
The blistering cold and near gale-force winds didn't stop a sold-out crowd from packing into Stubb's Waller Creek Amphitheater for the electrifying opening performance of the MySpace Music Tour featuring DJ Mehdi and French electro duo Justice .
Fancy, an all-girl rock outfit scheduled to open the show, canceled for undisclosed reasons earlier in the day, skewing the original schedule and allowing DJ Mehdi an earlier start and a little more face time with fans.
The animated sea of people, consisting mostly of teenagers partying it up on a school night, packed in tight before the stage, the concept of personal space obviously out of the question. The ebb and flow of foot traffic in anticipation of Justice's emergence onstage created a ripple effect throughout, almost resulting in a massive dog pile. Neon glow sticks, painted-on skinny jeans and all things '80s chic dominated the mob's general style. Also spotted among the onlookers: a fully costumed '60s-era Elvis and a life-size plush bunny carrying a hand-held cross as a shout-out to Justice's 2007 release, "Cross."
When the two-man team casually ambled onstage, the throng of eager fans went wild. Clad in true Parisian garb, skinny dark denim and tight-fitting leather jackets, Gaspard Auge and Xavier de Rosnay got to work creating their signature dance-inspiring electronica. Taking their places behind their DJ setup--a handful of mixers, midis and the quintessential Mac laptop--the duo unveiled their well-known stage decor: a simple illuminated cross flanked by massive stacks of Marshall amps.
Like "Cross," the hour-long set kicked off with the majestic "Genesis," a funky electro concoction that started off similar to Star Wars' "Imperial March" and transitioned into a danceable beat reminiscent of Michael Jackson's "Thriller." The massive congregation of Justice followers immediately turned into a collective body of on-cue jumpers, their excitement thoroughly contagious.
Moving from funk to the disco-inspired, Justice cranked out "D.A.N.C.E.," one of their more popular productions, instigating more crowd participation than any other work. Energetic kids screaming "Do the dance!" and pumping their fists in the air incited Auge to do the same as both DJs bobbed to the beat while hunched over their respective consoles.
Not a word was spoken by either Auge or de Rosnay as they worked from one number into the next, only the occasional arm grab by one to the other, a signal to wait before cranking the bass or transitioning into the next vocal arrangement.
"We Are Your Friends," a Simian remake and the track that put Justice on the up-and-coming list back in 2003, reared it's addictive little head throughout the second half of the set with sporadic mash-up appearances that each time sparked hollers from the audience.
Another crowd pleaser, "The Party," which combined the vocals of fellow Ed Banger label mate Uffie--a young female potty-mouthed rapper--with the duo's manipulated rhythms also made a second stage appearance, this time paired with a snippet of heavy metal guitar riffs from Metallica's "Master of Puppets" during the French duo's encore.
Clearly inspired by the energy of heavy metal and the devotion to religious iconography, Justice rigged the illuminated cross to pulsate with the quickening pace of the show's closer. Between the spastic strobe lights, the flashing cross and the thumping beat, Justice fans (and clearly MySpace.com's key demographic) expelled whatever remained of their pent up energy before heading home to finish their Chemistry homework.