THE standing ovation was fully deserved after a performance that at times made the spine tingle.

Last night at a packed 02 Apollo in Manchester, Howard entered on stage with a look that echoed his Devon homeland and penchant to surf – hair ruffled, relaxed, sporting pumps, jeans, and a t-shirt.

Trusting to the crowd’s warm welcome the gig starts with two singles from new EP, The Burgh Island.

An expert guitar player with a soulful voice, you get the sense that Howard just wants to play and for people to like his music.

His boyish charm and laidback demeanour belies the passion and intensity of his performance with bandmates Chris Bond, India Bourne and a guest guitarist.

The synergy the quartet enjoy when playing multiple instruments into submission is at times breathtaking, with Howard at one point taking time out to strike a cymbal with the palm of one hand while strumming the guitar with the other.

Diamonds is the first track to be played from debut album Every Kingdom, nominated for the 2012 Mercury Prize, provoking immediate hand clapping and foot stomping from the audience.

Old Pine and Only Love follow, sweeping melodies perfect for a singalong.

Things slow with Everything, a happy song according to Howard, but delivered with bittersweet resonance.

Joggers and couch potatoes alike then join together for Wolves, which features in a running advert for sports brand New Balance.

Throughout the show video cameras and phones are hoiked aloft, but when Howard implores ‘let’s put the cameras down and sing’, you realise that mainstream affection is maybe not what he set out to achieve.

Instead, it is perhaps the heartfelt lyrics he wants you to enjoy, the music he wants you to take in.

At times, it even feels like Howard is lost in his own world, maybe in the stories that his songs tell.

After The Fear threatens people in standing with the shaking floor of the circle above, the mood changes during the encore.

Black Flies, a song of loss and rebirth, is delivered in near darkness, poignantly atmospheric.

The gig concludes with the Promise and the crowd on their feet, arms aloft. It certainly won’t be the last time Howard and his band get that kind of reception.