Nov
5

Delphic – WHP London

By Carly  //  Raving Nights, User Submitted  //  4 Comments

As a huge fan of the Warehouse Project nights in Manchester I was extremely excited to hear the news a few months ago that they were to put on a one off night in London. The event, held at the Union Car Park on Ewer Street, SE1, was to be headlined by Manchester indie-electro outfit Delphic and named ‘Acolyte’ after their first album. My friends and I immediately bought tickets upon hearing the announcement, even though at that time no other acts had been confirmed, thinking that any night under the WHP brand was bound to be a good one.

The night rolled round quickly as ever, and before I knew it we were in the queue, wedged in amongst a decidedly mixed crowd and inching forwards towards the entrance. Some rather invasive searching behind us (there was definitely some breast fondling involved) and we were inside. Ewer Street is one of my favourite of the SE1 warehouses, it’s 6 separate rooms with dramatic arched ceilings allowing it to feel spacious even when packed out. The venue had worked particularity well at the Eastern Electrics August Bank holiday party I’d attended a few months earlier, with each room playing host to a different DJ or chillout area. Tonight, however, much of the venue was closed, with one arch acting as the main room, a second room beyond that and a final bar area with a few worn out looking couches to perch on. I must admit I was a bit disappointed that the set up did not seem as considered as at the Manchester WHP, which had some awesome touches such as a cinema screen in the chillout area and the set times being projected onto the main room wall.

Delphic performed at 1.30am not the advertised 1.00am, so we were pleased to be able to able to catch the end of support act Filthy Dukes’ set. They played some really fun upbeat tracks, peaking with Mojo’s ‘Lady’ which had the whole crowd singing along. Perhaps a bit too cheesy for some, but this lot were loving it. By this point my group had inevitably all lost each other so it was with great relief (and of course some squealing) that we managed to meet up again, then headed to the front of the dancefloor to bag a good spot for Delphic.

It soon became clear that we were not the only people who had come to see Delphic perform tonight. In what was perhaps an oversight by the organisers literally everyone crammed into room one in anticipation of their set beginning. They did not disappoint, however, seemingly taking their fans enthusiasm on board in an exceptionally high energy performance. Extended versions of all of their songs had everyone singing and dancing, and there was a real celebratory atmosphere in the crowd. As much as I love seeing DJs perform there’s a certain buzz from watching a live act that just cannot be beaten.

Once their performance was over, we moved over to the next room, only to find it nearly completely empty, with about 20 people feebly dancing by the DJ booth at the front. After a little sit to catch our breath we returned to the main room, only to find that it was not too busy either! In the hour after Delphic I recon about two thirds of the crowd went home, apparently having approached the event as a gig as opposed to a night out raving.

Overall I’d say that unfortunately the Warehouse Project London night did not live up to its Manchester counterpart. The venue and the crowd were missing that indefinable magic of the northern events, something which was not aided by the fact that a lack of publicity and weaker line-up had left this night far from sold out. Apart from being in a warehouse, the event had no real similarities to the Manchester ones, leaving me feeling a little cheated, as if the London promoters had simply used the WHP’s brand without following through with any of its ethos. I am wary though that this conclusion makes it seem like we had a rubbish time – far from the case! After mooching for about an hour after Delphic’s set had finished we met up with some friends from my office and headed home for an epic after party.

Rather than reflecting on the night as unsuccessful I’d say we all had an awesome time – a testament perhaps to the fact that sometimes a brilliant night has nothing to do with the crowd, the venue or even the acts you see but rather to being with a wicked group of friends who are all up for having a great weekend.

4 Comments to “Delphic – WHP London”

  • What I did like about WHP London was that is was less “sponsored” than Manchester – totally agree that I preferred the seating areas etc in Manc but did find all the Bench logos everywhere a bit in yer face and off-putting

  • I very much enjoy your audience-focused, user-experience approach to this review. A refreshing chance from typical music journalism. You have overlooked, however, the obvious reason for Manchester WHP’s superiority over London WHP – the presence of the Cod.

  • chance = change.