Napoleon IIIrd – Koko, London 19/11/10

29 November 2010, 21:35 | Written by Lauren Down

(Live)

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Click on any image to enlarge | All photographs by Sonny Malhotra

It has been a crazy few months for Napoleon IIIrd’s James Mabbett. Having released his debut album, Christiania, only a few weeks ago the Yorkshire-born artist has already toured the length and breadth of the country and tonight sees him transform from a one-man electronica band into a live instrument-playing six-piece. Borrowing drummers from AKDK, horns from Stairs to Korea and Internet Forever, and keys from DreamTrak, Napoleon IIIrd is all set to blow the lid off his own carefully crafted soundscape.

Having only rehearsed together a handful of times, the air of excitement this evening is mixed with a certain unease. As Mabbett’s gruff, howling vocals emerge amidst swirling live percussion, soaring keys and dirty electronic beats all anxious anticipation subsides. Tonight’s band rolls out the infectious, off-kilter electronic melodies with an incredible confidence.

Kicking this evening’s preceding off with ‘The Unknown Unknown’ Mabbett hunches over his laptop whilst the industrial bass collides with gentle, ambient harmonies and a previously unheard horn section. With flourishing synths, ‘The Hardline Optimist’ and ‘MTFU’ have the crowd surging forward in the throws of euphoria, half of them embracing the dance rhythms the other half not really sure what they are witnessing.

Napoleon IIIrd’s biggest show to date seems over far too soon as he announces ‘Leaving Copenhagen’ will be the last track of this evening before the harsh, multi-layered vocals swell against cold mechanical hums and the invigorating call to “all go to Christiania.”

Obscure electronica it may well be but the live drums, keys and horns have really opened up Napoleon IIIrd’s atmospherics, allowing Mabbett to focus on the core beats and drive behind his music – rather than fussing over every element – in the hope that nothing goes awry. It seems that the visual aesthetics of tonight’s show have finally gone someway to catching up to the experimental, improvisational and slightly anarchistic nature of Christiania.