BONOBO Schallplatten & CDs

Review: Simon Greene aka. Bonobo is set to put forth yet another album from his own personal ether; 'Fragments' was born from actual sonic 'fragments' that were later repurposed into twelve full 'sonic affirmations'. A later escape into the wilds of California's deserts formed the bulk of this album's downtempo magnum opi; watch out for collabs with a foray of world-downtempo electronica acts including Jamila Woods, O'Flynn and Miguel Atwood-Ferguson. One of his most heartfelt albums, expect all from lilting future garage ('Rosewood') to rave-nostalgic slow builds.

Review: Has it really been five years since Migration? Time has flown, but the evergreen appeal of Bonobo holds true as he lands back on his spiritual home of Ninja Tune with another hotly anticipated opus. Fragments finds Simon Green digging deep, having forced himself to work outside of his usual tour-centric comfort zone during the global shutdown and developing a lot of new material in the isolation of the Californian desert. While that air of solitude formed a foundation for the album, he then folded in ample collaborations from Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, Jordan Rakei, O'Flynn, Joji and Kadhja Bonet, resulting in a stirring soul soup of richly developed, danceable rhythms and patient musicality with that unmistakable Bonobo touch.

Review: Before he signed with Tru Thoughts 21 years ago, and many years before he became one of Ninja Tune's most popular artists, Simon Green AKA Bonobo was merely a bedroom DJ/producer knocking up tracks in his Brighton home. The two tracks showcased on this limited-edition "45" date from that period and have never before seen the light of day. A-side 'Brighton Tapes 01' is warming and hazy, with toasty chords, drowsy flute and female vocal samples and deep bass rising above crunchy, loose-limbed MPC-driven drums. Flipside 'Brighton Tapes 02', which contains the same high level of vintage cassette hiss, is similarly warming, with a sweet female vocal sample, snaking sax samples and rich Rhodes chords wrapping around a head-nodding hip-hop beat.

Review: Given his impeccable downtempo credentials, you'd expect Bonobo's Late Night Tales mix to be one of the finer installments in the series (and that's saying something). Predictably, it is. Sweet, sensual and atmospheric, with plenty of unlikely gems and forgotten classics for the heads to enjoy, it surprises and impresses with each successive track. This vinyl edition features 17 of the tracks unmixed (naturally) and lifts out many highlights. His own cover of Donovan's "Get Thy Bearings" is particularly revelatory - string drenched, hazy, atmospheric and, of course, immaculately produced - but there are many other gems. Check Darondo's classic heart breaker "Didn't I," the smoky reggae-soul of Nina Simone's "Baltimore", and the enveloping intimacy of Shlohmo's "Places". Do seek out Benny Cumberbatch's spoken word turn at the end too! (mp3 download code for the full release included).