Peaches @ Invisible Wind Factory, Liverpool, 11 Nov

Live Review by Andy Von Pip | 21 Nov 2016

Peaches' arrival in Liverpool just a couple of days after America had voted in potentially the most divisive President in their history is a welcome diversion and a much-needed excuse for a party. As fate would have it's also the Canadian-born Berlin-based performance artist/musician/DJ's 50th birthday and the mood amongst the crowd is one of celebration and unity. A party where everybody is welcome – unless of course, you're a complete dick.

If you've never experienced Peaches live, the fact that the audience is attired in glitter, wearing T-shirts with slogans such as 'whose jizz is this?' while carrying inflatable cartoon penises still doesn't quite prepare you for what's to come. The show is a visual extravaganza, which includes huge dancing vulvas while Peaches sings, 'Vaginoplasty / Why do you ask me?'

There's also simulated sex, bondage, the sort of hirsute pubic wigs that would make Chewbacca look like he'd just had a 'Brazilian', while – not to be outdone – the singer herself wears a demure muti-boobed ensemble. Oh, and let's not forget the enormous cock which proudly protrudes from the stage: tonight it forms a tunnel (or 'shaft') for Peaches to disappear into, allowing her to walk across the heads of the audience.  

Whilst the music is often  confrontational and seeks to challenge normative views on sexual identity and behaviour, there's also a huge sense of fun and mischief – at times the stage resembles a horny, spectacularly depraved version of SpongeBob SquarePants. Dancers Jess Daly and Agent Cleave are an integral part of the experience as they tease, bump and grind with gleeful ferocity inbetween remarkably swift costume changes.

It's such an immersive spectacle that you forget that there are just three people on stage. When Fuck the Pain Away and Dumb Fuck make their appearances in the set, the explosion of affection from the crowd is infectious. The night ends with Peaches being surprised with birthday cake, champagne and (unbeknown to her) friends who've flown in to join in the celebrations. It's a show which leaves the audience bedazzled and, with the amount of glitter strewn around the stage, quite possibly vajazzled.