Tonight’s opener, Dovetailed, are a new duo formed of Kim Grant (aka Raveloe) and Simon Liddell (Olympic Swimmers, Frightened Rabbit) playing wispy, understated indie-folk. Though on record they can produce layered textures with keys and woodwinds, tonight it’s just acoustic guitars, a few reverb pedals and Grant’s breathy vocals. The effect remains remarkably similar despite the sparse foundation, Grant splitting the difference between the dreamy, echo-laden mode of Harriet Wheeler and more contemporary bedroom popsters like Tomberlin. The “new one” formerly known as ‘Pith of Love’ (they dropped the name as Liddell thought it too close to ‘Piss of Love’) is particularly lovely, radiating sentimental notes and highlighting the duo’s easygoing charm.

Destroyer normally operate with at least six members these days, the band slathering Dan Bejar’s expressionist poetry in lush strings and brass or, more recently, synthesizer and organ. However, tonight it’s just Bejar on his own with an acoustic guitar. It’s a radical departure of style, harking back to his loose, slapdash early efforts almost 30 years ago.

But there’s little playing it safe with songs that more naturally fit the stripped-back setup. Bejar opens with ‘Crimson Tide.’ It’s usually a velvety, synth-driven cut that’s now hollowed to its bare bones, Bejar adding percussive fills with nonchalant vocalising; “da da da” or “pa pa pa” is a frequent refrain tonight when he arrives at a bridge or breakdown.

Though mixed expertly on record, when playing with full band Bejar’s intricate lyricism can sometimes be obscured by the layered arrangements. That isn’t a problem tonight as every elegant turn of phrase, every bitter kiss-off and every heartfelt couplet rings out clearly. ‘Tinseltown Swimming in Blood’ and ‘Times Square’ aren’t natural fits for this style, and ‘Cue Synthesizer’ feels absurdly wrong in this context, but each of these reinterpretations draws out new strength from the fragile, vulnerable state Bejar finds himself in with just his voice and acoustic guitar. Destroyer’s Rubies is the most represented album tonight, with four songs that don’t need quite as much tweaking, but still reinforce the masterful lyrical touches, particularly ‘European Oils.’

Finding himself alone onstage and needing to tune and adjust capos, Bejar is compelled to make a little chat to break the silence, though he notes that he usually just sits down with his tambourine and has some wine, an element he clearly misses. There are deadpan song introductions: “this is a very popular Destroyer song…this is why I’m here” (‘Tinseltown’), “this is a song about my neighbourhood” (‘Chinatown’). He notes the noise next door, clinking glasses and peals of laughter: “sounds like fun,” and acknowledges the difficulty in hitting some of the high notes these days (after ‘Helena’).

In the end, it’s the absence of polish that makes tonight such a delight. Shorn of their sumptuous trappings his songs are sharper and more cutting, the lyrics hitting harder with nowhere to hide. It’s arguably a set for the more hardcore Destroyer fans, but judging by the rapt attention of the crowd, there’s no shortage of those here.