A Royksopp show is the closest thing to a rave 40-year-olds with any remaining self-respect would dare attend.  While the Norwegian duo certainly lured their fair share of middle-aged women looking for an excuse to lose their inhibitions on (gasp!) a weeknight to Club Nokia, the crowd was as varied as one could possibly imagine.  Royksopp’s KCRW-friendly brand of Eurodisco is loud and sparkly enough to impress the youngsters and chic enough to allow soccer moms and cougars to boogie freely without fear of embarrassment.  They managed the feat of bringing together frat boys, teenage indie-cred hunters, apparent video game enthusiasts, and wrinkly women on the prowl under the same cell-phone sponsored roof, united by their love for bright lights, big beats, and poor excuses to get inebriated on a Wednesday night.

The duo first appeared on stage bathed in foggy purple light.  Torbjorn Brundtland was dressed in a lab coat as he manned the decks, a mad scientist intent on pushing the limits of the venue’s sound system.  Keyboardist/vocoder extraordinaire Svein Berge appeared to have constructed his outfit from pieces of clothing found at yard sales held by Brandon Flowers and the Knife; the winglike tassels that lined his sleeves flailed wildly as he gleefully bashed his condensed drum kit.  They were joined by a live bass player and singer Anneli Drecker, a striking Scandinavian siren who led the crowd in song and dance.  A featured vocalist on the group’s latest release Junior, Drecker also ably covered the vocal parts belonging to the Knife’s Karin Dreijer Andersson.  Her on-stage theatrics, especially her spazzed out gyrations, provided the crowd with a great point of focus when the principal pair’s heads were buried in their equipment.

The show opened with a grandiose, mid-tempo instrumental performed by only Brundtland and Berge, evoking a mild sway from the audience that was hardly the type of crowd reaction you would expect at a techno show.  However, as soon as the syncopated bass throb of “The Must Be It” exploded from the sound system, the ground began to shake from the massive number of feet two-stepping to the beat.  Wasting no time in winning over the more casual Royksopp listeners in the audience, they launched into an energetic rendition of “Remind Me,” which reminded all attending motorists to switch their car insurance to Geico.  Drecker and Berge took turns commanding the stage and working the crowd into a frenzy with the assistance of a stunning light show that could rival Pikachu in its seizure-inducing powers.  Swedish ‘90s pop tart turned 21st century electro diva Robyn made a warmly received guest appearance reprising her part on “The Girl and the Robot,” strutting back and forth with the swagger of a veteran superstar.  Following her performance, Brundtland repeatedly exclaimed her name as though the strobe lights got the best of him, reflecting the state of excitement that she left the audience in.  The satisfied crowd was surprisingly reverent enough not to shout out requests for “Show Me Love,” knowing damn well that Robyn wouldn’t have to sing the song to convince the audience to do just that for Royksopp.

—Amorn Bholsangngam