Lightspeed Champion @ Heaven, London

Dev Hynes, aka Lightspeed Champion, strolled around the Heaven audience five minutes before his stage call, looking every inch an all-American preppy student with a funky edge. His well-worn New York Yankees baseball cap tamed his hair which in the past has been kept in check under a huge furry hat. He looks like one of your mates – one of your cool mates.

He was due on stage at 9.15 and arrived bang on the dot. He welcomed everyone and apologised for the two year gap since he last toured. He kicked off with ‘Marlene’, a melodic toe-tapping number taken from his second album Life is Sweet! Nice to Meet You. Lightspeed played for 30 minutes solid, each song perfectly flowing into the next.

When he finally came up for air, he chatted to the crowd and asked: “Do you like the Beach Boys?”, before breaking into a rocky rendition of ‘Don’t Worry Baby’.

Hynes’ onstage presence and energy was infectious; with the mixed crowd singing and cheering throughout. He had moments of genius on the guitar and his voice was pure and smooth, however it sometimes got lost in the loud guitar thrashing.

His jovial nature was there for all to see when he returned to the stage for his encore ,dressed in a white Santa beard and wig to sing the emotive ‘Miss You’ – his voice perfectly executed on this penultimate song.

This tour will bring him many new fans and please those that have been with him since leaving Test Icicles. He showcased the second, more worldly LP effortlessly, finishing tonight with a Beatles cover of; ‘It Won’t Be Long’. The buzz stayed in the air even after Lightspeed, in his lilac jeans and Santa wig had left the stage.