Electronic music as a genre has exploded over the last decade and found its place in the mainstream music audiences of the world. As a whole, electronic music has a large range of styles and talents which show themselves in all of the vast sub genres that the scene has to offer. However, every once in a while an artist comes along and captivates a collection of so many different influences, that their sound can be candidly heard in a singular fashion. Artists like this have the ability to dive deep into electronic music and develop a fan base that is so dedicated and passionate, it is hard to knock them off of the throne. An artist who has perfectly embodied this dominant talent in dance music is the ever so controversial, Deadmau5.
Over the course of his career, Deadmau5, also known by his full name, Joel Zimmerman, has brought to electronic music a cold, talented, and sometimes cringe worthy personality that has sparked some of the hottest blog articles around. However, his true contribution has been a seriously individual style of house music that fans can’t ever seem to get enough of. No matter where he is playing, and who he is playing for, it seems a crowd is always in awe leaving one of his performances. Fans in the Philadelphia area were lucky enough to have Zimmerman stop by Camden’s BB&T Pavilion on his most recent ‘Lots of Shows in a Row’ tour. With the date set for Friday, April 7th, fans eagerly filled with excitement as the show drew close. Mau5 sure as hell did not disappoint us.
Opening the show was another one of EDM’s greatest talents, Feed Me. Feed Me has built a career behind his ability to produce and spin an extremely eclectic collection of original tunes and remixes. Whether you are a big fan of his older dubstep style, his drum n bass alter ego Spor, or his recent dive into the tech side of house music, there’s something for everyone in his sets. He opened the room with ease and poise and set the perfect atmosphere for Mau5’s forthcoming performance. As Feed Me left the stage and a short change over began, it was hard not to notice the palpable buzz of electricity in the air as attendees began to realize that the set they had been waiting for was almost here. As the first chords began to play, and the stage lights glimmered behind the black screen, roars from the fans echoed through the venue.
Finally, the curtain dropped, revealing the 2.1 version of Deadmau5’s famous stage production, ‘The Cube’, and Zimmerman stood on top staring down at his disciples ready to blow their minds. As the show progressed, it was rare to see a moment where taking a 360 degree look around the venue wouldn’t reveal a sea of glimmering, smiling, and crying faces. The energy in the venue was alive, and Mau5 perfectly matched it. Watching him on stage, it was truly inspiring to see how into the performance Zimmerman was. It seemed that the stage production was his child, the music he was playing was his art, and this show was the exact experience he envisioned when shutting his eyes as a small child and wishing he could share himself with the world. The performance was yet again, more than we could ever imagine from the helmeted hero. We really hope to see Zimmerman back in this city again, it’s clear that we truly love him and his passion.
The after party following the madness at BB&T Pavilion consisted of Philadelphia local Patrick Richards, No Mana, Feed Me, Attlas, and the Mau5 himself. Tickets for the event, held at Coda nightclub, sold out within hours, leaving Philadelphia fans scrambling for extra tickets and buzzing the internet about the show. Strolling up to the venue for the aftermath, it was a pleasant surprise to see there wasn’t a line at all. In fact, there was a steady stream of people into the venue all night. In a last-minute set change, Attlas went on before Feed Me, and I could hear a few patrons of Coda cheering in excitement as they entered the venue on Walnut Street.
For a sold out show at Coda, I was a bit hesitant to head upstairs in fear there would be little space, but, to the delight of every patron, there was ample room to groove to the intimate sets from all the artists. Coda was filled with such positive, pleasant vibes from everyone on the security staff, to bartenders, to others caught in the Mau5trap. With the legendary troll in the house, I was eager to hear him call out a few jokes, but was engulfed in amazing music from the artists instead.
For someone with as much reach, and as many fans, and talent, to be in a venue with such a different capacity than the BB&T show prior, it was nice to feel part of the Mau5trap family and one of the lucky ones who got to see him in such an intimate setting. Deadmau5 even got a hold of the Feed Me’s twitter account, and posted a quick selfie of him inside Coda making fun of him for leaving his phone, just waiting to be used for hacking and selfies. This was a night Philly won’t soon forget!
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[Photos by C2H2 Photo]
[BB&T review by Adam Leopold, Coda review by Alyssa Anderson]
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