Iggy Pop at O2 Victoria Warehouse Review

Confiscated at the door were a glass bottle of peanut butter, an inflatable mattress presumably to be used as a crash mat, and four cans of deodorant. To see cans of Lynx at a gig like this is a surprise given the foul stench emanating from the dark corners of the O2 Victoria Warehouse. Still, we are not here to sniff and scratch at the walls of this venue but to see Iggy Pop, the ever-entrancing and thrilling stage presence who has not quite had the arena-level success his music deserves. He proves as much with a sharp set at a venue not to be confused with The Warehouse Project, as was the case here. Still, once in there, Pop comes to life. Nothing to sell, no new music, just the hits and some moments of quality from the veteran of the stage.  

Microphones, water bottles, himself, everything shall be thrown by Pop in this manic and punk-led show. It feels like discarding an artist to say they “still have it,” but in the case of Pop, it is proof of his longevity as an artist on the fringe. He still maintains a powerful presence, still kicks on with a sincerity in his message, the foul-mouthed interludes between songs a reminder that there is a man on stage, intermittently waving and singing his hits. A brief Nightclubbing tease is better than nothing from The Idiot, though show closer Funtime is a magic moment. One of many from Pop, who is keen not to chat about these songs but to let them speak for themselves, the raw power of each piece hammered through thanks to a capable backing band. There is still the energy, the adrenaline, which one would hope for when hearing Pop take on The Stooges discography.  

He is not alone in doing so, a boisterous crowd and a phenomenal range of instrumentalists on stage are a strong backing force. Classics like The Passenger and Lust for Life are played out early, the latter with that heavy, Prodigy-gifted lick which many will have heard in T2 Trainspotting. Pop puts on a brilliant show for those who want a glimpse into his back catalogue. He is keen to play the hits, like I Wanna Be Your Dog and Search and Destroy not just because they are his best pieces, but because they still burn with a relevancy which is successfully translated to the stage. As he waves to the crowd, you can’t help but see, be it through the vape smoke or the Galaxy smartphone of someone recording entire songs in 8x portrait zoom, that Pop is at the top of his game.  

Apart from a few messy moments where Pop is lost in the mix, no fault of the band but of tinnitus-riddled ears, the show is a barnstormer. A heavy set of danceable, jerky punk powerhouses, all of which maintain a relevancy in the modern world. There is a bite to it all, a rush which will no doubt empower those in the audience who needed to hear it, who need Pop and his like as a catalyst for action in their own lives. No better way to receive that energy than to receive it live, in the flesh. O2 Victoria Warehouse plays host to a fantastic gig, a moment which, for those who are lining their summer with show after show, sets a high bar for the summer.