Live music review: Metropolis at the RDS, Dublin

Something wickedly groovy had come to leafy south Dublin. In an outdoor courtyard usually populated by champagne-clinking members of the horsey set, an elaborate steam-punk stage designed by performance art collective Arcadia clanked and belched flames. In the main arena, Mark Ronson, the most super of superstar DJs, dropped old school hip-hop. Over at the Serpentine Hall excitement built ahead of a headline performance by storied techno producer Jeff Mills. For dance fans, several pinch yourself moments had been rolled into one.

It was day two of Metropolis, a fascinating culture clash which saw some of electronic music’s weightiest talents descend on D4 for a weekend of strobe-lit thrills and chills.

Saturday had belonged to sad, soulful bleep boys Hot Chip, with noteworthy turns by The Roots, the acclaimed r’n’b troupe better known nowadays as house band to talk show host Jimmy Fallon, and local cult quartet Le Galaxie.

On Sunday, Ronson was followed on the main stage by Nile Rodgers and his Chic ‘organisation’, a multi-headed rhythm machine who dispensed to the masses such cast iron smashes as ‘Le Freak’ and ‘Good Times’ — along with covers of Madonna’s ‘Like A Virgin’ and Bowie’s ‘Let’s Dance’ (the mercurial Rodgers had a hand in writing both).

In the smaller Shelbourne Hall, a more avant-garde ambiance held sway, with the noodling math-pop of Four Tet serving as a warm-up for Jamie xx (aka producer and keyboardist Jamie Smith).

There was also a surprisingly endearing moment from Bulgarian producer Kink who, scheduled between Mills and Kerri Chandler, proclaimed himself astonished to be performing alongside a pair of legends and hoped he could live up to their dizzying standards.

His humility was endearing — as were the subtle beats he deployed immediately afterwards. Who’d have imagined one of the festival highlights of 2015 would take place in a posh barn in Ballsbridge in the dead of November?