Metropolis, the indoor winter music festival, is back for its second year in the RDS this weekend, with DJ Shadow, whose Endtroducing album turns 20 this month, and Mount Kimbie kicking it all off on Thursday at the opening party. With performances from good time gal Grace Jones, Moderat, Booka Shade and the Sugarhilll Gang and art installations inside and out, the RDS will be a far cry from the RDS you may know from the Horse Show or wedding expos. Throughout the weekend, you can also catch a series of conversations and panel discussions, brought to you by the Red Bull Music Academy, with musicians, visual artists, authors, DJs, producers and promoters all sharing their own tales.
Across the city, there will be a number of official afterparties, with DJ sets from the likes of Wolfgang Flür in The Sugar Club, Kormac’s AV show in The Button Factory and Modeselektor in District 8.
Tickets are still available (€79.50 for one-day/€145 for two/€164.50 for the weekend) with tickets for the after parties sold separately. Here’s our recommendations for what to see.
Shaun Roberts (Fabric) / Luc & Ernst (De School) / Dave Parle (Hidden Agenda)
Friday, 4pm
With the recent closure of London's Fabric nightclub, its former promotions manager Shaun Roberts joins Luc Mastenbroek and Ernst Mertens from Amsterdam's De School, a music venue that's open 24/7, and Dave Parle, booker and promoter, from Dublin's Hidden Agenda, to discuss the future of clubbing and its evolving culture.
BadBadNotGood
Friday, 5.45pm
Fresh off the release of their delicious fifth album IV, Canadian electro-jazz group BadBadNotGood are playing the Main Hall just around teatime to get you feeling slinky for a steady night of bopping.
Feather
Friday, 4.30pm
Already a regular on the Irish summer festival season, sometimes singing with her sister Loah or performing with Meltybrains' Ben Bix, Feather's soulful, R&B music, with mismatched tempos, will cure all that ails you.
The Giant Discoball
Just when you think you’ve seen it all, you see your reflection in the 3,000 mirrored tiles of a three-stories tall disco ball in the Industries Hall. The world’s largest, so we’ve been told.
A conversation with Wolfgang Flür
Friday, 7pm
Wolfgang Flür, Kraftwerk’s drummer 1974 to 1987, will be sitting down with our Arts and Ticket editor Laurence Mackin for an in-depth discussion on his life and career with one of music’s most important and influential electronic acts.
Shura
Saturday, 5pm
Shura’s Nothing’s Real is a blend of dreamy pop with an 80s sheen and it just so happens to be one of this year’s best pop albums so you’d be a damn fool to miss her set.
Irish Electronic Artists Panel
Saturday, 3pm
Join New Jackson, Krystal Klear and others as they discuss the logistics of making it as an artist in the big, bad world of electronic. Hear all about the highs, lows and the super fun stuff like business plans.
Andy Warhol Silver Clouds exhibition
With special permission from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Metropolis is hosting this immersive exhibition that features floating metallic balloons hovering at eye level.
Grace Jones
Saturday, 10pm
Closing out the festival is the almighty Grace Jones, who recently stunned the crowds in the Olympia with two sold out shows in September. Seeing the 68-year-old force of nature live, along with the incredible visual displays and hat collection, will make you reassess your life decisions thus far.
