Warehouse Project 2026: the nights actually worth the trip

Warehouse Project 2026 is back at Depot Mayfield and the season has a properly strong line-up — stronger than last year, and last year was already mint. I have been every season since 2018 and I am writing this list because the line-up is too good to navigate without help and the £40 door price means picking the wrong night actually hurts.

Here is the ranked list of the WHP 2026 nights worth the trip. Tickets, where they go on sale, and what to expect when you get inside.

How I picked

Three things. The line-up — top to bottom, not just the headliner. The room fit — Depot Mayfield's three rooms are different beasts and not every line-up suits every room. And the value — £40 is steep and the night needs to earn it.

1. Sven Väth + Loco Dice — Friday techno

The line-up of the season. Sven Väth on the main room headline slot, Loco Dice doing a proper extended warm-up, plus support that is much better than the warm-up slot deserves. £40, Friday, doors 10pm.

What to expect: Sven is in his late 60s now and still delivers, which is mad. Loco Dice on warm-up is the sleeper bit — the warm-up sets at WHP this season have been some of the best DJ sets in the country, properly. Get there for doors.

Sound: main room. Big room, big rig, sub you can feel in your sternum. Earplugs essential.

2. Bicep b2b Overmono — closing Saturday

The big closing night of the season. £45 — they have raised the price, which tells you about demand. Sold out six weeks early last year. Will sell out faster this year.

Why it matters: Bicep b2b Overmono is the pairing everyone has been waiting for. Both acts are at the top of their game, both have been touring properly, and the live + DJ set hybrid format works for the room. Closing Saturday at WHP is also its own kind of event — the season finishes, the crowd knows it.

Buy the ticket the morning they go on sale. Set an alarm.

3. Four Tet all night long

Six hour Four Tet set. Saturday. £38. The all-night-long format means no support, no rotation, just Four Tet from doors till close. Kieran always delivers in this format — his all-nighters at Plastic People years ago are the reason this format exists.

Sound: Concrete room (the second room). Smaller, more intimate. The all-nighter would not work in the main room.

If you can only do one Saturday at WHP this season and the Bicep ticket is sold out, this is the one.

4. Hessle Audio takeover

Pearson Sound, Pangaea, Ben UFO across three rooms. £35 Friday. The Hessle takeover is always one of the highlights of the WHP calendar and 2026 has them on better form than last year.

What works: the three Hessle DJs play very different things and the room rotation actually rewards moving between rooms. The sound system in the main room handles the Pearson Sound stuff in a way smaller rooms cannot. Pangaea on closing main room is the move.

5. Joy Orbison + Skee Mask

Best technical pairing of the season. Joy O's mixing is genuinely jaw-on-the-floor when he is on, and Skee Mask is one of the few people who can b2b with him without it sounding mismatched. £36, Saturday.

The Concrete room is where this should be played. The set will go places — expect detours, expect things you have not heard before, expect at least one moment where you do not recognise the track and turn to your mate to ask.

6. Dixon + Âme — Innervisions night

Long, melodic, deep house. £38, Friday, doors 10pm. The Innervisions thing is its own crowd — older skewing, slightly fashion, the kind of night where you check your watch and it is 4am and you are not sure where the time went.

What to expect: less aggressive than the techno nights. Pace builds slowly. Rewards staying.

What I left off

Two nights with big-name headliners but weak supporting line-ups. Without naming, the headliners are great, the openers are filler, and the room fit is wrong. £40 should buy a coherent night — when the warm-up does not connect to the headliner the night sags.

Practical bits

Tickets via the WHP site or Resident Advisor. They use a queue system on launch day — be in the queue at 9am for the popular ones. Cloakroom is usually fine, queue can be 20 minutes at peak.

Eat before. The food inside is fine but pricey, and if you want a proper meal try Mana on Blossom Street or NQ for late kitchens. Trains back to most of the country stop running by midnight so plan accomodation if you are travelling in.

Quick picks

If you go once: Sven + Loco Dice, Friday. If you want the closing night: Bicep b2b Overmono, set the ticket alarm. If you want a long single-DJ set: Four Tet all-nighter.

I keep a Manchester nightlife page on Rifio that picks up the WHP off-week parties at venues like The White Hotel and Hidden, plus the Manchester one-offs that do not always make the WHP calendar. Worth a save if you are in town for the weekend.