Scandinavian tag-team, Robyn and Röyksopp brought their new live show to Hollywood’s imposing Bowl on Sunday night for an evening of Scandy pop and lasers – and HBF’s Shea Kopp was there to soak it up.
Röyksopp’s sound is a hard one to nail down, the Norwegian duo sway effortlessly between pop appeal and electronic experimentalism. Going into Sunday’s performance at the Hollywood Bowl with long-time collaborator Robyn, I wasn’t sure which direction the night would go but I knew it would somehow conclude around their latest EP, ‘Do It Again’.
Thankfully there was something to appease both fans of Röyksopp and Robyn. Any feeling of apprehension was soon forgotten when Röyksopp took to the stage early to open with their solo set with classics like ‘Remind Me’, ’This Must Be It’ and ended with an extended version of ‘Poor Leno’.
“Röyksopp re-emerged back on stage donning silver kaleidoscopic jackets to match Robyn’s equally obscure outfit choice”.
As the sun set and the lasers became more pronounced against Hollywoood’s night sky, the ending guitar chords of ‘Poor Leno’ transformed into an insane outro. Without missing a beat, Robyn replaced the Norwegian duo on stage with an energy level that remained high for the remainder of the night. She sang her own hits, including ‘With Every Heartbeat’, ‘Dancing On My Own’ and ‘Call Your Girlfriend’ to a crowd that seemed to know (and sing) every word and chord progression in between.
Röyksopp re-emerged back on stage donning silver kaleidoscopic jackets to match Robyn’s equally obscure outfit choice and they wasted no time in introducing the relentless bass heavy stabs and vocoder riffs to ‘Sayit’. This is where the performance truly showcased Röyksopp and Robyn’s ability to confuse pop music by mixing all their styles together; the oppressive atmospherics of Royksopp with the unmatched charisma of Robyn.
They played the entire EP in its entirety, including a darkly blissed-out version of ‘Monument’, and even interjected the set with the older collab ‘The Girl and the Robot’. The night concluded with the new EP’s swan-song and fan-favourite ‘Do It Again’ where an anxious pause after the chorus, broke into an animated reprise of the entire song. R&R’s performance ended with a blast-from-the-past in the form of Robyn’s underrated track ‘None of Dem’. Whether you began the night strictly as a Röyksopp fan or a Robyn fan, you’ll have walked away with an appreciation for the both artists.
