Bonobo review: Ally Pally bounces to mix of digital and orchestral

STEVE GILLETT / LIVEPIX
Elizabeth Aubrey1 June 2018

Bonobo — aka Simon Green — returned to Alexandra Palace last night after a four-year gap. Marking his only live UK headline dates this year, it was clear the venue held a special significance for Green as he began the first of two sold-out nights there.

“It’s really special to be back here,” he said, after he finished playing the shimmering 7th Sevens from his acclaimed 2017 album, Migration. Appearing on stage with a 12-strong string accompaniment, brass instrumentalists and a smaller band on keyboards and percussion, it was a full, exciting and fluid stage-set up from the onset; special guests appeared throughout.

Green combined both the digital and the orchestral skilfully as he explored his favourite territory: the blurring boundaries between digital and live music. A relatively calm trip-hop ­opening soon transformed into fast, drum-driven dance electronica.

By the time favourite Cirrus appeared, Ally Pally was bouncing amidst strobe ­lighting and trippy visuals. Appearing to the side of the stage with his bass guitar, Green rarely spoke. He prefers to stay out of the spotlight, letting his orchestra and accompanying band take centre stage.

Yet some of the greatest moments of the evening came seeing the joy Green received when his mixing of the modern and the traditional paid dividends with the audience, such as when an impressive live flute solo on We Could Forever brought its trance-hop and dance mixes to life.

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1/10

Collaborations with Szjerdene and Grammy-nominated collective Innov Gnawa also impressed, the energy of the latter proving infectious.

Achieving a balance between the more hypnotic, transcendental songs in his repertoire and the more upbeat, trance-driven ones, this was a well-judged, career-spanning set that brought innovation and joy to London.

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