Live Report: Jon Hopkins brings his mind-bending show to Dublin

Acclaimed DJ and musician Jon Hopkins kicked off the show at Dublin's Bord Gáis Energy Theatre with an emotional, crystalline-sounding grand piano solo. Holding their breath in unison, the audience appeared instantly mesmerised.

As the piano cadence became more feverish, a guitarist, violinist and cellist joined in – their symbiotic melodies smoothly merging together. Suddenly, the sounds became strident and distorted to an extent which became nearly uncomfortable. But that is precisely where the magic happened last night – in the sometimes abrupt yet perfectly balanced contrast which this whole performance seemed to encapsulate.

Jon Hopkins at Bord Gais Energy Theatre. Friday 6th of March 2020. Copyright Miguel Ruiz.

Like the anticipation of being taken on a rollercoaster ride, there was no way of knowing what was coming next. As the intensity of the music had reached a first harsh peak, the theatre suddenly fell silent again before it started to resonate with more ethereal melodies. Regularly hopping from the grand piano onto his electronic setup, Hopkins followed up with heavy kicks which sent the crowd into a frenzy.

On many occasions, the joyful audience jumped out of their seats and danced passionately, before sitting back down again, transfixed by yet another switch to more incredibly textured, hypnotic sounds. By the end of the show, a palpable energy had filled the room. Unsurprisingly, the audience cheered for more. Hopkins delighted them with several more uplifting, organic-sounding tunes before a breath-taking grand piano finale.

The whole performance adroitly managed to combine two musical universes often seen as polar opposites – captivating the audience by taking them on a uniquely powerful musical journey.