthcoming ‘Tremulant’ EP – a magnificent trio of ‘Cut That City’, ‘Concertina’ and ‘Eunuch Provocateur’ – and even a muddy sound can’t blunt their impact on a legion of faithful ATD-I fans, most of whom promptly disappear the moment The Mars Volta finish.

Which is a shame, because they missed the band of the night in Les Savy Fav. Even before a note is played in anger, bear-like frontman Tim Harrington wades into the depleted audience to literally lend a hand in helping one unfortunate punter meet his demands to show appreciation for The Apes.

From the moment LSF kick into ‘Bloom On Demand’ from essential latest album ‘Go Forth’, it becomes clear that it’s going to be a great show.

Harrington is a maniac mad uncle, especially alongside the relatively straight appearance of his band, who in another life (or if the rumours are true) could all be Versace-clad male catwalk stars. Slightly overweight, with receding hair and a huge Captain Birdseye beard, Harrington is simply irrepressible – onstage with a mischievous glint in his eye one moment, writhing on the floor amongst scattered fans the next.

He makes pretend spectacles out of his microphone lead, pausing to mock polish them, sings through an empty pint glass, hauls up a young audience member to play his tiny keyboard/ sampler only to realise the kid has no idea what to do, then opens curtains around the edge of the venue with a garbled attempt at explanation. Harrington is not just a visual hero, however.

Because, over the course of three albums, Les Savy Fav have produced countless fabulously odd emotion-packed art-punk gems, topped off with his unique vocal stylings of abstract poetry. And just when LSF have you wondering if all the manic actions will take attention from their tunes, they slap you around the face with the like of ‘Asleepers Union’, ‘The Slip’, ‘Rome (Written Upside Down)’, ‘Tragic Monsters’, ‘Pills’ and ‘Reformat’.

The night’s surreal tone is completed when assorted members of The Mars Volta and random spectators are handed LSF’s instruments as the band slink off, half of them remaining to sing backing vocals. Messy, mad and memorable.