RJD2 @ The Fairmount Theatre

Presented by I Love Neon, SJU, & M for Montreal

November 21, 2015: I arrived at the Fairmount Theatre about thirty minutes before the show by bike. The trip was a lengthy one, and my ears were sore from the cold bike ride. I decided to kill some time and warm up a bit by dipping into the neighbouring grocery store in search of something to warm the blood. After buying some cheap gross box wine, I was lucky enough to find a nice little enclave between two adjoining apartment buildings close-by where I could down the stuff while listening to some of my favourite RJD2 tracks. I've been a fan of the man who started as an associated act of DJ Shadow for a long time, and he has since become a renowned DJ and producer the world over. Releasing nine studio albums, RJD2 is a force in underground hip hop, collaborating with many notable figures—including cats like MF Doom, Slug, and Aesop Rock—over a career that has spanned over two decades. The dude's made some good shit.

The event began at 10:00 PM with Montreal DJs Khalil and Don Mescal performing impressive sets before and after RJD2 took the stage. The openers brought with them an eclectic mix of hip hop-style sounds that complemented RJD2's very well, and set a good mood for the headliner when he took the stage. The venue was pretty tight too. The Fairmount is essentially a sprawling lounge that orbits around a medium-sized stage that backs onto a large projection screen and a light/video show to match.

The packed crowd was a mix of older and younger, with the former perhaps slightly outnumbering the latter. At any rate, the mood seemed one of loose inhibition. The drinks were flowing like the Nile, and those present appeared under the possession of miscellaneous forces, including the sonic elixir of pulse-setting sounds coming from the stage.

RJD2 made his way to the stage sometime between 12:30 and 1:00 AM and was greeted by a pulsating cheer from the excited crowd who were whipped into a dancing frenzy by the opening acts. I positioned myself to the side of the stage where I could really get a good look at the artist while he did his thing; and that thing was done with the use of three turntables, a stack of vinyl, an MPC, and a Maschine.

RJD2 kept the crowd moving through the entire set, while he himself seemed locked in a state of motion; going back and forth, almost frantically, between the MPC, turntables, and Maschine. Special cheers rose from the crowd when he performed classic hits like "Smoke and Mirrors" and "Ghostwriter".

Indeed the crowd was spellbound, and a circle of younger women formed around the platform trying to grasp the attention of the mix master, while around them grouped a semi-circle of creepy-looking men equally trying to grasp the attention of the women. Hedonism seemed to be the order of the night.

The set finished rather abruptly without much of an encore, but to the pleasure of the crowd the two DJs who opened the event took the stage once again and picked up where RJD2 left off. A cool Bruce Lee video montage appeared on the large screen behind the stage, which pleased me greatly, as I adore the late Kung Fu sage. Yeah, all and all it was a good show and I enjoyed himself.