Todd Terje and Leftfield Among the Metropolis Highlights

SATURDAY
Although only in its third year, Metropolis is already a mainstay on the Irish scene – bridging the gap between the summer festivals and the busy Christmas period. Despite having to make a line-up change (leaving us all in need of some TLC) tickets flew out the door.
Known primarily as a dance festival, this year’s line-up seems to weigh even more heavily to the electronic and house end of the spectrum. We bundled up in our woollies and headed to the RDS to catch the first act of the weekend – Jack Dunne. It being just 4pm on a Saturday, the crowds have yet to join us – a massive shame. The young producer’s ambient techno deserves an audience and we’re glad we were among those who made it for an atmospheric intro to the weekend.
FJAAK followed him on the same stage and the Berlin trio brought a more up-tempo sound as the crowd grew. Their house techno tunes had the people dancing and already pumped at an early hour.
We left the Warehouse stage to witness Newbridge duo Mix and Fairbanks in the Industries Hall. Their groovy, and very funky, electronic set was expertly mixed: we couldn’t help but dance. A highlight was how disco classic Donna Summers’ ‘I Feel Love’ was teased out with a sample before a seamless transition into the full song. Working in a sustained sample note at the same pitch of the songs vocal built suspense and queued up the track perfectly.
Back on the Warehouse stage Richard Fearless (aka Death in Vegas) really set the night off. His melodic electronic set was enhanced by a brilliant light show with the lighting rig extending all the way into the audience. He went down a storm.
Laurent Garnier followed on the same stage and benefitted from a warmed up crowd. His offering was much more beat-driven – you could feel the kick drum in your chest. Providing the best back drop visuals we have seen yet, Garnier leans more on textures than melody and delivered for every minute of an extended, two-hour set.
Elsewhere, Seany B put smiles on the faces, starting with some fun disco cuts, before progressing to a more house and dance sound.
Bingo Loco has been making itself a festival essential. Playing to a raucous crowd made the bingo aspect almost impossible, but the loco element more than compensated. They threw crowd pleasing classics such as ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and ‘Zombie Nation’ at a ravenous crowd who devoured every last morsel.
Our appetites firmly whetted, we were ready for headliners Leftfield and almost ran to the Warehouse stage where they were playing their classic album Leftism in full. They gave a masterclass in mixing live instrumentation with electronics and had the crowd in the palms of their hands as fans raved to their sound and watched in awe at their ever changing visuals. This wasdance music at its best.
Saturday over, we headed home to regroup for the following day – we’d need all our energy for the moment when full set of stages went live!

SUNDAY
Le Boom had the crowd on their feet at the Bulmers Live stage, their impressive pulsing lights filling the small room, adding to the energy of what was an intimate experience. Repeatedly expressing their appreciation, this twosome may take nothing for granted, but they definitely deserved the attention and love they were getting. Make it your business to catch them, if you haven’t yet.
We made our first venture to the main stage to catch Booka Brass. The 8-piece have been delighting audiences – including on one occasion our esteemed President Michael D. Higgins – with their soulful grooves and bright brass lines for a number of years. Blending reggae, soul and jazz, Booka show how to work effectively as a unit, while also individually showcasing their skills with solos.
Peggy Gou was the first act with queues out the door: we entered a scene with revellers going crazy to some of the most intense dance music we have heard so far. A total change of scene was on the cards as Jazzy Jeff took to the main stage, mixing r’n’b, hip-hop, rock and dance in a seamless way that all makes sense – and had the crowd hanging onto every cut. Employing two MC’s to hype the crowd up, it’s clear that this man knows what he’s doing.
Jungle had us spellbound with an incredible backdrop, often spelling out the band’s name for any drop-in’s who might not know who they are. A six-piece, they deliver drawn out grooves which build to the point of crescendo but never go over that line. The result is a consistently intense energy throughout, their soulful vocals sitting nicely against a backdrop of electro and r’n’b beats. Closing out with a crowd pleaser, they made sure the audience ‘Can’t Get Enough’.
We stuck to where we were for Todd Terje – the man tasked with closing the action on the main stage. A fine example of someone who knows his audience, he lived up to the challenge with a series of his finest dance anthems. Holding out for a ong time, he finally gifted his pièce de résistance in the form of ‘Inspector Norse’ – and away we went with it’s infectious melody stuck in our heads for the night. Not a bad final salvo at all!
Metropolis – you delivered again. See you next year.