Bonobo @ Webster Hall 4/12 Reviewed

There are artists who are make music first, and electronic second. They usually find themselves on the fringes of genres, taking in sounds from all over to create magic that is all their own. Bonobo is one of those artists. Rarely, if ever, thought in conjunction with electronic and the EDM boom, Simon Green often uses electronic elements infused with live instrumentation to create downtempo and ambient music. His tracks play out amazing well in concert, as was seen firsthand when elektro checked out his gig at Webster Hall last Friday. Bonobo’s artistic direction and technical talent take on lives of their own when he’s on stage DJing. Along with his set up, he also had a live band on stage, and was even joined for multiple tracks by Andreya Triana (who appears on Bonobo’s LP Black Sands). Although Bonobo’s set definitely had a soothing atmosphere, it was far from mellow. Playing out mostly from his own catalogue (“Stay the Same”, “Recurring”, and “Emkay” to name a few made delightful appearances), the combination of the eye-bugging light productions, live instrumentation, and hip-swaying beats all worked beautifully for his far too short hour and half set. The crowd was sent into a weird sort of collected frenzy, dancing relentlessly but ever so sleekly to the music. Though short, it may be that time was all the audience could’ve handled. As the crowd headed out, everyone had the similar look of bewilderment, as we all looked back in awe at the stage, wondering how Bonobo was able to reach right through us and scramble our brains.

Written by: Brian Merlano