The White Stripes and Strokes did it to the guitar glitterati at the end of the 90s and Eminem, a white trailer park boy, managed to usurp the rappers at their own game.

Long-held views and prejudices were unexpectedly torn from their comfort zones with an air of revolution and no less talent.

Cue Mike Skinner. An urban poet with a sting in his quick-draw vocals which confounded and divided with his stunning debut Original Pirate Material.

It blended the death throes of garage, the pace of dance and social commentary that only a rare few (Dylan, Morrissey, NWA) have ever managed in just a few verses.

It was a seismic arrival of a plain-looking Brummie lad who thrilled and dumbfounded even the most evergreen critic.

Seven years on, it still remains the unshakeable foundation to a career which could be about to be given fresh impetus.

Skinner is the brains behind The Streets, a man who seems to capture the mood of the times with rapid-fire skill and genre-defying hooks, introspection and full-on "mash-ups".

It's easy to forget that as he bounces around the stage like an ADHD kid who has had too many E numbers, he is just a normal 20-something with 20-something problems.

Lost loves and life's insecurities puncture every one of his stand-out efforts, from the early Has It Come To This? To chart-topping Dry Your Eyes.

Even when a fight in the audience threatens to take an ugly shine off the night, he calms it immediately, saying we should be lovers and not fighters. He tells us to look in his eyes and we do, ignoring the silly party hat tilted on the side of his head.

A poet, philanthropist and an unlikely peacemaker.

He has come a long way since that irresistible debut.

New album Everything is Borrowed reaffirms his undoubted lyrical mastery but has some way to go to please the masses. It may be time for another reinvention, don't bet against him.

Andy Sykes