Variety was at the heart of Devendra Banhart’s sold-out Hove show ahead of his appearance at the Glastonbury festival.

Taking the stage solo, he played songs drawn from early albums accompanied solely by an electric guitar before he introduced his five-piece band for Golden Girls, the opener of latest album Mala.

Even in this opening section the eclecticism of Banhart’s songwriting was in evidence, ranging from the emotional heartbreak of My Dearest Friend to the nursery rhyme Little Yellow Spider, to the flamenco licks of Spanish language Quedata Luna, with no song outstaying its welcome.

His long hair and straggly beard have been replaced by a cooler New Yorker style, and songs from his latest album draw inspiration from 1980s synth-pop, Jonathan Richman lo-fi balladry, 1970s country rock and even The Strokes – quite a move away from the freakfolk tag which has plagued him.

When the band started firing on all cylinders, as on upbeat renditions of Baby, Sea Horse, and newbie Your Fine Petting Duck, the audience turned into a sweating throng. The closing la las of Carmensita after little more than an hour left the whole room demanding more.