Last month, Deadmau5 did as only he could by dropping his mixing duties mid-set at Governor’s Ball to take a quick couch break with his friend dressed as a palm tree and Left Shark. Though his fans ate the act up, and some even speculated that it was a purposeful jab at his previously expressed distaste for fellow “DJs” that don’t do a whole lot while on stage, Deadmau5 revealed that the stunt was actually just a last minute cover up for a technical flub.

“So I was working on that segment of the show and I lost all the stems for it. So I was like, ‘F—, man!’ I gotta play that track because it’s a good little break. But I didn’t have any of the parts or the MIDI files — anything. I can’t do a harmonica solo on top of it. So I said, ‘F— it. I’ll play the two-track (album version) back.’ But then what can I do? I could just sit there and fist-pump and at that point, then yes, I’m a DJ. So I thought, ‘Let’s just get some goofy costumes and sit down and have a beer’ — a little improv theatre. Actually, it’s really great because after 90 minutes or 75 minutes or however long it is, I just want to take a seat.”

Thankfully, his humor was appreciated by all and his Governor’s Ball slip ups (including a power outage that briefly cut his sound system) were quickly forgotten. Instead, most were enthralled by his newly debuted stage set up: a ‘Thunderdome’ upgrade from his former Cube fame that has been a project years in the making.

Besides being at the helm of his own unique channel of electronic music, Deadmau5 has also championed innovative technology behind his live performances. As one of the first to create an distinctly recognizable live performance “costume,” he elevated his stage set up both literally and physically with the progression of the Cube, all the while integrating cutting-edge visuals and touch screen control panels. He has since graduated from the Cube — and touch screen technologies as well (“It’s show pony shit, the touch screen stuff … As far as doing stuff efficiently, touch screen is not the way to go — it’s not ‘the future of DJing’ — but it looks cool.”) — and is investing his money where he thinks really counts.

“There are easy ways to convey your music but I like to build more of a show around it, even though a lot of the principles remain the same: That I’m playing back a lot of premeditated things and pre-produced things but I’m not doing it with two $500 pieces of Pioneer shit and a glow stick in my mouth. The way I see it: If you’re going to pay a guy upwards of $500,000 to a million f—ing dollars to stand on a stage in front of however many people at ‘X’ EDM event, if you’re not putting at least 200 grand into your stage show other than an LED wall and some backline stuff, it’s just the biggest ripoff.”

Via: Vancouver Sun

Read More:

Deadmau5 experiments with bass guitar in his rework of ‘Are You Not Afraid?’

Deadmau5 debuts new moustrap-inspired stage at Governor’s Ball at NYC

Or check out our photos from Deadmau5’s set at Governor’s Ball 2015.

Tags: deadmau5, governer's ball

Categories: Music