Midnight Mass Comes Alive on Tour: Will Clarke’s Cinematic Live Show
Will Clarke is on the verge of stepping into uncharted territory with The Midnight Mass Experience, a live tour that promises to take fans beyond the familiar world of his DJ sets. Known for his club hits and gritty techno sets, Clarke is embracing a new level of creative ambition with this tour, combining music and film to craft an immersive, one-of-a-kind performance.
“This is my debut live tour, and it's the first time I've ever done anything like this,” Clarke shares. "It's the first time I’m going out with a team traveling together, with full production. There are seven of us moving around, which is scary but also exciting. It’s what I’ve always wanted to do.” Reflecting on his DJ career, Clarke admits that he’s grown a bit “jaded” after years of working the CDJs, going from show to show. “As a DJ, the worst thing that can happen is you press the wrong button, and it stops. Then you press the right button, and it starts again. But this… this is different.”
The tour, built around the music from his upcoming album Midnight Mass, is designed as an all-encompassing experience. Inspired by live acts like the Chemical Brothers, Clarke will be performing with a setup of live synths and drum machines, with vocals triggered in real time.
“This isn’t about me just playing my biggest records in a DJ set,” he says. “There’s intros, midtros, outros, and pieces of music written specifically for this show that no one’s ever heard. There’s spoken word elements, and it’s really like a full journey.”
A key part of that journey is the visual experience, crafted by creative directors Caleb Henson, Alexis Mincolla, and filmmaker Stephen Agnew. Together, they’ve created what Clarke describes as a “feature film” for the stage—an ambitious, surreal blend of visuals designed to enhance every beat. “I feel like music and film go hand in hand. Take music out of a movie, and all you have is a bunch of pictures. And I feel the same about my show: if the visuals are right, they enhance the music and the entire experience,” he explains.
Working closely with his creative team, Clarke developed a visual concept that blends cinematic elements and intense storytelling with live music. “We pretty much filmed a whole movie, and then edited it with all kinds of weird, trippy stuff layered in,” he says, hinting at the experimental nature of the visuals. “It's really hard to explain without seeing it live, but it's meant to give people something beyond just music—it’s an immersive experience.”
The tour kicks off in Los Angeles and hits cities like San Francisco, Detroit, Toronto, Chicago, and New York. Each stop is an opportunity for Clarke to share something deeply personal, an intimate blend of sound and visuals that reflects the more nuanced, genre-bending nature of Midnight Mass. “This album isn’t all club tracks, so the show couldn’t just be another DJ set. I wanted it to be something special.”
For Clarke, the biggest production priority is sound. “The kick has to hit you in the stomach, the bass has to be felt, and the vocals need to cut through,” he says. But beyond technical details, he’s also focused on the entire experience from the moment fans walk through the door. “I think people forget that even security at the front impacts the night. They’re the first part of the experience, and if they’re not welcoming, it starts the night off wrong,” Clarke notes. “People are paying money for this. They’re the ones supporting everyone in that venue. It should feel like something memorable.”
As he takes on this ambitious new project, Clarke is embracing the nerves, the uncertainty, and the thrill of trying something completely different. “No matter how much I practice, it’s the first time I’m doing this, and yeah, I’m sh*tting a brick,” he admits with a laugh. But for Clarke, that’s part of the excitement. The Midnight Mass Experience isn’t just a tour; it’s a new chapter—a raw, unfiltered look at an artist determined to make his music feel as alive on stage as it does in the studio.
