The past few years have seen a new-wave of exciting and daring parties re energise the Manchester scene, many taking place at the now notorious White Hotel and often within a daring continuum of queer and alternative rave culture. Alongside the likes of Kiss Me Again, High Hoops and the timeless Homoelectric, Body Horror has made sheer impact with occasional but unforgettable transmissions of filth and fury from an uncompromising collective.
Lead by resident DJs Bleaching Agent and The Niallist, two veterans of the UK noise and techno scene who will doubtlessly be familiar to panel-beating enthusiasts world over, Body Horror speaks for the pair’s shared, lifelong passionate pursuit of “bad taste, glamour and extreme noise terror”. Featuring one of the rawest, wildest dance floors imaginable and tone-setting performance from bloodthirsty drag acts, each ritual of body-positive carnage is accompanied by a soundtrack that veers from unapologetic Italo, nosebleed techno to truly weird no-wave and EBM. In similar spirit, their contribution to #PHANTASYMIX sounds something like Claudio Simonetti going B2B with Ron Hardy. This is pure, grotty bits-of-body music for dark souls with a good sense of humour.
Body Horror can next be glimpsed in the shadows at Homobloc, Homoelectric’s one-day festival at Mayfield Depot, Manchester, which features performances from DJs including Midland, Honey Dijon, Seth Troxler, and our own Erol Alkan, playing back-to-back for the first time with Ivan Smagghe. It’s totally sold-out, but those on the inside can track down the denizens of Body Horror wandering amongst the crowd, promising their own twist on 'gay conversion therapy'.