As the sun began to set over Victoria Park, a soft golden hue seemed to form all around; as if I was seeing everything through a 35mm camera. In front of me stands a man I’d come to terms with only ever hearing on record, someone I’d have to always appreciate from a distance. Now, that distance was not thousands of miles and a pair of headphones but five metres and a metal barrier.

Frank Ocean is something of an enigma in the world of modern music. Very few, if any, draw such hype and anticipation by remaining so painfully silent. It was four years since Frank Ocean last performed in London; at Wireless Festival 2013, shortly after the release of his Grammy winning debut studio album, ‘Channel Orange.’ For three years after that set, the Ocean camp fell silent, until seemingly out of nowhere, and to the hysteria of music bloggers across the world, he showered us in new material; a video album, a magazine, and finally, a shiny new audio-only album, ‘Blonde.’ A self-confessed perfectionist, something of a breath of fresh air in a scene concentrated with half-finished albums and desperate collaborations, Ocean showed us once again, that he is in a field all of his own. Eleven months later, he returned to London, a city he called home for a while whilst trying to escape his new found superstar status, to put on a show few of those attending will ever forget.

As time ticked by, an air of nervousness had begun to spread through the crowd. He was thirty minutes late. We were going to get a much shorter set, but a lot of us were worried whether we’d get a set at all. Ocean had cancelled appearances at Sasquatch! and Primavera Sound on accounts of ‘production issues’ a month prior, so, understandably, part of me was apprehensive as to whether this was all too good to be true. But, almost bang on half an hour after schedule, Frank stepped up onto the platform in the middle of the crowd from which his entire set was performed. Wearing headphones, an SS15 Raf Simons transparent shirt and a pair of Old Skools, Ocean oozed a sense of afflictive self confidence as he starts his set. “Sorry if I’m not engaging enough,” he mutters after his first song, ‘Solo,’ “I’m still trying to figure this out.” From the first word, the crowd is nestled nicely in the palm of his hand. For the first few songs, Frank was alone on stage, as he exercised a bewitching control over his crowd rarely seen. As he flew through tracks off recent projects, it became apparent how ‘Blonde-heavy’ this set would be, with ‘Thinkin’ Bout You,’ the only track performed off studio debut, ‘Channel Orange.’

This seeming overlooking of past material was one of the main factors dividing crowds at Lovebox. Many fans, including myself, were excited to see the songs which got us hooked on Frank in the first place, as well as more recent tracks, however, total focus was put onto ‘Endless,’ “Blonde’ and recent singles. An artist’s musical progression is something that must be appreciated, although in this case, it may have been nice to see, in an already shortened set, a few more crowd-pleasers. This did, in no real way, detract from the hypnotising nature of the performance. Highlights for me were the renditions of latest single ‘Biking’ and album highlight ‘Self Control,’ but I must say that there wasn’t a single song which disappointed; a credit to Ocean as an artist and performer. Franks vocals were, for lack of a better phrase, on point, for the entire performance and the understated intensity of the show left the crowd, or at least me and my friends, in a strange over-emotional state.

Credit must also be paid to Frank’s production as well as his performance. Skeletal minimalism is a theme that flows sonically through ‘Blonde,’ and is fabricated in the form of Frank’s live set up. Frank performs upon a sparsely furnished podium; surrounded by only his band, their instruments and a chair. But the visuals on stage, where now sits an enormous LED screen, are being filmed and streamed live by a couple of cameramen scurrying about Ocean's feet. It’s difficult to describe quite how stunning some of the shots were, but it did genuinely feel like I was part of a music video being filmed in real time.

If concerts are preaching to the converted, then festivals are missionary work. Frank’s performance, although short, was incredibly sweet; an intimate and emotive set working around a thematic simplicity, which, in my opinion, was perhaps better suited outside of a festival setting. Nevertheless, this will go down as one of the best sets I’ve seen in my life and although it did little to win any new fans, it enthralled those he already had.

5/5

P.S. The guy you can hear in the video isn't me. It's some loud Danish guy I was stood next to.

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