Part rave, part film score, part art house, but all adding up to one of my shows of the year.
Bolis Pupul’s music isn't something I'd normally come across and wouldn't have if it wasn't for the music maestro OAW Stevie and DJ Gez, but I'm glad I said yes to coming with them to this gig of incredible unique music. I hadn't heard of Bolis Pupul before Stevie's recommendation, but a man with impeccable music taste it was a no-brainer to pick up a ticket for one of the most unusual and amazing sets I've seen for a long time. Leftfield at the Barrowlands in the 90s - one of my most memorable gigs ever - and Underworld earlier are the closest I've come to something like this and both are hard pushed to stack up to what Bolis can do on stage. Incredible stuff.
His latest album, Letter To Yu, was the majority of this set and while the record has heavy dance vibes, he took each song up a notch in improvising and adding layers and layers of new sounds. The first few tracks were a bit more laid back quieter sound, with Bolis hovering over side keyboards and occasionally smiling to the crowd, but wasn't long before he took up the mic and began wandering across the front of the stage shaking hands and giving out "hellos". He’s also a very funny guy with his comments and way he engaged the crowd (ask me next time you see me).
Bolis's music is controlled, sophisticated and impeccably orchestrated. It's like he patches songs seamlessly together and takes the tunes in all directions, using the original recorded song as the blueprint for what he feels like playing (and he looked so chuffed he seems to be playing for himself, dancing on stage more than the crowd did). His split shirt (half orange/yellow streak and half blue & black camo patterned) exactly represented his set and style - it looks like how he sounds, contrasting and colourful. Plus, one of the heaviest basses I've felt at a gig (actually felt not heard, it was that deep) is no bad thing either.
His sister Salah was an unexpected addition when she joined him onstage for Ma Tau Wai Road (and then disappeared as quickly as she arrived). From then on, his style was full-on rave, quickening the pace and lifting noise levels and the crowd with each song until he announced he was going to do his last two songs. I couldn't tell you exactly what the setlist was, or how many songs he'd already played because the only pauses up til then were when he chipped in with a few "thank you’s", for the crowd to react with applause and cheer, so another two tracks could be anywhere between a few minutes and half an hour. Luckily, we got about another quarter of an hour and even though the set was just over an hour, three or four times that from other bands would leave you feeling short-changed compared to this.
I've no idea why - but delighted from a selfish point of view - he's playing somewhere as compact as Sneaky Pete's (also my 10th gig there this year), and had me imagining how good it would be to get him along to play at our annual "big BBQ", which has seen us host a lot more than the Sneaky Pete's can hold. I'm sure he'll be in a bigger venue next time round.
Leo Vincent was supporting and from the 20 minutes of his set, I can see why he was a good match up for Bolis. Similar in that he was frantically adding and adapting his electronic sonic chaos with fresh beats, and overlaying the occasional live guitar melody as well. To top it off he threw in an old landline phone handset into the sound and tangled it round his guitar, which added to the improvised feel of his set. By the end I was regretting we hadn't seen the whole set, so worth checking out more.
The evening wasn't all top-notch music, the pre-gig (and in-between sets) chat was as entertaining as ever, covering the usual wide range of subjects from Nicky Campbell podcasts with Dominatrixes (and inappropriate times to listen to them), online quiz shows (quizcasts?) and really tall guys at gigs. Right at the front, right in the middle and a right pain.
Do yourself a massive favour and check out Bolis Pupul’s latest album and catch him live if you can. Excellent.
Great review of a great gig Danny