Of all the instant stars who have infiltrated the pop charts in recent years, none has been more instant, or insistent, than Scouting for Girls. It is little more than a year since they signed their first recording contract, and already the trio from West London have made and sold sufficient quantities of their self-titled debut album to reach No1 and acquire platinum status. And although taxi drivers still don't recognise the name, Scouting for Girls began their first tour of serious-sized venues on Monday with a confident performance at the 1,700-capacity Guildhall in Southampton.

On stage, as on record, the show was all about the singer and songwriter Roy Stride (pictured). A tirelessly energetic character who seemed younger than his 28 years, Stride also played piano and sometimes switched to acoustic guitar. Although clearly a tight-knit unit, the bass player and backing singer Greg Churchouse and drummer Peter Ellard were very much cast in a supporting role, while for the first time an additional recruit, Pete Clemence, had been drafted in on guitar and keyboards.

This enabled the perfectly named Stride to drift away from his piano-playing duties and focus attention on ramping up the audience participation, a key element in the band's performing philosophy. “The more you sing, dance and shout, the better we play. It's as simple as that,” he told the crowd.

And simple it certainly was. As the band took off on a typically cheeky tale of affairs of the heart entitled You Look Fitter in Your MySpace Picture, Stride raced around the stage until he was quite out of breath. With more time to fill than in past shows, the band played every track on the album together with a selection of their greatest B-sides (four in all) and the celebrated “hidden” track Michaela Strachan You Broke My Heart (When I Was 12).

The song James Bond was prefaced by Stride singing a solo version of Nobody Does it Better and a taped rendition of the Bond theme complete with spotlights raking over the audience. If it sounds a bit corny, then that's what a lot of it was. But it was also cleverly executed, fast-moving and a lot of fun.

The hits came at last, with a punchy Elvis Ain't Dead and an exuberant finale of She's So Lovely, another song in praise of the older woman. While Stride's tendency to repeat his lyrics until they are sandblasted on to your brain can become wearying, the good nature and sheer exuberance of this performance carried the day.

Touring until April 22

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