How does Joel Zimmerman judge a gig's success?

"By how many glow sticks there are on the floor," says the man better known as Deadmau5. "I like to do a tour of the venue after everybody has left to see all the crazy stuff that's been left behind, like shoes and stuff."

He can expect to find plenty across the venues he's playing in South Africa, based on the high expectations ahead of his tour.

"I was actually kind of blown away," he says at a press conference at St Yves in Camps Bay. "I have never seen so much anticipation about this through my whole timeline as long as I can remember through my career."

He's equally excited to be here — in the four hours since he's arrived Zimmerman has been up Table Mountain and visited the Two Oceans Aquarium — all documented on his Facebook page . "I know coming here wasn't going to be some District 9 stuff," he laughs. "I did a little bit of research."

Do a little bit of research on Zimmerman himself and you might be surprised that, for someone who makes his money off playing live shows he doesn't go out much.

"I don't really go out to clubs anymore — I used to when I was 18, 19," he admits, fiddling with his newly-bought I Love Cape Town cigarette lighter.

"I used to hang out with these older guys who did the party circuit in Toronto every weekend and I would go and do that long before I started making music. And when I started making music I would still kind of do that social thing.

"But now it's like Santa Claus at the mall. 'Yo, bro, bro, bro, bro, bro', 'Take the picture, oh wait it's on video'. Even if I did want to go I have to go with a security guy and sit at the stupid VIP table," he signs. "I hate being that guy, so I just don't go.

"I'll go out and support my DJ friends and then I sit down and its all the DJ guys and all the C-list wannabes all in there going: 'So when are we going to do something?' So I don't enjoy it like I used to enjoy it."

But he admits there are ways to avoid being recognised.

"We bought these full body animal suits like Winnie The Pooh, Tigger, Hello Kitty and we'd go to the big festivals and suit up and just rage in the crowd and that's a good time," he laughs.

As for following the music scene — that's not too high on his list of priorities either.

"I don't really listen to music and I don't have my ear to the ground because I'm either so preoccupied with my own music, this business thing I've got going on, or travelling.

"My idea of relaxing isn't listening to music — it's anything but listening to music."