Warehouse Project: Run The Jewels Take Manchester
Published
Those who haven’t been to a Warehouse project event might be surprised at the intensity of the searches that take place on the door-meticulous rifling through bags and coats as well as thorough pat downs. While not the most welcoming of door policies, this is hardly to be surprised: with some harrowing incidents involving drugs in the not so distant past, the organisers of the warehouse project have come under increasing pressure to do everything in their power to reduce the risk their customers can put themselves at, and are well aware of the Daily Mail headlines centring on the event that await.
Shy FX is the best choice to warm up this crowd. A headliner DJ in his own right, his 2 hour stint sets the atmosphere, expertly blending brief singalongs both old and new with beats to keep the crowd moving, the corrugated walls shaking, the warehouse pumping. The Store Street venue that WHP has returned to again for 2015 is bathed in sweat before the first hour is up, the mosh pits in full swing. It’s almost impossible to move to wherever you might want to be past room one because of the mass of packed, thriving bodies.
Come midnight it’s time for the headliners, and the atmosphere is electric in anticipation. Run the Jewels waltz onto the stage to ‘We Are The Champions’, and begin the show that’s been lauded by so many since their inception. It’s immediately obvious why their success has been what it is, and why their headline show sold out in a matter of minutes. But despite the posturing and, the pair appear genuinely grateful for this show, and express thanks to their supporters, the organisers and the crowd countless times. It’s an intense hour, the audience fighting to get close to the hip hop duo who work the stage so well and are so obviously comfortable in each other’s company. It’s difficult to imagine a venue that would better fit this performance, on this night.
Matters are no calmer post-headliners, in a night that sees Skepta produce a powerhouse of a half-hour set, Goldie, Toddla T and a host of others grace the area between the archways. Drinks may be expensive, the space tight and the security measures extensive, but these, for most, do nothing to dampen the show. The bass is loud, the crowd more than up it-and when the curators are booking shows with so many massive names on the bill, you’ll struggle to find a better or more talked about night out for miles.
COMMENTS
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If you've not been to Warehouse Project before, go this year. Bucketlist stuff
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If you've not been to Warehouse Project before, go this year. Bucketlist stuff
