Jimmy Edgar Live at Shine

by Irene Lo

On tour for his latest album Jimmy Edgar made an appearance this weekend in Vancouver performing at Shine nightclub. Majenta, an album with singles like “Let Yrself be” and “This One’s For the Children,” was overall notable for its mechanical taste and deadpan sexuality, otherwise described as futuristic sleaze. During his Shine performance Jimmy Edgar played a club-friendly set steady with a backbone of thudding beats, an invitation more or less to dance your pants off.

The rain may have had an effect on the crowd because the venue was nowhere close to being a sweat lodge with each person having ample personal space. With opening acts such as Fernway and HXDB starting the show, there were people sporting the green frames that Heineken, one of the evening’s sponsors, were giving out. Sans lens, the glasses were a cute gimmick that fostered a reason to interact with others when those who inexplicably had three pairs stacked on their head, randomly gave them out to those bereft of glasses. Get your Heineken for $7 a pop.

Local DJ Taal Mala, the last of the openers, was impressive dropping fat beats that were fairly seismic. Sporting a handlebar moustache that channeled 1880s chic with a somber black button-up collar shirt, he certainly got the crowd riled and ready for Jimmy Edgar.

Rarely looking at the crowd, only sometimes with a heavy-lidded expression, Edgar was focused on his hour to spin. A striking contrast to the previous DJs who had went on and moved their bodies in a jive. In a snapback with a black jersey that had the number seven emblazoned on a backdrop of white scrambled lines, Jimmy Edgar wore it street-style.

While the tracks off Majenta were mid-tempo beats driven by grimy sexual impulses and emotionlessly provocative lyrics, the set was not as sleazy as one might’ve been led to believe or hope – just bass rides tricked out for maximum dance potential. Techno was the mainstay throughout, often pulsated by miniature crescendos that ruptured small and full of impact. Industrial drops were strong towards the tail end of the hour.

To write off the sleaze from the night might be speaking too quickly because this certainly wasn’t the case with the crowd. Progressing at 2 AM, a select few patrons were amusingly sloppy. There was one nonchalant guy who had his pants down by his ankles, and a couple that, upon falling in the centre of the dance floor, had issues regaining balance.

Winding things down, hip hop slowed the mood with hints of old school R&B for flavour. The white lights of closing time flickered and flashed as a warning prompt. A good techno show dampened only by heavy showers, Jimmy Edgar was a lot of talent and a lot of fun for Vancouver.