The Warehouse Project presents Berlioz at Depot

@sophiajcarey

New Wave Magazine witnessed a very special evening, when they were invited over the weekend to see UK-based producer and musician berlioz present his ‘deep in it’ concept in Manchester.

Born in Cape Town, South Africa and raised by the English seaside, via Cornwall, It wasn’t quite turning the industrial, rural, for berlioz as ravers ventured into the building, but the ‘deep in it’ concept did come alive in full effect at Mayfield across Concourse and the Plant Room as an intimate rendezvous manifested itself for ravers and thrill seekers, stepping to the rhythms in the dark, lit up by the lights. A perfect Saturday night escape.

‘Deep in it’ is not new. Last summer, we saw it take over outdoor spaces like Finsbury Park in London, sold out, in the sunshine, enjoying blue skies in the warmth, an extreme contrast to the weekend just gone, which doesn’t beat down on the enthusiasm of the rave-goers. Those who brave cold temperatures and brittle air to experience the show.

In the Plantroom, you could find SNO and Mix-Stress and Shubostar, and on Concourse before the headliner were Chaos in the CBD, Jeremy Underground and Lèna C.

@sophiajcarey

Yellow lights brightened at the beginning of his set, teasing soulful melodies that unravelled in the air. The room would darken, a trickle of piano notes, followed by a sporadic saxophone riff cutting through, zig-zagging.

However, it was surprisingly not all expressive or demure lo-fi jazz-house. Wanting to remain faithful to the core essence of The Warehouse Project, hard techno, deep bass, and scattered rhythms were preferred by the selector for long periods of his two-hour set, as he aimed to please everybody. There was a desire to build anticipation for the crowd, but lengthy waits he risked losing the crowd.

But with half an hour to go around the 02:30 am mark, he let go of the handle brake, and Bodies began to move in earnest as flashing lights danced above their heads. He plays the favourites, what’s known, and appreciated, Stardust ‘Music Sounds Better With You’ of the many.

berlioz winds himself back to jazz-house, to ‘nyc in 1940’ and ‘deep in it’ amongst many, slowly, drawing the moment out, and then suddenly, like lightning, the lights turn on, we blink our eyes, and clapping as we make our move back into the night.

Listen here