SF – Porter & Madeon Shelter Live Tour Recap
Porter Robinson and Madeon are household names in dance music, so the hype was real when the pair released “Shelter” and announced their first tour together. Tickets to the Bill Graham show in San Francisco sold out in under a minute, and I was fortunate enough to snag a pair. At my first Porter show I bawled like a baby, but with the addition on Madeon to the equation – who I’ve never seen perform live – I knew I was in for an entirely different experience. I had no idea what lie ahead.
After months of anticipation, the day finally came. Bill Graham lies in one of the busiest parts of the city and the search for parking is generally a long process luckily the closest lot had a few empty spaces. My friends and I still had to walk two blocks to the venue, but when we got there, the line to get in went by in no time at all. Security could hardly have been called security, as the only thing we had to do was empty our hydration packs. Once we got in, our excitement escalated even further.
We pushed through the crowd to get to the front just in time to see Robotaki play his last few songs. I had never heard of him, but his set was fantastic. I
immediately started dancing and got in the mood to party. He really pumped up the crowd for San Holo, who took my breath away. I had never listened to San Holo either, but his songs and mixes took me to another world. I personally enjoy house and trance, but San Holo is a trap DJ that I really enjoyed. I was almost sad when he ended his set, but not for long as the real show was about to begin.
Porter and Madeon played side by side, backlit by two giant LED screens emblazoned with astounding visuals throughout the performance. They set things off with ‘Shelter’ and while it’s hard to imagine going any bigger than that but they did not disappoint. Every transition was seamless, Porter’s emotive music flowed beautifully into Madeon’s upbeat cuts. The pair’s ability to play off of each other’s energy created an emotional whirlwind for a hungry crowd ready to dance and maybe cry a little bit. The vibe was thick and it was wonderful to hear the audience sing along with every song. And just as quickly as it started “Goodbye to a World” played signaling the end of our journey with a brilliant array of gorgeous visuals. Fortunately, the pair came back for an encore and played an acoustic version of “Shelter,” to bring the San Francisco stop of their tour to a somber close.
Porter is by far, my favorite DJ yet Madeon really left a lasting impression on me that night. His crowd presence and the energy of his music bring an intensity and enthusiasm to the table that Porter sometimes lacks. Don’t get me wrong, Porter Robinson is the only DJ to make me cry based on the sheer emotion of his music, but Madeon impressed a completely different vibe that counterbalanced Porter’s energy well. The two DJs work extremely well together and their “Shelter World Tour” set is now one of my favorites of all time.
-Mary Pham
CLICK HERE for more pictures courtesy of Aaron Chao
