Legendary artist deadmau5 honored his 25-year career through a sensational retro5pective show at the Hollywood Bowl filled with special guests and more.
Originating as a project that wasn’t expected to last longer than a few years, Joel Zimmerman is now celebrating two and a half decades of his renowned deadmau5 moniker. Over the past 25 years, the Canadian DJ has climbed to the forefront of the scene, releasing a discography of beloved tracks and taking the stage at events worldwide. With countless accolades and a devoted fanbase supporting his every move, the mau5trap label head continues to impress.
To celebrate his career thus far, deadmau5 announced three retro5pective shows, with a stop at the Hollywood Bowl on April 27. Having listened to this mastermind since 2008, I knew I had to attend and pay homage to the man who sparked my interest in dance music. People of all ages attended the sold-out evening, some even donning their mau5head creations. Playing for three hours and highlighting some of his most iconic material, it was an evening I’ll never forget among deadmau5 and special guests.
Arriving at the Hollywood Bowl for the first time, I took it all in and braced myself for an exhilarating evening ahead.
This was a first for deadmau5 as well, having never performed in the Hollywood Bowl before. The legendary venue was the perfect fit for an artist of the same caliber, and my friends and I quickly took our seats relatively close to the front. The sound and views from our box were exceptional, enhancing the experience.
German techno marching band MEUTE set the evening in motion, performing covers of deadmau5 songs as well as their own. Their impressive assortment of live instruments livened up the Hollywood Bowl as concertgoers located their seats. MEUTE’s traditional red uniforms and overall synchronicity enhanced their 45-minute-long set and set the tone for the special night ahead.
deadmau5 began his three-hour-long retro5pective show among longtime friends Steve Duda, Dj Aero, and Tommy Lee.
2006’s “Bored Of Canada” opened up retro5pective as deadmau5 took the stage. Visuals of his early days with Steve Duda as their BSOD alias reminded fans of how far they’ve come. Duda then hopped on stage to play a selection of BSOD covers with the man of the evening; soon enough, Dj Aero and Tommy Lee completed the quartet for a very rare WTF? performance. The audience had a blast with these longtime friends as they cracked jokes together onstage.
The show kicked into a higher gear as classics “Faxing Berlin” and “Sometimes Things Get, Whatever” took us in a time machine back to the mid-2000s. It was a treat to hear these anthems live, as it’s not every day the mau5 plays out older hits like this. These songs have stood the test of time, and the entire bowl vibed along to OG tunes. MEUTE then returned to the stage for a rendition of “Slip” as a transition occurred behind a curtain.
After the curtain dropped, deadmau5’s Cube V3 appeared in all its glory as “I Remember” with Kaskade washed over the crowd.
With the show’s production complete among the illustrious Cube and a flurry of lasers, the evening only continued to go up from there. One of the most memorable moments of retro5pective soon followed, with Steve Duda and deadmau5 reenacting their famous Hard Haunted Mansion 2008 intro. The deadmau5 on stage was revealed to be Steve Duda, with the real deadmau5 arriving to “kill” him and take his place, just like in the iconic video that’s amassed over 20 million views since 2008. Longtime fans appreciated this moment and homage to deadmau5’s early career as “Moar Ghosts ’n’ Stuff” erupted through the speakers.
“Ghosts ’n’ Stuff” quickly followed as deadmau5 rocked a Pinhead mau5 head, just one of many he wore throughout the night. Special guests began arriving to perform their respective songs, like SOFI for “Sofi Needs A Ladder” and LIGHTS for “Drama Free,” “When The Summer Dies,” and even “Raise Your Weapon,” in place of the track’s original vocalist Greta Svabo Bech. During “Bridged By A Lightwave,” Kiesza and deadmau5 unsuspectingly did a few handstands, making for a comical, lighthearted moment.
deadmau5 made sure to cover a wide variety of fan favorites spanning decades.
Some of my personal favorites included “Some Chords,” “The Veldt” with Chris James, “Professional Griefers” with Gerard Way, “Imaginary Friends,” “Snowcone,” and “Monophobia” with Rob Swire. In the final moments of retro5pective, HAYLA arrived to sing “Escape” by Kx5, deadmau5’s project with Kaskade. “Strobe,” in its full, uninterrupted ten-minute-long runtime, closed us out as its entrancing melodies echoed in my head, concluding the evening perfectly.
retro5pective was the best set I’ve seen from deadmau5 and an immaculate homage to his decades-long career.
The event lived up to and surpassed my expectations. Through a monumental setlist, special surprises, mesmerizing visuals, and a picturesque backdrop of the Hollywood Bowl, the night came together beautifully in a way that’ll be tough to recreate. It was a moment you just had to be there for, and who knows if a show like this will happen again after this short string of celebrations. If you want to catch perspective for yourself, you’ve got time to prepare, as the final shows will take place November 1-2 at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado.
