Austin: Bonobo at Emo’s
Bonobo brings his full live band to Emo’s on Thursday, November 5, as part of the Distance in Static North American tour. Doors are at 7 PM, with tickets starting around $40 for a set that blends downtempo electronic production with live instrumentation.
Bonobo is the stage name of British producer Simon Green, who’s spent more than two decades turning hushed, genre-blurring electronic music into festival-headlining spectacle. Signed to the influential Ninja Tune label since his 2000 debut, Green built a devoted following with albums like Black Sands (2010) and The North Borders (2013), before his 2017 record Migration earned a nomination for the UK’s Mercury Prize. Rather than performing as a solo DJ, Green tours with a full band — strings, horns, and percussion alongside electronics — translating his intricately layered studio records into something closer to a live orchestra.
Emo’s main room, built for loud touring rock bands, turns out to suit Bonobo’s layered live show just as well — the venue’s size gives the band’s horn and string sections room to cut through without losing the low end that anchors Green’s productions. Austin’s own strong instrumental and electronic-jazz scene makes the city a natural stop for an act that blurs those same lines.
Grab tickets before they’re gone.
Green has collaborated with vocalists like Nick Murphy (Chet Faker) and Rhye’s Milosh over the years, and his 2022 album Fragments continued a run of records that top electronic and dance charts without ever abandoning his melodic, song-based instincts. Fans making a night of it can also check out Hotel Vegas, a few miles east, for a very different but equally essential slice of Austin’s live music scene.
Doors are at 7 PM for this all-ages show. Red River parking fills up quickly on weeknight shows with this kind of draw, so arrive early.