For 14 years now, ever since the release of his rousing Arabic/R&B crossover hit Didi, Khaled has presided over a non-stop musical party. By mixing Algerian traditional music with western pop influences, the "king of rai" has shaken up the European pop scene and in the process encouraged some of the wildest scenes in recent pop history. A good Khaled show is a major event, so his arrival at a relatively intimate venue such as the Shepherd's Bush Empire was an intriguing fixture, especially as we were promised that he would be presenting a new and partially acoustic set.

That was the expectation; the reality was a minor disappointment. This was by no means a bad concert - the audience were enthusiastic - but there was nothing here to match the scenes at the Festival Hall in the late 1990s, when his arrival was greeted with screaming worthy of Beatlemania.

As for Khaled's performance, it was solid, stirring and predictable as ever, with songs from the new album Ya-Rayi mixed seamlessly among the old favourites like Chebba, or the jazz-funk influenced N'ssi N'ssi, both from the early 1990s. His band included a bit of everything, with hand drums, oud and violin matched against keyboards, guitar and a brass section that included the inspired saxophonist Guffanti Leandro. But Khaled was cautious about exploring their full potential.

Many songs followed the same pattern, with a fine, slow, declamatory build-up leading to the inevitable dance riffs. When Khaled finally reached his "acoustic" section, he was briefly backed by oud and acoustic guitars, and demonstrated his flamenco influences before swiftly retreating to more familiar territory as the keyboards, horns and dance riffs kicked back in. He sang well but played safe, ending (of course) with the rousing Didi and his slushy, singalong French hit Aicha. It's a well-tested formula, but surely it is time for Khaled to move on.