Concorde2, 12th April

Celebrating 25 years since it opened its doors, Concorde2 paid tribute to one of the most important nightclubs ever, Manchester’s The Haçienda. Featuring a DJ set from Joy Division and New Order member Peter Hook and a guest appearance from the one and only Bez, XYZ reporter Jen Blakeley took a trip down pop history’s memory lane.

I entered the Concorde2 during a set from the remarkable 52-year-old Peter Hook, who exuded the energy of a DJ half his age. Playing music spanning decades and clearly loving the buzz from the eager crowd, Hook owned the stage. A remix of Joy Division’s ‘Love Will Tear Us Apart’ was an apt opener, and was followed by Nineties classics including Blur’s ‘Song 2’ and tracks from The Chemical Brothers in a set which defined the ‘Madchester’ period. Hook controlled the mood of the room as he played ’24 Hour Party People’, the title of which is shared with the Michael Winterbottom film document of The Haçienda era. The crowd went wild.

Former Happy Monday Bez, made an understated entrance on the main stage which soon changed as he picked up the microphone. Taking centre stage, I was overwhelmed by the effect he had on the crowd, as the atmosphere heightened to boiling point. At this point, songs from the ‘Madchester’ period began to dilute the mix. A variety of Black Grape and Happy Mondays songs were played along with ‘Unbelievable’ by EMF and Shaun Ryder’s recent collaboration with Gorillaz, ‘DARE’. Before long the crowd were clambering up onto the stage with Bez, helping to pull up the screaming punters from the dance floor. Even yours truly became so immersed in the electric atmosphere that I found myself onstage.

Disappointingly, the night was brought to an abrupt finish at 2:30am; the crowd were still thirsty for more. Nevertheless, the evening’s atmosphere paid a fitting tribute to the legend of The Haçienda club. 

Words by Jen Blakeley
Photos by Paul Mulley