Nils Frahm - Barbican Centre, London 29/10/14

As with any show at London's Barbican Centre, there is an immediate, unavoidable premonition that we are about to witness something special: the towering hall somehow feels as intimate as it does grandiose; the lighting is soft, the seats comfortable; it feels like we should be going for small pot of ice cream at the interval. For a regular gig-goer in the Capital, it is suddenly difficult to remember what it's like being rammed into a sweaty basement drinking overpriced pale ale, or in fact, why you’d ever want to be.

Wandering onto the dimly lit stage, Frahm appears to a barrage of applause, bows humbly and takes his place behind, or really in-amongst, his wonderfully juxtaposing setup of upright and grand pianos which flank a Back To The Future-looking synth rig, which he assures us is mostly "kaput".

He may appear humble but Frahm is clearly a (white) liar. The sounds produced by the DIY electronic tower of kit is anything but broken; opening number “An Aborted Beginning”, which morphs seamlessly into the miraculous “Says” captures everything that the composer is about: unbreakable, relentless concentration leads to hypnotic refrains that tease as they grow organically towards the introduction of spine-tingling bass that rumbles through the body with shocking power. This muddling of twinkling melodic beauty and powerful explosions of bass and synthesised noise undoubtedly inspired Jon Hopkins; fans of Immunity should dip immediately into Frahm’s Spaces.

Works such as ”Familiar”, “Ambre” and the utterly impressive and metronomic “Said And Done” - which emphasises his strength as a pianist thanks to its non-stop pedal note - show-off his ability to create stunningly melancholic, motion soundtrack-esque works and shine a light on his classical prowess. There’s humour too though; with tracks as transfixing as Frahm’s his ability to chat casually, self-deprecatingly to the wowed auditorium is as welcome as it is genuinely amusing.

There’s a complete sense of calm about him as he strolls around the stage in one shoe before launching into yet another intense showing of musicianship, best highlighted by “Toilet Brushes / More” - which, as the name suggests involves playing the inside of the piano with the unlikely instruments - and an improvised piano encore which ends perfectly on the requested “Happy Birthday”.

Of course the aforementioned evenings of ear-splitting rawness still, and will always, have their place but tonight is all about a performance of immaculate and at times mind-bending brilliance from one of the most talented young musicians in his field; let Nils Frahm introduce you to his nu-classical world; it’s a very special place.

Photograph by Siamack Amini - see the whole gallery here.