Rarely have an artist and his surroundings dovetailed as neatly as Lewes songwriter David Ford and the Barfly on a rainy Sunday afternoon. Outside, it was miserable; inside, at this "lounge" performance, it was just as bleak, as Ford offered that Morrisseyan staple - a world view that places him firmly on the outside, looking in at what he considers a charmless spectacle.

Formerly the singer with Eastbourne never-weres Easyworld, Ford is blossoming as a solo act. Last autumn's debut, I Sincerely Apologise for All the Trouble I've Caused, was warmly received as an example of the power of a guitar, some loops and an intolerant attitude. Slow-moving and crackly, it painted life as one grubby crisis after another - the kind of thing a sensible fellow like him eschews in favour of staying home with a book.

Aptly, the Barfly stage was furnished to look like a living room: a desk lamp, hatstand, plants and ancient typewriter left just enough space for the unexpectedly well-spoken Ford, who could be the brother James Blunt doesn't talk about. A ragbag band squeezed in around him, the lo-fi complement to his pained, disgusted tenor.

He introduced each song to the crowded room with an anecdote. Cheer Up (You Miserable Fuck), an aggressive piano ballad that might be considered his signature tune, apparently derives from a Polish proverb, while Don't Tell Me is about a relationship he persevered with only "for fear of never getting laid". The reverb-laden If You Only Knew was inspired by the suicide of a friend who suffered from "the modern illness - cripplingly low self-esteem". Suitably primed to depress, the music did just that - but tunefully enough to foretell commercial success, if Radio 2 can get its head around titles like Cheer Up (You Miserable Fuck).