Rezz just made history in the most Rezz way possible — by hypnotizing 15,000 people using a giant LED portal exuding bass and surreal visuals. On September 28, the Canadian bass DJ became the first female electronic DJ to headline and sell out the Tacoma Dome, marking the largest solo headline show by a woman in electronic music history in North America. All we can say is that it was one of the most surreal and impressive shows we’ve ever witnessed.
Being huge Rezz fans (and big large-scale production fans), we were highly anticipating the PORTAL show all summer. It surpassed every expectation with its hypnotic visuals, stellar lighting, and entrancing track, proving once again that she’s paving the way for a new era of electronic performance art.
The night kicked off with Nikita the Wicked and Blanke setting the tone and warming up the crowd. Then the 7-foot-1 legend himself, Shaq (DJ Diesel), stormed the stage with a bass-heavy set and turned the Dome into a full-blown rave pit. The energy was already through the roof. Everyone was dancing, surprisingly belting We Are the Champions, and Tacoma was ready for Rezz.
Into the PORTAL
The lights dimmed, the hum of bass grew heavier, and the massive 60-foot circular LED screen felt like a gateway to another dimension. We had officially entered PORTAL, the third (and likely best) evolution of Rezz’s mind-bending audiovisual experience.
If you’ve seen her before, you know she’s all about eerie, hypnotic visuals and basslines that feel like they’re rewiring your brain. But this time? She leveled up big time. The production was phenomenal. The “portal” itself was even larger than we could have imagined, framed by a ring of lights, pyrotechnics, and lasers. SO many stellar lasers.
Her visuals told a hunting story- rocks crumbling, clocks melting, fire swirling, faceless figures trying to escape through the screen, a woman with a TV for a head, and of course, a swinging pendulum for her new album As The Pendulum Swings. It felt like a fever dream that we didn’t want to leave.
Credit: @tessapaisan
It was haunting, cinematic, and so Rezz. Every visual and every laser show felt deliberate. You could tell she was deeply involved in every layer of this world — from the stage design to the visuals. And thankfully, none of it was AI-generated. The show was crafted entirely by a crew of animators and designers who helped turn Rezz’s vision into an experience that felt alive.
PORTAL wasn’t just a concert; it was a full-blown sci-fi horror trip that messed with your sense of reality. Lasers tore through the Dome, flames shot up on the beat drop, and the look of awe on everyone’s faces was so deserving and inspiring.
I can’t express to you my passion for portal. I had a crystal clear vision for this project for a long time, & to have had it be seen by all of you, in a sold out arena prior to you even knowing what u we’re walking into or the magnitude of it all… I am so in debt to you, the fans, my production team, visual artist & management. This is only the beginning. This show will continue to evolve , enhance and dial in musically and visually. I’ve never felt more fulfilled by something as this was something I was directly heavily involved in with every aspect – from the stage design, to the concept, the visual aesthetic , & [ofcourse] the music being 99% my own as well. This project is simply my entire lifetime of inspiration put into one place. I’ve been deeply influenced by hypnosis, horror & optical illusions since as early as I can remember, to see it all come together this way makes me want to throw up rainbows.
– Rezz
A Live Dive Into As The Pendulum Swings
The show was perfectly timed as it was right after the release of her new album As The Pendulum Swings. Hearing it live was phenomenal. As The Pendulum Swings marks a huge step forward in her sound. It’s darker, more refined, and incorporates edgy electro and industrial elements. Rezz herself described the opening track Prophecy as the best example of where she’s headed musically, blending her early influences with her signature hypnotic touch.
Rezz has always stood apart from the the average DJ, but PORTAL proves she’s in a league of her own. She’s not just DJing, she’s creating insane audiovisual experiences for her audiences. Few artists in EDM today have that kind of creative control, vision, and ambition. She’s redefining what a headline electronic show can be, and she’s doing it her way – hypnotic, and unapologetically weird (in the best sense).
Luckily for us all, she’s not slowing down. With more PORTAL stops ahead, fans across North America are about to witness the same boundary-breaking spectacle that we got to experience last week. Her next stop is Minneapolis: sign up for presale now because you won’t want to miss this.
Huge congratulations to Rezz on the show, the album, and for continuing to redefine what’s possible in the EDM scene. We cannot wait to experience her show live again.
Credit: @tessapaisan
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