Peggy Gou faced a tough balancing act on her biggest-ever London show.
Her audience at Gunnersbury Park was partly made up of the deep and minimal house purists who have seen her become an underground legend over the past decade. But thanks to the ubiquity of her 2023 summer anthem (It Goes Like) Nanana, the Korean DJ found herself also needing to cater to her new, more mainstream fans.
Thankfully for all gathered in west London, she just about pulled it off – and the show began smoothly enough, carrying on the heavy beats established by Brazilian DJ Mochakk who had preceded her.
But then she committed the DJ faux pas of stopping the beat and actually using her microphone. Could the crowd welcome “my favourite British musician”.
Who could it be? A British dance music legend maybe to go B2B for a few numbers? Fatboy Slim? Oakenfold? No, it was Central Cee who bounded on as the 50,000 or so gathered gave rather bemused cheers.
Was Gou entering her grime era? It turned out to be more of a pit stop, as the rapper barely featured. Gou put on the beat for BAND4BAND – a song Cee shares with Lil Baby – which meant he was left awkwardly standing there until the moment rolled around to deliver his own verses.
Cee then joined Gou behind the decks but looked afraid to touch any of the master’s controls for fear of pressing the wrong button. He soon exited with the air of a late substitute footballer who had failed to touch the ball.
But this weird footnote was quickly forgotten as Gou gradually mixed her way back from grime to her more familiar house territory. There was room for the occasional snippet of a pop hit: a hint of Eve and Gwen Stefani here, a bassline of David Guetta there, room for a reworking of Tomcraft’s Loneliness (very much the best song featured in Saltburn!). It was all danceable and fun for a sunny evening but provided few of the instant recording video moments that sections of the crowd seemed to crave.
There was some familiarity with the odd sample but few of Gou's own songs made the set, which is surprising considering she recently released her groove-packed debut album I Hear You. In a two hour set, an audience might have wanted to hear more of the DJ they had come for.
She did at least get the most out of It Goes Like (Nanana) to create a singalong towards the end. The ATB inspired anthem has endured and been a mainstay on playlists since it was released last year and it seemed fitting that she moved it into the summer anthem of 2024, Disclosure’s She’s Gone, Dance On.
Fans walked home satisfied from a highly energetic set but one that could have benefited from some added personality.
