The Roots with Ornette Coleman

4 / 5 stars
Royal Festival Hall, London

It seems fitting that Philadelphia hip-hoppers the Roots should help kick off Ornette Coleman's Meltdown festival. Like Coleman, they've worked with guitarist James Blood Ulmer; like Coleman, they feature a nerdy-looking white bassist; like Coleman, they're not afraid to play with unusual lineups (including, at one point, a sousaphone) and explore the outer reaches of the avant garde (check out 2002's Phrenology).

They began their set defiantly, with pugilistic rapper Black Thought and big-haired drummer Questlove playing a two-man tribute to Run-DMC. Joined on stage by the rest of the band - featuring guest guitarist Vernon Reid from Living Colour - they were hampered by a horrible sound mix that rendered the bassist's ugly six-string bass so ill-defined that he might as well have been playing a tea chest and broom.

The concert came to life when Questlove and percussionist F Knuckles indulged in an extended sequence, walking the stage drumming mic stands and kit frames. The band returned for a remarkable, exploratory post-punk jam session - all squelchy keyboards and freak-out bass solos - followed by a reggae-tinged version of their 1999 hit You Got Me. Guest tenor saxophonists David Murray (who plays like he's going to blow his liver out), and the more stately 91-year-old Brummie Andy Hamilton contributed to a sparky Fela Kuti tribute, before Ornette Coleman ambled on to a standing ovation.

He might look like a baffled grand-father at a disco, but any hint of frailty disappeared when he picked up his plastic alto and joined in. His blues-drenched tone was instantly identifiable and his lengthy solo unfolded into something compellingly haunting. Suitably spooked, the Roots returned for an electrifying encore, as if they'd been frightened out of their skins.