Of Montreal’s Kevin Barnes, shown here at a 2008 concert, performed at the 9:30 Club on Tuesday. Photo by Nestor Diaz.

Cover artwork stepped forth from CD booklets and onto the 9:30 Club stage Tuesday night, as a sold-out crowd witnessed androids and koi with guns support Janelle Monáe and Of Montreal. Eclectic is a word too cheap for this dramatic roadshow.

Opener Janelle Monáe used her hour-long set to impress, using her classical voice, throwback dance moves and the fusion of R&B, hip hop, funk, and conceptual instrumentals that comprise her 2010 release, The ArchAndroid (whose art, and set, feature images of Monáe as the android Cindi Mayweather). True to her signature style, a hooded Monáe began with the album’s “Dance or Die,” appearing on a balcony and rhyming to the crowd with ease and verve. Then, suddenly, she was on the main stage, rolling through her set with authority.

It was a set without a weakness, especially with the addition of aerial views of Monáe and the band on three video screens mounted above the stage (gotta see that fancy footwork), but her extremes were crowning moments. “Smile,” a Charlie Chaplin cover from her EP, Metropolis: The Chase Suite, stood as testament to the beauty of her voice, as she sang backed only by a blues guitar. “War of the Roses” took a different turn, however, casting off soulful and simple for rock and roll as Monáe screamed into the mic stand before throwing it to the stage, dancing her hairdo out of its perfect placement as she hopped into the pit. (It’s not a pompadour, by the way, it’s called “the Monáe”.) Despite the genre-swinging, there is never a doubt that Monáe’s style is hers, and her fans recognize and love it without hesitation. The 9:30 Club crowd was no different.

While Monáe had moments of simplicity, Of Montreal didn’t seem to know the term.