Frank Ocean headlines Lovebox 2017 with “Blonde” - heavy set

PanARMENIAN.Net - Frank Ocean closed the first day of Lovebox 2017 with a set that drew heavily on his recent album, ‘Blonde‘, NME reports.

The musician has only played a handful of shows in support of the record, including Manchester’s Parklife Festival last month (June 11). Some scheduled appearances were cancelled days before he was due to perform, leaving fans in London apprehensive about whether he would turn up to perform.

Opening his set with ‘Solo’ and recent track ‘Chanel‘, Ocean delivered a 14-song performance that only included one song from his debut album ‘Channel Orange‘, ‘Thinkin’ Bout You’. Other songs featured in the set included ‘Be Yourself’, an instrumental played by Ocean on a keyboard, ‘Lens‘ and ‘Comme Des Garçons’, taken from visual album ‘Endless‘.

It was the first time he had performed in London since appearing at Wireless Festival in 2013. He arrived on stage 30 minutes after his scheduled stage time and performed from a platform in the middle of the crowd. The screens either side of the main stage showed images off the singer from a GoPro camera, Mixmag reports. “I’m just trying to figure this out,” he told the Victoria Park crowd at one point.

“Hey yo, they told me it’s curfew,” he said during ‘Nikes’. “But I just want to thank you all for coming. See you all next time. Be safe.”

Frank Ocean played:

‘Solo’ ‘Chanel’ ‘Lens’ ‘Biking (Solo)’ ‘Comme Des Garçons’ ‘Be Yourself’ ‘Good Guy’ ‘Self Control’ ‘Close To You’ ‘Ivy’ ‘Thinkin’ Bout You’ ‘Nights’ ‘Pink + White’ ‘Nikes’

Fans have taken to Twitter to share their reactions to his set, with his performance dividing opinion.

“I’ve waited years to see Frank Ocean perform live, and he was so boring and disappointing,” wrote one festival-goer. “Left half way through his set.”

Another tweeted: “Holy shit Frank Ocean is a proper vibe killer at lovebox. So bad.”

Others came to Ocean’s defence, however, with one fan saying his set was “low key in it’s loveliness and quietly compelling.” They added: “People moaning in the crowd aren’t worthy of his talents.”

“Frank Ocean is slaying Lovebox, or at least thats what I’d say if these spangled 15 year olds would shut up,” tweeted another.

Others reported people leaving mid-set and sections of the crowd singing other songs over Ocean’s performance.