WHEN Pendulum left the CIA stage after 90 or so minutes of fist-pumping electro-beat music, one could see by the sheer number of lost shoes on the arena floor that the crowd had just had a full-on night.

The Aussie rockers, including South Walian guitarist Peredur ap Gwynedd, had given the thousands of adoring fans a riotous show of fast-paced drum ’n’ bass, mixed with newer tracks from their latest album, Immersion.

It was all set against an impressive backdrop, a light show depicting all sorts of creepy-crawlies one would expect to encounter on a trip to an outside loo in the band’s native West Oz.

The setlist was a mix of older tracks like Tarantula, Fasten Your Seatbelt and Blood Sugar, and this year’s Watercolour, The Island and Salt in the Wounds.

While the crowd lapped up every minute of the entertainment, I couldn’t help feeling that Pendulum had reached an end point from a music point of view. Lots of energy, but a bit of ‘same-old’ from track to track.

Without wanting to sound too harsh, for me and many others I spoke to on the night, the highlight was the cover of Prodigy’s Voodoo People.

There’s the problem: One can’t help thinking Pendulum will be remembered in future years as the band that wanted to be as good as Prodigy, but never made it.

To be fair, they are good fun. But that’s as good as it gets.