Bonobo - Biography
Bonobo (aka Simon Green) is a British musician, producer and DJ who also performs solo DJ sets under the moniker Barakas. Bonobo's musical style utilizes samples, remixes, re-edits and live instrumentation, including various synth modules and an array of vocalists. His live performances often include a live rhythm section, horn section, a string section and backing vocalists.
Bonobo's music was first introduced in 1999 when his track "Terrapin" was included on the Tru Thoughts compilation, When Shapes Join Together. His self-produced debut album, Animal Magic, was released in 2000 on Tru Thoughts. The record was met with critical acclaim and many dubbed Bonobo a pioneer of the "new downtempo" scene. In 2001, Bonobo signed with British based label Ninja Tune and released Dial "M" For Monkey (2003). In 2006, Bonobo made big strides with the release of his third album Days to Come (Ninja Tune), which was voted the Best Album of 2006 by the listeners of Gilles Peterson's program on BBC Radio 1.
Bonobo's breakout came with the March 2010 release of Black Sands (Ninja Tune), which showcased his expanding influences, including Gamelan, Afrobeat and Middle Eastern music. Black Sands has been Bonobo's most acclaimed album of his career thus far, selling over 150,000 copies worldwide. It also allowed him to showcase his live band all over the globe and resulted in a remix album, Black Sands Remixed (Ninja Tune, 2012). His highly anticipated fifth album, The North Borders (out April 2, 2013 on Ninja Tune), finds him collaborating with soulstress Erykah Badu and Grey Reverend (Cinematic Orchestra).