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The North Borders

by Bonobo

supported by
SMILE! We Are Alive.
SMILE! We Are Alive.  thumbnail
SMILE! We Are Alive. Gah 😫 It’s so good it hurts… so good. Favorite track: Emkay.
23frame
23frame thumbnail
23frame The first time I heard Simon Green I was looking for something special, new and making me feel happy and relaxed at the same time. Then he came out with this job and I was quite curious! The disc is linear and unpredictable at the same time, each song is inserted in the other, so you can not skip a single track. What I appreciated most is his ability to make us feel the difference between those who play electronic music and those who intend electronic music as a complex artifact composed of classical musical knowledge, refined arrangements, dynamic balance between different sounds and so much elegance
Great work!!!
Christopher
Christopher thumbnail
Christopher Easily one of his best albums, Days To Come and Black Sands are amazing, but this is on a different playing field.
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  • Bonobo - The North Borders Japanese Bonus Disc + MP3 (BRC368)
    Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

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  • Bonobo - The North Borders Deluxe 10" Boxset + MP3 (ZEN195X)
    Record/Vinyl + Digital Album

    includes 7x 10" vinyl in printed 4 colour sleeves, CD album (card gatefold), 3 x 20" posters, packed in hi-spec, rigid box (separate base and lid)

    Includes unlimited streaming of The North Borders via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

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1.
First Fires 04:38
2.
Emkay 05:25
3.
Cirrus 05:52
4.
5.
Sapphire 04:47
6.
Jets 04:34
7.
Towers 03:36
8.
Don't Wait 05:17
9.
Know You 04:05
10.
Antenna 03:32
11.
Ten Tigers 04:03
12.
Transits 04:20
13.
Pieces 04:27

about

The story of Bonobo is one that's become uncommon in contemporary music. There was no sudden, viral internet sensation, no one-off big hit, no abrupt, accidental alignment with the zeitgeist. Instead, over the course of four albums, myriad tours, singles, remixes and production work for other artists, he quietly but very definitely became one of the most important artists in electronic music. The hard work paid off, and culminated in 2010's 'Black Sands;' a masterful album that married Green's inimitable melodic genius and musicianship to bleeding edge electronics, bass and infectious drums.

After a year plus of touring the hypnotic, extended live versions of Black Sands, he finally found time last year to embed himself in his New York studio and write his fifth studio album. Now, in 2013, he stands ready to take things up yet another notch. 'The North Borders' is a long stride forward - both a natural evolution and a continuation of the electronic palette of Black Sands. Thematic, resonant, addictive and perfectly formed, it's a thrillingly coherent statement piece.

It's also an album that shows just how far electronic music has come. Its richness of texture, emotive force and all round depth are facets found more often within, dare we say it, classical music. If there's a renaissance taking place within this scene, Simon Green could make a strong claim to being one of its key driving forces.

As with previous albums, The North Borders features a careful balance between vocal tracks and instrumentals, ensuring that the productions themselves get room to breathe and shine. When Green discovered that he and Erykah Badu shared a mutual appreciation for each other’s work, he leapt at the chance to collaborate. The resultant ‘Heaven for the Sinner’ is one of the album’s triumphs, a transcendental, incanted vocal masterclass married to a brilliant two-step glitch and a yearning melody.

NYC folk underdog Grey Reverend appears on album opener 'First Fires,' providing a raw, emotion-laid-bare growl that sets the tone for an album that's joyously unselfconscious. Bonobo has a long history of unearthing new talent, Black Sands having launched the solo career of guest vocalist Andreya Triana. The North Borders sees him do so once again. The startling, ethereal vocals of new collaborator Szjerdene are sprinkled across the album, and Green has yet again found the perfect voice to express where he's at. ‘Transits’ sees her vocal weave around a garage beat that’s somehow fragile and purposeful all at once, a gradually emerging hook rising from the depths of the song.

‘Emkay’ is a stunning example of the album’s marriage of addictive, urban-inflected drums to rise-and-swell melody that never fails to move the listener. Opening single ‘Cirrus’ sees a clockwork-precise rhythm drive a chiming, insistent melody that builds to one of the record’s great emotional climaxes. This is where Green excels; he knows how to invest electronic music with immense feeling.

The North Borders – like all great records - is an album that demands to be listened to as such; a body of work with its own internal logic, themes and narrative arc. Bonobo’s abilities are at an all time high, and The North Borders everything his growing army of fans will have hoped for - a sheer delight.

credits

released March 21, 2013

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Bonobo Brighton, UK

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