Bonobo – Live

We no longer live in a world where electronic musicians can easily get away with button pushing performances....
Bonobo : Live

Bonobo : Live

We no longer live in a world where electronic musicians can easily get away with button pushing performances.  Live instruments are not just for bonus points anymore – unless you’re armed with visuals or elaborate lighting, you’ll find that a bedroom DJ set-up is not going to cut it for most live settings.  Today, we see more and more producers getting the memo and incorporating acoustic components to give their sets a tangible, well-rounded finish.

At the sold-out show last Saturday, October 12th, at Terminal 5 (QRO venue review) in New York, Bonobo, the moniker for British electronic musician Simon Green, took this concept of live electronic performances whole new level.  On top of the usual drum-keyboard-guitar addition, there were clarinets, saxophones, vocals and even a string section, all set in front of a gorgeous panorama screen of soft visuals.  Green himself occasionally stepped away from his set-up to play the bass guitar.

Part of Bonobo’s international success is due to the flexibility of his styles, which is clearly reflected on the kind of people that listen to his music.  The crowd at Terminal 5 was diverse – from tripped-out festival kids all the way to your cocktail-sipping Upper East Side couples, the floors were densely packed with the full spectrum of Bonobo fans.

SzjerdeneThe three opening songs of Bonobo’s set were from the latest album, The Northern Borders, released this past March.  The pacing drum beats of “Cirrus” opened up the night, followed by “Sapphire”The trackTowers” was accompanied by vocalist Szjerdene, who lit up the state both literally like a disco ball with her sequined dress, and sonically through her charmed vocals.  The rest of the night incorporated new tracks and familiar ones, most of which were from Bonobo’s popular Black Sands album, including “Kiara”, “Kong”, and “El Toro”.  He even reached back to his 2006 Days To Come with “Ketto”, “Nightlight”, and “We Could Forever”.  These tracks provided the perfect blend of hip-hop, electronic, and smooth jazz, peaked with drum solos and M83-esque string/saxophone jump ins throughout the set.

Simon GreenThe inevitable encore consisted of “The Keeper” and “Pieces”, smoothing the set down to a soft and very satisfying ending.  The night wouldn’t be complete without Greene thanking the many talents behind his onstage project.  Vocalist Szjerdene chimed in, “Let’s not forget to give it up for the man of bass and buttons, Simon Greene!” as the crowd cheered with enthusiasm, concluding one of the most sophisticated electronic shows in NYC has seen this year.

Bonobo

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