Entering the dark surrounds of The Palace, I arrived to catch the moody beats of DJ Ransom. He kicked things off with some atmospheric, low-slung dubstep and breaks, and gradually worked things towards more upbeat, and percussive Solid Groove/Switch style beats. Setting things up rather nicely for Die Antwoord, I must say.

After some time the Palace went almost pitch black, as the drone of a Buddhist monk chat filled the theatre. A weirdly distorted 3D image of baby’s head materialised on the screen behind the stage. DJ Hi-Tek stepped up to the decks. Quite randomly he was wearing a black tracksuit, with a monster’s mask obscuring his face. He then proceeded to drop some “next level beats” which he reportedly designed on his “PC Computer”; dodgy attempt at a South African accent implied!).

Yo-Landi Vi$$er then appeared in a white jumpsuit, her head completely concealed by a hoodie. She stood there completely still, lapping up the applause. Finally they were joined by Ninja, who jumped straight into his theme song Enter The Ninja.

After a wardrobe change, Yo-landi came out in a completely gold jumpsuit, and wearing a ridiculous amount of bling. It was not long before they began to take layers of clothing off – Yo-Landi baring her lily-white ass to a very appreciate crowd during her performance of Rich Bitch!.

Die Antwoord certainly knew who they were play to, yelling out “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie!” at various intervals to keep the crowd going. Yo-Landi even pulled off a rather spot-on Kath and Kim impersonation. They seemed to have a huge (literally) phallic obsession. At one point a giant inflatable Casper the ghost appeared, looking extremely friendly (if you know what I mean).

As Die Antwoord left the stage, a familiar voice began to emanate from the speakers. In a slightly narcissistic turn we were left to hear a mix-tape from, erm, MIA! Nevertheless the Palace was absolutely packed by this point, and the air was a-buzz with anticipation.

Again the lights dropped, and DJ Asma Maroof walked out onto stage, dropping those familiar chopped-up beats and lumpy bass-lines synonymous with MIA. High pitched, squelchy guitars spewed forth as MIA herself walked onto stage in a red suit, and sun hat performing the first two tracks of her latest album, The Message, and Born Free.

To the crowd’s delight, a surprising amount of the set came from her first two albums Arular and Kala (named after her father and mother respectively). Personal highlight was when the familiar sample of the Rocky theme song trumpeted from the speakers. DJ Asma Maroof held the loop until the crowd could take no more, then gun shots fired and MIA ripped through her guerrilla warfare anthem Bucky Done Gun.

Next up she invited a group of girls from the crowd onstage for her next track Boys, which added to the festive atmosphere. In the background, stylised visuals from her film-clips really complimented the show, not to mention the brilliant light and laser show. Two guys appeared to either side of her, dressed in some particularly early ‘90s baggy pants and silky shirts, and performing some rather early ‘90s dance manoeuvres!

Disappointingly though, I found the show to be a bit flat in parts. MIA appeared to be a tad weary from the constant touring, and her vocals were barely audible at times. At one point she lent upon the pulpit, mumbling something incoherently, before the lights went out, then back on again, revealing she had left the stage.

The DJ and live drummer kept blasting out the funky beats, implying that the show had had not come to a premature end. I need not have worried, as a few minutes and a wardrobe change later, MIA was back onto stage. The sounds of industrial noises, and chainsaws, introducing the standout track from Maya, Steppin Up. She seemed a little fired-up finally, as she started to pull some of those sexy hip-swaying dance moves for which she is so famous.

Trying to keep the momentum going, MIA brought the crowd back on stage, as she passed around a bottle of a rather toxic-looking inebriating substance around the appreciate fans. She ended the night with two of her biggest singles – firstly Galang, and then scrambling up the speaker stacks, she ended her set with a slightly tired rendition of Paper Planes. So when she left the stage afterwards, one could tell there would be no encore.

Depending on which night you catch her, MIA can either be a force of nature, or a bit lacklustre. Unfortunately, this performance fell into the latter category (this coming from a particularly big MIA fan). Die Antwoord might not exactly be ‘fighting the power’, but with lo-fi props and sheer enthusiasm, they really won the Palace crowd over.