Lightspeed Champion. Birmingham Academy 2. 1/5/08

DevLightspeed ChampionOperator Please

Firsty, I was probably one of the eldest there- not sure if that’s a good or bad thing.

Secondly, I think everyone there pulled their clothes out of the same wardrobe.

Let’s proceed with the review, shall we?

The first support band on were Ox.Eagle.Lion.Man. They reminded me a little bit of Editors, yes I know- that means they aren’t that good, but ya know..it’s better than saying they were like James Blunt or something. Their music gave off a Shakespeare kind of vibe, rather haunting too. I wasn’t blown away- just quite amused.

Second band up were a wonderful Australian band called Operator Please who played a handful of songs from their album Yes Yes Vindictive. The album is amazing, and to hear it live (again!) is one heck of an experience. They are are aged between 17-19 but play like complete professionals. There are absolutley no faults in their performance at all. It was truely wonderful. They played with their new keyboardist, no idea what his name is. He looked a bit bored, but maybe he was nervous. Sarah used to bounce around and play the keyboard. The new guy just sort of stood there with his head down. Operator Please even treated us to a cover of Devo’s Whip It, and what a treat it was. I saw Operator Please in October last year and hardly anyone danced let alone sang along- but luckily, it was different last night. People were moving and singing. A band worth taking note of.

And finally, the main event. Lightspeed Champion. Dev Hynes walks on stage saying “Hey guys” down the mic and picks up his guitar. Every song from Falling Off The Lavender Bridge is played along with 2 new songs. The prostitute song, which is now called Madam Van Damn included- this version no longer sounds like a demo. It is awesome. The other new song is described by Dev as being “funky” it’s more than that though. His killer guitar solo mid song is perfect. In fact, the whole set is perfect. First saw Dev play in February and Dry Lips was played acoustic but tonight- full band and electric guitar. As this is my favourite song off the album- this version just blew me away. I was in awe of everyone on stage- not just Dev. The Star Wars theme was crazy too. Playing that before Midnight Surprise was wicked. Mid set, Dev took his jacket off to reveal a fetching shirt- blue polo shirt with yachts on. He bought it earlier in the day- only Dev could make this shirt look cool, and yes- the hat was on too!

You cannot find any fault in Lightspeed Champion’s performance, going from strength to strength. Dev’s live shows are something you really do need to see for yourself. He’s got a really really good stage presence too, after every song there was a bit of banter, saying “thanks everyone” at the end of every song was really cute. A little diss to The Wombats was amusing too, he wasn’t dissing them, he was just being silly, or something 🙂

 My words do not do it justice. I took some photos but they didn’t come out that well because we were stood on a box at the back of the venue eating Wham Bars (they’re still 10p! In your face Space Raiders!)

 

 

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