Don't tell your Mom: We've Been Getting Stinky, Dirty and Sexy with RJD2

- DANA ZELMAN

Do you like sex, drugs, and rock'n'roll? How about a good romp among some drugged-out, writhing, sweaty bodies? Like to get a little dirty? Well then this Saturday night's show at the Georgia Theatre by the Philadelphia DJ known as RJD2 might have been just for you.
  

This was a great dance show, provided that you came prepared for some debauchery and didn't mind the infestation of drugs. His music could be the love child of fellow electronica artists Sound Tribe Sector 9 and DJ Tiesto, with an extra emphasis on hip-hop's characteristic resounding bass. RJD2 performs in front of a video projection, and even though he doesn't use any instruments other than turn tables, he is very interesting to watch. He moves through his music precisely and has a real gift for seamless transitions. This leaves little punctuation in his music, however, and the songs blend together to form one long, exhausting set. His mixes are expertly crafted, most of them building up to an orgasmic climax.
    

This was a dance party if I've ever seen one. The crowd moved with an almost electric, sexual pulse; I felt like a real badass for just being there. The mostly white male crowd was eccentric, with plenty of Athens' requisite obnoxious frat guys and smelly, dreadlocked hippies — not exactly the audience you'd want to bring home to Mom. Thinking of a few notably wild-eyed people gyrating next to me, the puffs of pot smoke ejected into the air every few minutes, and the mess of empty 32-oz. beer cups at my feet, I doubt anyone was legitimately sober at this show. It was a free-for-all, a debauched celebration of self-indulgence. The crowd was inconsiderate and aggressive, and I was elbowed out of my spot on several occasions; it was every man for himself in a heavy-breathing orgy of dancers.
    

RJD2 rocked the crowd, but he was also humble. Unlike his crowd, he pushed just a little, but not too much. His show was balanced, not only between hip-hop bass and electronic melodies but also between audio and visual.
    

The visual element of his show, a video projected on the screen behind him, was absolutely perfect for this potentially hallucinating crowd. It was a video remix, a fun house mirror to his music. It would sometimes show a live camera of what he was doing on the beat machine, but most of the video content was beyond weird. Old-school vampire movies and 80s dance-offs were mixed with soft-core porn and images of popular cartoon Aqua Teen Hunger Force and The Matrix. The cherry on top was a really notable sequence of people eating hot dogs. I got a few laughs out of that video, and so did the rest of the crowd, which was already high and giggly.
     

RJD2's fans aren't exactly your Red Cross volunteers (or maybe they are, via court-ordered community service), but don't let that stop you from venturing to one of his shows. He puts on a funky and energetic show, really showcasing his talent as a modern musician. My mother would never approve of me coming to such a blatant display of human vice, but I came to this show to get down and dirty — and I got dirty. 

    

I need a cigarette after just thinking about it.

Check it
RDJ2 - Smoke and Mirrors

Work it Out from RDJ2