DJ Gilles Peterson, who programmed this day of events as part of his pal James Lavelle's Meltdown festival, introduces his headline act, Eska, as being "a bit of a perfectionist". That's something of an understatement: Londoner Eska Mtungwazi has been in the "hotly tipped" pile for more than a decade, but she's only recently completed her debut solo album, one that took five years and included numerous lineup changes and a falling out with her initial producer, Matthew Herbert.

Eska's heavenly voice has fronted the likes of Zero 7, the Cinematic Orchestra, Nitin Sawhney and countless jazz, breakbeat and R&B acts, but her own music sounds nothing like any of them. Tonight's show moves through Appalachian folk singing, psychedelic blues, folk-funk, Tuareg heavy metal, deep-fried gospel and Ethiopian reggae, with Eska accompanying herself on a multitude of instruments (acoustic guitar, piano, violin and Venezuelan cuatro). Particularly powerful are versions of her Different Shades of Blue and This Is How a Garden Grows from her forthcoming album, both of which feature a staggering harmonica soloist. Like the rest of her impressive band, he remains unintroduced, which suggests that Eska's music might be close to perfect but she urgently needs to address her stage etiquette.

Just as interesting is the support act, pianist Christophe Chassol. His latest project is a musical travelogue of India, based on field recordings made in Calcutta and Varanasi. Chassol has filmed street hawkers playing coconut-shell violins, cab drivers singing ragas, children reciting the Lord's Prayer and numerous outdoor singers, and he and his drummer improvise live over a film of these recordings, turning them into liquid-funk grooves. Purists might dislike how Chassol imposes western harmonies on to monochordal music, and there's something slightly mocking about how he turns speech patterns into melodies, but it's a startling show. It suggests that Gilles Peterson could put together a decent Meltdown of his own.