The Floyd Effect make worthy tribute to Pink Floyd’s genius with technical excellent, a top notch stage show and every note right on the money.

The backroom of Abingdon Football Club didn’t sound like an auspicious venue. A £20 price tag for a tribute act also raised some doubts. But as I walked through the doors and up to the stage it was clear that tonight’s performance was not going to be just a bunch of enthusiasts and a couple of amps. Four guitars. Three basses. Two keyboards, two saxophones, two lap steels, a massive drum kit and an improbably large lighting rig. The Floyd Effect clearly mean business.

As the eight-strong band kicked off it was instantly apparent that they could really use both the instruments and their voices. Every note was timed just right, every lick of the bass was sharp, each drum beat clean and intentional. I was frankly amazed at how close they sounded to the records that I’ve listened to hundreds of times. It was a wonderful experience to hear music that I love done both live and perfectly. I was a little worried about 'Great Gig in The Sky' but the two female vocalists just blew it away - simply stunning.

The set list was of course everything you would want out of a tribute band. Starting with a medley of tracks from Wish You Were Here, Animals and Meddle, The Floyd Effect closed off the first half a slew of favourites from The Wall. After the break, the band, of course, played the entirety of Dark Side of The Moon. Predictable? Yes. A bloody great show? Absolutely. Though I personally would have liked to hear a couple of tracks from some less well-known albums (I really like Relics), because of the huge discography The Floyd Effect did just the right thing: they gave the audience what they knew we wanted.

Supporting the excellent music was an incredibly ambitious stage show. Powerful articulated rigs, banks of spot lights, prisms and stage lights, all cleverly programmed to produce a light show in complete sync with the music. As if this wasn’t enough, we were treated to backdrop of well-thought-out projected visuals, further enhancing the experience for anyone partaking in herbal refreshment. If I had to make one tiny point of feedback it would be that at times the lights were too bright for the small room; as they shone off the ceiling it lit up the place like house lights, slightly dampening the atmosphere.

The generous three hour set simply flew. This is as close as I’m ever going to come to seeing Pink Floyd live and, you know what - I suspect that side-by-side you’d probably get as good or better a sound out of The Floyd Effect. Smashing.