Live review: The Warehouse Project returns with Annie Mac's Before Midnight

Annie Mac’s Before Midnight has become quite the cultural moment. Across a variety of shows throughout the UK and Ireland, the DJ and radio presenter has sought to provide an authentic clubbing experience for her audience, but with a twist: all Before Midnight shows begin in the evening and, as denoted by the name, end before the clock strikes twelve.

Evidently, many people treasure an early night, as many Before Midnight shows have sold out well in advance, including a stop at Manchester’s Albert Hall last November. The series has even reached London’s Gunnersbury Park, which holds an event capacity of 25,000, for late summer events taking place in two consecutive years. This year, Before Midnight was chosen to open The Warehouse Project's 2025 season in style, and proved particularly special as a result.

Going into The Warehouse Project can be a daunting experience, involving rows of security personnel all keen to shout orders. For concourse-only shows, however, the capacity is lowered from 10,000 to 2,500, and the stress that comes with entry is consequently reduced. A relaxed entry experience ultimately makes for a better atmosphere inside, as seen instantly as attendees delighted in an opening set from CC:DISCO! which covered all bases, ranging from a remix of The Clash’s ‘Rock the Casbah’ to Confidence Man’s ‘Real Move Touch’.

Photo: Sophia J Carey @ The Warehouse Project

Annie Mac brought a melting pot of genres to her own set, beginning with jazz-backed Brazilian funk before moving through disco, house, electro, and even leaning into speed garage influences. This mix testified to the former radio presenter’s wide range of influences, which she has clearly been collecting, storing, and saving for later since her first appearance on The Mash Up over twenty years ago. The assortment of styles had potential to become mismatched, but instead MacManus presented a cohesive journey through the evolution of dance music, all while maintaining the attention and energy of her crowd.

As the clock struck eleven, a disco ball began to light up The Warehouse Project’s concourse, and the final hour of Before Midnight was subsequently like nothing the venue has seen before. With not a phone in sight, every member of the crowd seemed truly invested in the music playing, exulting in an atmosphere that can only be compared to places such as Berlin, where no-phones policies are standard in most clubs.

Annie Mac began to weave party classics such as Candi Staton’s seventies hit ‘Young Hearts Run Free’ into her set, and the DJ chose Madonna’s ‘Like a Prayer’ to close the night, uniting the vast span of generations gathered in a singalong moment before lingering at her booth to meet attendees as the lights went up.

Credit: Sophia J Carey / The Warehouse Project

Taking to Instagram a few days before the event, Annie Mac described the night as “unique for many reasons. The Warehouse Project and Before Midnight have not done anything together before, but it’s also unique because The Warehouse Project are now doing a no-phones policy and we are the first night to experiment with that. When you come into the room there will be a sticker put over your camera - this is a very good thing. It’s going to make for a more rich experience on the dancefloor, we’ll decentralise from everyone having to face the same direction: you can face each other, you can dance, you don’t have to worry about creating content, you can just have fun."

It’s undeniable that this was a huge success, achieving everything both Annie Mac and The Warehouse Project aimed towards when implementing the policy.

The beauty of a Before Midnight set is that the night remains young once everyone has left: it would certainly be interesting to be offered a glimpse at what followed for every one of the 2,500-strong crowd. Whether catching an early night or continuing elsewhere until the early hours, it’s refreshing to participate in an authentic clubbing experience and have it all wrapped up with no regrets before the next day has begun.

If sold-out shows across the country and the atmosphere at The Warehouse Project are anything to go by, Before Midnight is a brilliant idea, and Annie Mac may well be starting a clubbing revolution.