Warehouse Project season is well under way and last week it was Four Tet night.
I made my way down to Piccadilly and under the brick archways below the train station. The queue was heaving to get in – it seemed that nearly everyone had decided to turn up at the same time just before the 10.30 curfew. Luckily, I had guest list so I was inside fairly quickly!
Upon entry I chatted to two young women wearing lit up soles on their shoes – the crowd on the night seemed slightly more on the younger side and many of which I spoke to seemed to be student revellers enjoying the varying sounds on offer that night.
First up was Ben UFO, laying down his signature bass-ridden, hard hitting beats, although this time he is playing a slightly less hectic set than usual, which fitted nicely as a warm up set. I think WHP has done well to put some bigger names on earlier in room two in recent seasons to prevent top heavy set times which are more focused around room one. It was probably one of the most packed I had seen room two in its current set up and the energy in the room was immense. Even when a tune was dropped in, Ben UFO’s set had a nice flow to it – you can tell from his performances why he is currently one of the UKs favourite selectors.
I left towards the end of the set to catch the last half hour of Floating Points in room one. Unbelievably, after all the hype surrounding the Eglo Records founder in recent years, this was my first time seeing Floating Points and it was on oddly mesmerising experience. The set was hard to pin down musically, as it flitted through different melodic and uplifting elements. The visuals set the mood of the set and complemented the supporting live band very well. A bit different but very interesting performance nonetheless. I hope to catch a full set next time!
Up next in room one, was Leon Vynehall, who proceeded to bring in more contemporary clubbier sounds. Based on previous times I had seen him play, I knew to expect the unexpected with the track selections. The set was packed with low frequency, warm and sometimes edgy sounds which helped move things on and build the crowd’s anticipation for the next act. As always, Leon Vynehall delivered a very solid set with plenty twists and turns; always a pleasure to have a good boogie to the Brighton-based DJ.
After some brief dancefloor relief, I headed back to room one to watch the mighty Keiran Hebden AKA Four Tet. It was about 15 minutes in when I found myself a relatively ok bit of space near the side of an archway. The place was packed out to experience Four Tet which came as no surprise, seeing as he had teamed up with WHP to help curate the line-up that night and is pretty much a legend in the electronic music industry. The crowd seemed to be in full swing with plenty of cheers and hands in the air moments every time the main man teased in some magical tunes. It was a very eclectic selection from Four Tet with a wide range of genres used – from jazzy house even through to a bit of hip-hop. I felt that it was towards the end which was the most special when he steered the set towards more house/techno type songs. His remix of Eric Prydz’s ‘Opus’ filled the room with a few euphoric minutes of build-up, when it finally dropped it brought a mad wave of cheers and the crowd went mental. A highlight of the night for sure. Cheers Keiran!
I then had the dilemma of picking which amazing closing DJ to see/listen to – The Black Madonna or Nina Kraviz. Based on the fact I had only heard her set in the flesh once previously, I decided on The Black Madonna who did not disappoint. The Chicago based DJ and Smart Bar resident played an acid tinged house set with a dash of vocal songs thrown in the mix to the joys of room two. As it was later in the night, there was much more space to dance the night away and The Black Madonna provided a perfect end of the night soundtrack.
As my legs started to tire, I made my way into room one and caught about 15 minutes of Nina Kraviz, who seemed to be playing quite dark and heavy to a now smaller but still up for it crowd. I am a big fan of hers, but my legs were unfortunately turning to jelly after a big run earlier that day so I decided to call it a night, and what a night it was!
I have a few more nights pencilled in this season and I hope the rest can at least match this one – the atmosphere and music was electric all night. Who knows, with it being The Warehouse Project, I wouldn’t be surprised if one of them even topped this one!
