Cinematic Orchestra, Hammersmith Apollo

Since 1999, Cinematic Orchestra have been at the forefront of nu-jazz, enduring standard-bearers of a genre that flickers in and out of popularity and seems to lurch from hit to miss with disappointing regularity – for every Nightmares on Wax, there seems to be another Cafe Del Mar compilation ready to harpoon downtempo's cautious progress toward credibility.
Since arriving on the scene with the critically-acclaimed Motion at the turn of the millennium, Cinematic Orchestra seem to have transcended these ups and downs, and retain a name and a reputation others in the field would kill for.
Stalwarts of the genre-defying, pioneering Ninjatune imprint (home to Cinematic Orchestra's spiritual descendant, Bonobo), the Orchestra are built around the vision of Jason Swinscoe, who quotes Kubrick on the band's website: “a film is – or should be – more like music than fiction”, and it's clear to see in Swinscoe's lush, symphonic compositions that this is a motto they hold to above all else: 2003's Man with a Movie Camera was the group's attempt to provide a score for the groundbreaking, eponymous Ukrainian silent movie released 74 years previously.
It has been 7 years since Cinematic Orchestra's latest album, Ma Fleur, which never quite matched their second long-player, the superb Every Day, lit up by the ever-dependable Roots Manuva on the spine-tingling All Things To All Men. Nevertheless, the band don't lack for on-stage talent, and still have the capacity to impress, seamlessly blending lush jazz and soulful trip-hop shuffle into a sound unlike much you'll hear today. For that reason alone it will be worth heading along to the Apollo this autumn.