# Lightspeed Champion – Life Is Sweet! Nice To Meet You. Vinyl Review
Lightspeed Champion, the musical project of British artist Dev Hynes, emerged as a distinctive voice in the indie rock scene with this 2010 release on Domino Records. By this point, Hynes had already established himself as an innovative musician, blending introspective songwriting with inventive arrangements that defied conventional rock categorization.
Life Is Sweet! Nice To Meet You. is an ambitious double album that showcases Hynes' compositional range and emotional depth. The record is divided into four movements, each with evocative French titles that hint at the album's introspective nature. The opening movement, Departure, sets the tone with "Dead Head Blues" and "Marlene," establishing the melancholic yet engaging indie rock foundation that defines much of the record.
Throughout the album's five sides, standout tracks like "Faculty Of Fears" and "I Don't Want To Wake Up Alone" demonstrate Hynes' gift for crafting emotionally resonant narratives within lush indie rock frameworks. The inclusion of instrumental interludes and pieces like the piano-based "Etude Op.3 'Goodnight Michalek'" reveals the album's sophisticated approach to song sequencing and dynamic variation.
The album's final movement, Douceur De Vivre! Merci, culminates in "A Bridge And A Goodbye," a fitting closer that underscores the project's thematic arc. Life Is Sweet! Nice To Meet You. represents a high point in Hynes' early work, offering vinyl collectors a substantial, inventive indie rock statement that rewards repeated listening across its generous runtime.
