When I arrived at Maison, the initial line had already taken cover in the venue. I rushed in and was greeted by the pleasant progressive sounds of Baranov. Although I have seen Baranov a couple of times before, I always want to hear more, of any of our home-grown locals, for that matter. For one, you have no idea what they’re going to play. Additionally, hearing the same person open for different artists give you a first-hand look at the weapons in their arsenal, their style, the musical intelligence and their ability to build the energy of any crowd for various situations. Unfortunately, I was only able to catch the last fifteen or so minutes of Baranov’s set prior to him making way for the headliner of the evening.
The club was relatively packed for a Thursday night. But, by no means was it cramped. Walking through the crowd was effortless, except if you’re one of the enthusiasts that always parks their derriere at the very front where there was the crowd was more densely packed. The crowd stretch about three-quarters of the way back before fizzling out, leaving plenty of room for those that would rather sit, sandwiched in between two gargantuan speakers and listen to the music. One thing I did note was that, although there was only one bottle service booth in use, for the promoters of the event, there was glassware and shot glasses on all of the tables that surrounded the dance floor. As much as I am a stickler for presentation, this seemed a tad unnecessary and I would have preferred the tables be removed so as to give way to more dancing room.
EDX mentioned earlier via his social media that his set would be a blend of bangers and his prototypical deep, progressive melodies. As he played, giant LED screen on either side of them bore his sigma in big bold red letters as blue lights cascaded in an angular pattern illuminating for mere moments. Fans had taken to the high ground as the stood on benches and platforms. Many were able to go circumvent the dance floor and dance just a few feet away from EDX on either side of him. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised by the vigor with which people were dancing on a Thursday night. It is Toronto, after all. There are people willing to dance at any given time of the day or night.
EDX’s set was a constant back and forth between more mainstream hits like Apollo by Hardwell and his more niche songs, such as Reckless Ardor. Some of the notable songs that peaked my interest were Need to Feel Loved by Reflekt, Man with a Red Face, Liberate, Eric Prydz new single, and of course, all of his big tracks such as, Touched, Cool You Off and Thinking about You.
I headed back to the dance floor hydrated and in awe as EDX continued to mesmerize and tantalize the crowd with songs from Above and Beyond’s deeper sub-label, Anjunadeep. He closed with Angel on my Shoulder, which I heard from the coat check booth as I was barely able to keep my eyes open any longer. It was a very good night; a more relaxed, mellow outing that still kept you bouncing and bobbing. Maison Mercer is doing a fine job bringing in top-tier names to compete with the other clubs around Toronto. As such, I’m sure I’ll be making my return quite soon.
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Jeet Ghoshal – EDM TOR
