The apparent chasm between the indie variety show that is The Great Escape and the rampant commercialism of reality TV sing-off The Voice was bridged via a secret lunchtime gig at Concorde 2.

Ricky Wilson might be better known to millions as a mentor for pop acts these days, and Kaiser Chiefs are used to sending beer flying at festival arenas.

But a smaller capacity crowd gave their new album – Education, Education, Education And War – a warm reception, partly because its songs were interspersed with old crowd-pleasers such as Ruby and The Angry Mob.

Unknwn, a Belfast duo playing as part of a Northern Irish showcase, spooked the darkened Prince Albert with their mesh of eerie samples and barely-there vocals.

Down in the atmospheric cavern of Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar, Australian singer Kate Miller-Heidke went for the celestial look, with a voice which made it easy to imagine the cathedrals she has filled on the other side of the world.

Kiesza, a Canadian whose debut single, Hideaway, went to number one earlier this year, also confirmed her credentials as a radio-friendly pop star at The Warren, despite a lack of material meaning that her 30-minute set had to be heavily padded out.