Pages tagged “lightspeed champion”

Even a blood infection won’t stop Lightspeed Champion from zipping around the world. According to his blog, Dev Hynes has been at his parent’s house recovering from a blood infection. “Abscess on my face, thank you on-going blood infection, I look like John Merrick,” Hynes writes.

If anything, Lightspeed Champion doesn’t hold back. Case in point would be his last-minute UK release party for Falling Off the Lavender Bridge, where instead of tracks from the album, Devonte Hynes opted to play indie favorites with a few of his musician friends. The album will be released Stateside Feb. 5.

“Late Monday night I decided that maybe I did want an album launch,” Hynes wrote on his blog. “I called my friend Matty who runs the club White Heat, and asked if the next night I could play on the bill under the name of Pun Lovin' Criminals. Well needless to say, he said yes!”

Now Hynes has announced a stint of North American dates, which serve as somewhat of a break from his European tour. All of these shows will be acoustic sets, with just Hynes and violinist Mike Siddell, and includes a showcase at SXSW.

Catch him while you can:

March
1 - Chicago, Ill. – AV-aerie
4 - Toronto, Ontario – Horseshoe Tavern
5 - New York, N.Y. – Mercury Lounge
7 - Philadelphia, Penn. – World Café Live Upstairs
8 - Brooklyn, N.Y. – Pete’s Candy Store
10 - Boston, Mass. – TBA
12 - Austin, Texas – Antone’s (Domino Records SXSW Showcase)
15 - Austin, Texas - French Legation Museum (SXSW)

Related links:
News: Lightspeed Champion to blaze across the U.K., debut album
LightspeedChampion.com
Lightspeed Champion on MySpace

Got news tips for Paste? Email news@pastemagazine.com.

Hometown: Born in Houston, raised in Essex, England
Fun fact: Lightspeed Champion is 21-year-old Dev Hynes, former guitarist of short-lived, much-loved band Test Icicles. His debut full-length, however, is miles from the Icicles’ spiky post-punk sound, thanks in part to veteran Saddle Creek producer Mike Mogis.
Why he's worth watching: Hynes’ moping autobiographical lyrics are balanced by his truly unusual sense of humor. The goofy, puppet-filled video for his first single, “Galaxy of the Lost,” was inspired by an R.E.M. Sesame Street appearance.
For fans of: Bright Eyes, Shout Out Louds, Belle & Sebastian

Dev Hynes, a.k.a. Lightspeed Champion, has suffered from stomach ulcers since the age of 15, so he really should avoid stress. And yet stress always seems to find him. When Paste rings Hynes in Dalston, the East London district where he lives, Hynes reveals that he’s lost the keys to his apartment and that his cellphone service has been restricted, so he can only receive calls, not make them. “I just don’t know what I’m gonna do,” he says.

And somehow, unintentionally, our questions to the amiable young musician only seem to ratchet up his anxiety. Why did he name Lightspeed Champion’s debut LP—a country-influenced, anti-folk set featuring lots of strings and pedal steel—Falling Off the Lavender Bridge? “God, it sounds like a Rush album,” he says, laughing anxiously. “I mean, there was a song called ‘Lavender,’ but I didn’t put it on the album, so now it doesn’t make any sense.” Hynes mentions that he’s creating the cover art himself, so we ask if the image contains allusions to the album’s title. “There’s actually none,” he says. “Yeah. Fuck.”

Okay, here’s an easy one: How did he find Lavender Bridge guest singer Emmy the Great, whose euphonious vocalizing on “Galaxy of the Lost” could allay even the most fretful guy’s fears? “Oh, fuck, I need to call her! But I can’t call her. Shit.”

At least we didn’t prod him as to why his new music is so different from Test Icicles. He gets that question a lot, and he’s well aware that journalists are pathologically inclined to categorize artists. This is why he chooses not to record under his own name. “People get the misconception that that’s the real you,” he says. “But it’s like, ‘Why can’t there be a lot of real yous?’”

After escaping the strange little circus that was Test Icicles, Devonte Hynes now prepares to strike out on his own as Lightspeed Champion. Will the inevitable comparisons to his past work be cruel or kind to the young musician? Well, judging by the video for his debut single, "Galaxy Of The Lost," Hynes is out to craft his own whimsical playground of sound.

"Galaxy" will appear on Falling Off The Lavender Bridge, Lightspeed Champion's first album. The release arrives in the U.K. on Jan. 21, and stateside Feb. 5 through Domino Recordings. Despite Hynes' record label allegiance, Lavender features several members of the Saddle Creek family, including production from Bright Eyes sideman Mike Mogis, drumming from the Faint's Clark Baechle and extra help from members of Cursive and Tilly and the Wall.

In support of the release, Hynes and his touring band are canvassing the U.K. top to bottom. No U.S. dates are set just yet. However, look for Lightspeed Champion to arrive in your local newsstands this February as a Paste 4 To Watch artist.

Check out those tour dates on the Lightspeed Champion MySpace.

Related links:
LightspeedChampion.com
NME.com: What is Lightspeed Champion scared of?
Lightspeed Champion's YouTube Channel

Got news tips for Paste? Email news@pastemagazine.com.