Deadmau5‘s closing set at Governors Ball 2015 on Saturday, June 6, had promised to be a primetime unveiling of the new geodesic dome setup that was years in the making for the mercurial electronic musician.
Governors Ball 2015: Most Memorable Moments From Day 2
Instead, it started as a patience-testing struggle against power issues that caused the sound to sputter and cut out multiple times. The pregnant pauses spurred “fix this shit” chants and speculation that the trickster artist was messing with the crowd. “It was so good for like minutes!” lamented one attendee.
Deadmau5 removed his trademark mau5head and could be seen yelling at the tech crew onstage before coming out to the front, shrugging and doing a few push-ups to fans’ amusement.
Governors Ball 2015: Photos From the Festival!
His team later released the following statement: “During deadmau5 closing set tonight at Governors Ball there was a pause in the performance due to a power issue. Governors Ball and deadmau5 team worked quickly to rectify the situation and the show resumed.”
The outspoken artist also took to Twitter to address what had taken place.
The Toronto act did indeed recover well from the technical difficulties with a series of strong original songs. The crowd erupted as the searing electro synth lead of “Moar Ghosts n Stuff” rung out and seamlessly transitioned into beloved vocal cut “Ghosts n Stuff.” Constellations filled the screens to accompany the opening chords from “The Veldt,” ushering in a special mix of the Ray Bradbury inspired number. Deadmau5’s sublime 10-minute marathon “Strobe” left attendees with mouths agape and helped render the sound issues a distant memory.
Ryan Adams Goes On Anti-Deadmau5 Rant at Governors Ball (Live Review)
Despite the interruptions, the stage’s booming bass apparently bled into Ryan Adams‘ competing set, prompting a curmudgeonly rant from the North Carolina rocker: “Try to make this song on your f–king iPhone. This song is not going to match the robot music over there… It’s like we’re living in a f–king Terminator nightmare!”
Deadmau5 later responded to Adams’ comments on Twitter in bemused fashion.
The performance’s end saw deadmau5 parody Katy Perry‘s Super Bowl halftime show with a dancing shark and palm tree joining the irreverent artist while he reclined onstage. It was a fittingly lighthearted finale for what was undoubtedly a frustrating situation for the often volatile personality — but one that he handled with considerable class and poise.
Rehearse all you want, you’re still at the mercy at the fuckup who doesn’t know how 3 phase power works. Lol. Amazing recovery tho!
— deadmau5 (@deadmau5) June 7, 2015
Yeah, they unfuck it eventually. Some gear got fucked over, but at least I still had some other shit to get by with https://t.co/8P06MnFsub
— deadmau5 (@deadmau5) June 7, 2015
Either way… Even with the shaky start, was a great time. 🙂 good to see ya NYC. Now to go rinse the fuck out of the night with some techno
— deadmau5 (@deadmau5) June 7, 2015
I guess Ryan Adams wasn’t feeling it. No biggie. Sorry for bass? Whatever. Nice seeing you again too. *shrug* back to my iPod.
— deadmau5 (@deadmau5) June 7, 2015
OH ONES! another rocker vs. Electronic music feud! This is all JUST SO FUCKIN NEW! At least his music is original. https://t.co/ZFQULnUBLg
— deadmau5 (@deadmau5) June 7, 2015
A cool dude. Met him a few times in LA. Talented musician, had a jam sesh with em once. Which is why I find this odd https://t.co/FaKgtlOR2G
— deadmau5 (@deadmau5) June 7, 2015