ENRG presents The Black Madonna at Invisible Wind Factory review

On a bleak December evening back in 2014, Invisible Wind Factory first opened its doors for a brief opening teaser night. Those in attendance spoke fondly of its potential, but few would have believed what would become of the former wind turbine factory on a busy dock road. With the hugely influential Kazimier productions team behind it, we needn’t have worried.

ENRG is a new clubbing series which has centred itself around the theme and concept of energy, each instalment promising a different immersive experience throughout. Having opened the series with Floating Points, tonight’s edition sees a much overdue debut city performance from The Black Madonna, and up-and-coming DJ/producer Peggy Gou.

With The Invisible Wind Factory's huge art deco windows and bright red shutters, the venue’s not exactly hidden, but there’s almost a mystique, an inquisitive lure before you’ve even stepped inside.

It’s immediately clear upon entry this is far from your run of the mill building. Within its cavernous space, utilising the venue’s towering ceilings, rows of balls of light descend like rain from above, the dancefloor’s own compact illuminations spectacle, changing colour and tempo throughout the night.

The stage itself is a marvel of light too, behind the open spaceship like booth structure, light columns stretch across the stage with pulsing rings, the stage and it’s background becoming one in an audiovisual hybrid, creating a profound contrast and experience from your conventional pitch-black venue or warehouse.

Getting proceedings underway is ENRG resident Blehrin. Better known for his Southport-based Macooza nights, Blehrin, real name Jay Murt warms up the crowd, veering between tech house to more deep house flavoured selections, whilst keeping emphasis on the groove throughout. Unfortunately, despite the last entry the dance-floor feels pretty sparse until the later stages of his set.

Such is the adulation for Marea Stamper, AKA The Black Madonna, before a record is played, she’s met with cards (tonight is her birthday) and even a stage rusher, desperate to get close to one of the biggest names in dance music at the moment.

It’s not hard to see why such praise is heaped upon her, since breaking through in 2014, The Black Madonna has gone from strength to strength, garnering more and more attention with her standout and much talked about sets at Glastonbury’s NYC Downlow, or the already seminal b2b Boiler Room set with her close friend Mike Servito from this year’s Dekmantel Festival. With her own debut album to come, TBM certainly isn’t showing any sign of slowing down now. 

The Black Madonna, lives and breathes what she’s playing, her infectious movements act like a conductor from the stage above, the crowd following with an orchestra of fist bumps and arms aloft. There’s certainly no shortage of energy on the dance floor as she slams her way through anthemic classic house sounding cuts, disco edits (such as DJ Spen’s bootleg of Richard Burton’s Bad Luck) and garage 4/4 beats - it’s a constant state of uplift with Stamper reading the crowd perfectly, sadly her two hour set unfortunately flashes us by.

As TBM leaves for her second set of the evening down the East Lancs Rd at Manchester’s Warehouse Project, promising newcomer Peggy Gou steps up to bring the night to a close. Gou is certainly one to watch. Since the turn of the year the Korean born, Berlin based artist has released some killer cuts ranging between warm dreamy Detroit house to more acidic percussion based grooves all showcasing her production expertise.

It’s this versatility that’s evident in Gou’s sleek set too, taking things initially heavier with some jacking techno, before leaning towards more funkier house and deeper acid lines with the likes of Paranoid London’s tough vintage workout 'Light Tunnel' keeping the dance floor moving till the close of the night.

With the next ERNG sequence in the pipeline with Belfast production outfit Bicep, and Hotflush new signing Or:La fast approaching, no doubt another truly unique night of sensory stimulation awaits.

Find upcoming ENRG Liverpool tickets.

Read more: Peggy Gou Interview: I don't have to prove anything

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