As interview requests go, this should have been a cinch. Beck is not asking for 20 dozen long-stemmed roses. Nor would he care for an all-white, silk-draped dressing-room á la J.Lo. Nope, the pint-sized superstar currently located backstage at the Ambassador would simply prefer that no one who interviews him has a cold. He has already had a bad experience with a sputum-spewing journalist, and his vocal cords are decidedly delicate.

Your correspondent shoves several hundred Kleenex deep in pockets, makes covert attempts to clear a worryingly rosy-tipped nose and – thankfully – gains permission to enter the inner sanctum where Beck Hanson resides, all pink cheeks, bleached blond hair and frighteningly-famous rock-star aura.

Dublin is Beck’s latest stop on a low-key tour to promote his beautiful eighth album Sea Change. The Nigel Godrich-produced record marks yet another progression for Beck, melding classically simple, sombre songs with soaring melodies and surprisingly heartfelt lyrics. There are echoes of his sixth record Mutations here, but the overall result is altogether more accomplished, more mature.