Time feels like an abstract concept. How can it be 25 years since I first heard debut album ‘Animal Magic’…? It feels like 10 years – – but it sadly isn’t. How is it that was released in 2010…? That felt like 2018, right? But alas it wasn’t. Time is something that Simon Green – the man behind Bonobo – looks into and ponders over on his new album ‘Distance In Static’. Looking back at his 25 (plus) year career, but instead of trying recapture and package those previous releases he is taking threads and weaving them into something modern, and at time futuristic.
The album starts with ‘Dawn’. This is slow moving, neo-classical beauty and is reminiscent to ‘Black Sands’ highlight ‘Kiara’. This isn’t a carbon copy, though. It’s graceful with no percussion. In the 16 years since the original came out Si Green has aged and grown as an artist. He is re-examining his past work but recontextualising it with everything he’s learned since then. It’s a glorious opening track to the album.
‘Cycles’ takes things up a gear with its stuttering beats, haunting vocals, cascading melodies and soaring strings. The standout tracks on the album are ‘Shokoufeh’, ‘ID700’ and ‘Mercury’ featuring Kanako Yamamoto. ‘Shokoufeh’ opens with what sounds like a Japanese sample; over this is layered wonky melodies, siren-esque vocals and deep bass lines. This is a song it feels like it was created to play live. Either in one of Green’s mesmeric DJ sets or full band live sets. There are points where you can imagine the crowd losing it. The piano breakdown halfway through will go live!
‘ID700’ shows Green experimenting with basslines. They had a dubstep/EDM quality to them. Rich and fearsome. This is one to play as as you can. The album ends with ‘Mercury’ – a gentle, and subtle, piece of music that gracefully brings the album to a close. A Bonobo album doesn’t feel complete unless he’s brought some collaborators along. This time , , , , and all pop up. However, the best guest spot is from . Her elegant playing really adds some beauty to Bonobo’s sparce soundscape – the music swells around you, luscious in a way that doesn’t feel cloying. Much like the album as a whole, you don’t really want it to end.
‘Distance in Static’ is Green’s strongest album since 2013’s ‘The North Borders’. The way he is able to playfully mix minimal classical motifs, catchy melodies, filthy basslines, and thumping 4/4 beats is reminiscent of his finest work. As with all the best Bonobo releases this a thoughtful album. It demands reflection and taking it on face value might mean you miss a lot of its charm. Hidden under the throb and swell of the electronics are tender sounds is a tender album that will make you smile, and cry, in equal measure if you give it a chance.
Listening to ‘Distance In Static’ I’m really excited to hear how Green translates it to a live setting. Will things have an intimate vibe to them. Giving you the feeling that despite how many other people are in the arena it sounds like Green is only playing to you, or will he just pomp it up and give us something more visceral? I guess it depends on how static he feels on the night.
8/10