Royksopp

Norwegians would

We all know that Royksopp (the near-unpronounceable Svein Berge and Torbjorn Bruntland) have the best tunes this side of the devil and an uncanny ability to create dreamy yet funky synth-scapes, but nobody was at all sure whether they would cut it live.

We really need not have worried. The Norwegian duo bounded on stage to provide a set that moved the feet and soothed simultaneously. Occupying opposite corners of the front of the stage, each Royksopper had an impressive bank of synths to stand behind - one augmented by syn-drum pads, which were enthusiastically played live, and the other equipped with a mic that seemed permanently hooked up to a vocoder.

Knob-twiddling synth wizardry was the order of the day. Royksopp clearly love their synths with a passion, and the occasional squelchy analogue moment came as a welcome surprise. A guitarist joined them for the latter half of the set, and a female vocalist floated around. A stunning light-show helped get everybody into the mood, but there was more than a suggestion of bass boominess to the Other Stage's PA.

Of course they played all the old favourites from Melody AM: a sublime Poor Leno, a surprisingly upbeat Eple, which drew raptures from the crowd, a bouncy Remind Me, Sparks - you name it. But for this reviewer, their finest moment was Please Stay, a track they commandeered from Wall Of Sound label-mate Mekon. Well, they're entitled to - Royksopp's remodelling of Please Stay is an astonishing example of the art of remixing.

The big question now is how Royksopp can follow Melody AM - back-to-back classics are so hard to produce. Unfamiliar tracks they played had an element of jamming to them, but were not unpromising, hinting at a more overtly electronic sound - so keep your fingers crossed that they can keep up the good work.

Steve Boxer

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