Bonobo

This past year Montreal has been in the midst of Bonobo fever. Not only was this Bonobo’s 3rd appearance this year in Montreal, after a stop at the Théâtre Telus back in April and a DJ set at Osheaga in August, but he also managed to sell out the Metropolis on a Tuesday night. The masses were clearly antsy for Bonobo to start, after a generic and lackluster set by the appropriately named Paul Basic, and greeted the British musician like a rock star (there was even crowd surfing throughout the night… at a Bonobo show). They were already grooving well before the music actually got groovy and offered encore-worthy applause after only the first track of the night, a fantastic rendition of new album The North Borders’ first single Cirrus.
Simon Green was joined on stage with a revolving door of musicians, including a brass trio, multiple percussionists and a solid vocalist. When she came on stage to perform the first of many tracks Transits I found myself contemplating another electronic act with live instrumentation, Disclosure, and how their lack of vocalists at Osheaga prevented their good performance from being a great one. I’d argue that at times throughout the night, the reverse happened. On certain tracks, notably the Grey Reverend featuring smooth jam First Fires, were hindered by her powerful vocals. A “less is more” approach might have been more appropriate for certain tracks. Bonobo and his band mates would go full maximalist at times and pared down at others, but not always at the right moment. The brass trio would at times drown out some of the interesting subtleties of Bonobo’s creations, while highlighting them on other tracks. It was a bit of a paradox to be honest.
In the end you have to applaud Green for being a true musician through and through: never hogging the limelight, mostly blending in with his band, while performing certain tracks solo when necessary. “Montreal is basically one of my favourite places right now,” shouted Green before launching into a 3 song pseudo-encore (they never needed to leave the stage, the crowd was already clamouring for more before the show was even close to being finished,) and it was clear why: Montreal loves him back tenfold. And while the show could use a bit of fine tuning, Bonobo sure knows how to put on a performance that seemed to please the 2000+ people in attendance.

I cannot say that I am a hard core electronic music fan but Bonobo is one of the musicians that I really enjoy to listen especially when I need to concentrate on things. I missed his concert at NY twice and promised myself to not to miss it next time (which was this concert.)

Honestly, I was a little bit skeptic about going to a club and listening to electronic music, as I feel like I am too old to do these stuff :) We reached the place around 11 and expect to see Bonobo on stage around 12, which shows how unexperienced and naive about such events. He was scheduled to take the scene around 2:30 AM, which is a little bit of shocker for us. I need to open a parenthesis about the venue (OUTPUT@Williamsburg) The venue has a gorgeous roof top which offers a fantastic Manhattan view. We hangout there until almost 2 AM (just when Bonobo took the scene).

The concert was fabulous, and really enjoyed the sound that Bonobo picked for that night. May be only for a few minutes he lost me but in a 2 hours of great performance, those were the times that I took another deep breath, rest little to go on flowing through his rhythms. I need to open another parenthesis about the crowd. Clubs, where I came from are typically for people who aim to lose themselves instead of enjoying the music. But that night I fascinated how people are enjoying the music while respecting each other.

Even if I got tired and slept in the subway car until I reached home, this concert broke my bias regarding my belief of such events are not suitable for people over 30. I strongly encourage everyone to give it a try next time and hope they will enjoy it like us. Who know, may be I will be among the crowd again :)

i might be confused but there is a chance it might be record label monkey business telling him that he is not allowed to play music from his albums... maybe i only heard songs i had never heard, but what do i know... call me crazy but even if it is only a dj set from an artist, i think some of the smooth resonant full toned harmonics that just simply put you in that euphoric state of mind that i really really like, that drew me to him in the first place, would be included right? great club music, definitely dance worthy at times, but i really have to ask, where was the bonobo i know and love? maybe it was just a teaser to get me to buy tickets for a more expensive show including him and the rest of his crew in full glory, which would be great if i was able to catch it in time like i did this one and can afford it. i enjoyed myself but i could have got nearly the same show for free without believing i was going to be grooving to the incredibly silky stuff i listen to almost daily. next time i think i might wait for the whole shhbang for my buck with an artist like this.

I was a little unsure of what to expect seeing bonobo on the migration tour. I attended (by myself) the Alexandra palace show on 31 May 2018. It was nothing short of amazing. My uncertainty lay in the fact that I loved north borders way more than i did migration. But boy, did the man show up!!!! It was incredible, sense, sound, feelings were all heightened. He is a pure genius. I'm glad I bought the ticket for myself and to go alone. I didn't stop moving or singing or humming. Every second made me feel something, something so incredible it's impossible to describe. This was the best thing I did by myself..for myself. Bonobo you are a genius! I'm lucky to have had the experience and its in my bones

Show was excellent. Some great energy from the band, and some standout tracks which were performed really well. I know how difficult it is to combine electronic programmed beats and live instrumentation and they do it very well.

My only complaint was the sound; very muddy and poorly mixed at times, you could barely hear the lead singer. Kiara was super weak sounding, lacking any low end.

It seems like with these kinds of performances, you either get an engineer who understands electronic music and not live instruments, or an engineer from a rock background who understands live instruments and not electronic music. And neither know how to mix the two together well.

Simon Green is a musical genius, and despite the difference of shows between his DJ set and his full band, all his perfomances are amazing. Bonobo always keeps evolving in his music but always staying loyal and true to his essence and his mystical jazzy past. His Dj set seems so flawless and full of energy at all times. He always shows great energy, which is transferred into his music and the crowd; making all his shows must sees.
It's always fantastic hearing his original stuff in mixed fashion into his DJ set, which makes it familiar, yet surprisingly fresh.
With Bonobo, always expect to have an incredible experience.

As ever, Bonobo provided a fantastic, if a little short set.

The venue was stunning and the crowd eventually warmed up a bit!!

I think this is not helped by the choice of supporting act. Jenns kuross is super talented and he sounded great, but the crowd would be so much more hyped if he played something a little dancy.

The normally already a short 2 hours set was cut a little short but it was still a stunning show.

The after party was provided by a performance from an amazing Street performer, Paul John Bailey, who's show was hijacked by a few fans and suddenly became an enormous dancing crowd.

Thursday night’s two-hour-long show in Niceto Club was memorable. With Chancha-Via-Circuito as warm up act, the crowd started dancing in a sold out venue, Simon Green & band began punctually at 10pm. The sound was not up to the band in my opinion. Niceto could improve this.
Nevertheless, the playlist was generous, mainly focusing in the last two studio albums (The North Borders & Migration), with some oldies and a mini Dj solo. Szjerdene appeared in some songs and danced all her way through the stage.
I highly recommend wherever you are, if you find tickets for Bonobo go and check it out for yourself.

It is ridiculous how good this performance was from start to finish. The performance from Bonobo was polished but unique, they always work a little magic and occasionally throw in a new number but the addition of some amazing guest artists including Jordan Rakei and Innov Gwana was completely awesome.

Cherry on the cake, another fantastic support act - GoGo Penguin - were mind blowing, a great deal of skill and spirit and clearly goes into their art.

Thanks Bonobo, we can't wait to have you back in the UK again :). Maybe next album (not counting festival performances:))

Simon looked to be really enjoying himself at his first-ever show in Richmond. He used the mike more than I've heard before. He and the band were accompanied for easily half the show by Szjerdene so it had a more down-tempo and mellow vibe than previous times I've seen him when they were more dance-y and even trance-y. The venue, the National, is historic and spacious, with several varied spots to enjoy the show and courteous staff. I'd see another show there for sure and will be sure to catch Bonobo any time he comes remotely close to me!