By Bruce Rave

Big Black Delta opened an encore, night two, performance for M83 at Club Nokia in Downtown LA this past Friday. For those unfamiliar with the B3SCI top 50 in 2011 track-makers, BBD is the current project of Mellowdrone’s Jonathan Bates. It was great seeing him back, as I’ve long hoped for a new Mellowdrone project. If Mellowdrone had a certain Beck vibe, then Big Black Delta often reminds me of the darker synth music coming out of England in the late 80’s. Still their music maintains a winning freshness. The band arrived on stage pre-approved by M83 (Big Black Delta appeared on M83’s “Midnight City” remix EP) with Bates singing and working layers of synths and backing tracks accompanied by two female drummers. Bates moved in a herky-jerky way that made total sense and came off as likable in the lower-key environment. Those close to the stage got to see and hear a solid show from the up and coming LA based project. Jason Bates is a strong front man, especially with good songs like “Huggin & Kissin” under his belt.

M83’s live show is ready for prime time. Oh wait, they ARE prime time thanks to the massive success of “Midnight City”. Especially having completed two sold-out nights at Club Nokia, only two months after they played at the Henry Fonda Theater in Hollywood. To be fair, it’s more than just the hit song that has brought them to this level. M83 has had a stellar live show all along. I will admit to not being a fan of Club Nokia, as the sound frankly sucks for most artists. The décor of the place seems to be geared more to the downtown velvet rope crowd. Either way, M83 cut through and delivered a show that reached everyone. From “Intro” into “Teen Angst” and then “Kim & Jesse”, it was immediately apparent that M83’s progressive synth-pop has taken on a rock-sized presence that will allow their show to work anywhere.

Leader Anthony Gonzalez freely admits to being uneasy in the role of front man, but M83’s style doesn’t require an outsized character. He actually fits the role quite well even if he has appeared less at ease in the past. I’d contest that the slower songs didn’t work as well as everything else, but really that’s just a minor concern. “Midnight City” was as expected the highlight of the evening. The hit seemed to come all too soon even though it was song number twelve in the set. This band may be known for being fairly low-key, but there were times when standing or sitting still was virtually out of the question. Most were even raving upstairs in the often jaded balcony, not only for the hit, but for the hot second encore “Couleurs”. The Frenchman Gonzalez has lived in LA for the past two years, so this week was very much a home town win for him. He and the band seemed genuinely blown away by the size of the crowd as well as the response. They will hit Coachella in April, and I fully expect their show to be a festival highlight.

Big Black Delta at Club Nokia

M83 at Club Nokia

Check out Bruce’s “Go Deep” show on Fridays 1-3 pm Pacific, 4-6 pm Eastern, 9-11pm GMT. Also listen to past shows at Bruce’s blog and follow Bruce on Twitter.