From the streets you could see the windows of the Commodore vibrating in excitement and
hear explosive beats rushing through the open doors out into the crisp night
air. More then a few curious passersby stop and listen—stare—and if I were
them, I'd have picked up a ticket out of curiosity.
Taking my first step onto the Commodore’s legendary bouncy dance floor it became clear I had been missing out on an essential dance music experience. The sound was crystal clear -- I’m talking impeccably perfect. There was room to sit or dance. There was almost no bar line, and the decor set the perfect tone for a swanky underground dance party.
With AC Slater helming the DJ booth the crowd is worked towards dance nirvana. Mixing top forty hit makers like Drake and Kanye/Jay-Z’s Ni**as in Paris with heavy bass lines including a sample of Nero’s Crush, Slater explores the limits of bass, refusing to drop a beat simply to rattle your rib cage: his drops are expertly timed as if he has an innate ability to read the audience perfectly and play us all like dancing puppets. A headliner in his own right, Slater got the night off to a great start.
After warming up the crowd, Slater stepped down, leaving the stage for Feed Me. The crowd grew silent and waited with baited breathe. We had all seen videos of his Teeth stage set up but no one really knew just what to expect. As the curtains dropped and that devilish glowing smile illuminated the Commodore you realized that this was going to be better than any huge set production: it was intimate and Teeth’s magnificence struck you in the face leaving you unable to look away. For many it was a real debate: dance or watch the stage show?
Complex layered electro heavy bass washed over the audience. There was elegance to the beats, as though someone was speaking to you in a different language. You slowly became transfixed by their accent, drawn in, hanging on to every minute transition, every drop. Feed Me’s music gave off an aura, a fully formed persona that infected the room.
There were nice breaks with bass heavy hooks giving way to almost trance like euphoric melodies and innocent 8-bit sound bites. Then, without fail, right as the crowd was ready for another shot of energy -- the bass dropped in perfect time. Feed Me's diverse musicality ensured that his audience is never bored.
Coming out of a particularly beefy hook a familiar voice erupted over the audience. Joel Gardiner of Pure Pwnage fame (if you haven’t seen the web series it’s worth the time) launched into an over-the-top first person shooter tirade in One Click Headshot. Instantly the crowd’s energy spiked into frenzy as they screamed “BOOM HEADSHOOT” at the top of their lungs throwing their guns into the air. And then—wait for it—the drop. One final war cry of “headshot” and everyone was jumping and dancing as one.
As Teeth’s smile faded into oblivion and the crowd prepared for an encore John Gooch (Feed Me) spoke to the audience. His words may have been brief, but one thing rang true: he was very humble. He let his phenomenal music speak for itself. After furiously ripping through a single song the encore came to an end but the crowd refused to leave and began chanting one more song, one more song! Although it was 1am and I needed to catch the Skytrain, I couldn’t leave -- I couldn’t tear myself away. I walked toward the stairs, stopped and listened. Halfway down the first flight and I came to a standstill revelling in the sheer greatness of what was still going on. Then, reluctantly, I left and full-out ran for the Skytrain.
It’s clear why Deadmau5 signed John to his label: he has what it takes to be one of the biggest dance acts in the world, and we were privileged to see him in this perfect venue. As an EDM fan you deserve to see any DJ show at the Commodore, and if you’re lucky you won’t miss Feed Me next time he’s in town. It was a night I'll not soon forget.
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