Fabric (club)

Fabric is a nightclub in Farringdon, London, England. Founded in 1999 on Charterhouse Street opposite Smithfield Market, the club was voted World Number 1 Club in DJ Magazine's "Top 100 Clubs Poll" in 2007 and 2008[2] and ranked World Number 2 in 2009, 2010 and 2017.[3][4]

Fabric
LocationFarringdon, London, England
Coordinates51°31′10.05″N 0°6′10.36″W
OwnerFabric Life Limited
TypeNightclub
Capacity1,600[1]
Opened1999
Closed2016 (reopened 2017)
Website
fabriclondon.com

Fabric was closed down and its licence was revoked by authorities in 2016, after two drug-related deaths at the club. Following a campaign to save the club[5] it was permitted to be reopened with increased security and restrictions.

History
Exterior

The club was founded by Keith Reilly[6] and Cameron Leslie and opened on 29 October 1999.[7]

Fabric occupied the renovated space of the Metropolitan Cold Stores. Smithfield Meat Market stands and operates from a site directly opposite. The area's construction took place in Victorian times alongside nearby landmarks Holborn Viaduct and Fleet Valley Bridge.

Fabric has three separate rooms with independent sound systems; two of the rooms feature stages for live acts. A feature of the club is its vibrating floor in Room One: known as a "bodysonic" dancefloor, sections of the floor are attached to 400 bass transducers emitting bass frequencies of the music being played.

In 2010, Fabric briefly went into administration after its sister club Matter, with whom it had a cross-guaranteed loan, announced it would close for the summer due to financial difficulties suffered as a consequence of continued delays with TfL upgrade of the Jubilee Line.[8] Fabric was put on the market on 1 June 2010.[9] On 24 June it was announced Fabric was no longer in administration and had been bought by Fabric Life Limited, "a consortium who fully back [Fabric] founders Keith Reilly and Cameron Leslie's vision."[10]

Style

The musical genres played at Fabric vary. Friday nights (known as "FabricLive") are dedicated to bass music genres, being mainly drum and bass since its inception. FabricLive also features genres including grime, breakbeat, dubstep and bassline.[11] Saturday nights, (known simply as "Fabric") showcase genres such as house, techno and disco, and feature the club's resident DJs Craig Richards and Terry Francis. Richards was also one of the Directors of Music Programming, selecting the line-ups for Saturday nights, which have featured appearances by DJs such as Ricardo Villalobos, Carl Craig, Ellen Allien, and many others.[12] Sundays at Fabric are promoted by "Wetyourself", a polysexual event that has been running since February 2009. The music policy is underground house and techno, with the occasional live PA.

Other ventures

A CD series was launched in 2001 under Fabric Records. It rotates monthly between Fabric and FabricLive, with the series showcasing established and emerging DJs. It is entirely independent and operated solely by Fabric.[13] The full list of titles in the series can be seen at Fabric discography.

On 19 September 2008, Reilly and Leslie opened the 2,600-capacity music venue Matter.[14][15] Located in The O2, it was their first project outside of Fabric. Matter has since closed.[16]

Houndstooth is a record label from Fabric, started in February 2013.[17]

Official closure and reopening

On 7 September 2016, after a review into the drug-related deaths of two people in the club, Fabric's licence was revoked and it was announced that the venue would be closed permanently.[18][19] A campaign was launched to secure the club's future, backed and popularised by DJs, musicians, venue-goers and several politicians.[19] London's mayor Sadiq Khan criticised the decision and placed it in the context of the city having lost 50% of its nightclubs since 2008, a "decline [which] must stop if London is to retain its status as a 24-hour city with a world-class nightlife".[20]

Following the closure, supporters of the club launched a social media and crowdfunding campaign supporting reopening the club. Over £200,000 was raised toward a legal fighting fund to appeal the council's decision.[21] In November 2016, news reports stated that the council and the club's management were working on an out of court settlement that might lead to the reopening of the club.[22][23] On 21 November 2016, Fabric struck a deal with Islington Council, with backing from the Mayor of London, to reopen the club.

Fabric reopened under agreed conditions: a new ID system, covert surveillance system, a lifetime ban for anyone found dealing or in possession of drugs and no one under the age of 19 allowed between Friday 8pm to Monday 8am.[24]

Shortly after these changes were made, it was announced that Fabric would be halving the number of "Fabric Live" bass-driven nights, which included their famous Playaz drum and bass residency, which spiked controversy among the respective bass music communities, especially within drum and bass.[25]

The nightclub was used as a filming location for the first season of the BBC America thriller series Killing Eve (2018–present), doubling as a Berlin nightclub in the episode "Don't I Know You?"[26]

Awards and nominations

DJ Magazine's top 100 Clubs
Year Position Notes Ref.
2006 1 New Entry [27]
2007 2 N/A [28]
2008 1 N/A [29]
2009 2 N/A [30]
2010 2 N/A [31]
2011 2 N/A [32]
2012 8 N/A [33]
2013 4 N/A [34]
2014 4 N/A [35]
2015 15 N/A [36]
2016 15 N/A [37]
2017 2 N/A [38]
2018 9 N/A [39]
2019 15 N/A [40]

International Dance Music Awards
Year Category Work Outcome Ref.
2005[upper-alpha 1] Best Global Club Fabric - London UK Nominated [41]
2007 Nominated [42]
2010 Nominated [43]
2011 Nominated [44]
2012 Nominated [45]
2014 Nominated [46]
2015 Nominated [47]
2016 Nominated [48]

International Nightlife Association's Top 100 Clubs
Year Position Notes Ref.
2015[upper-alpha 2] 10 New Entry [49]
2016 27 N/A
2017 32 N/A
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See also
  • Media related to Fabric (club) at Wikimedia Commons
  • List of electronic dance music venues

Notes
  1. Category Debut
  2. 2015 saw the debut of the chart.

References
  1. "fabric".
  2. djmag.com (1 February 2008). "Top 100 Clubs 2008". DJmag.com.
  3. djmag.com (1 February 2009). "Top 100 Clubs 2009". DJmag.com.
  4. djmag.com. "Top 100 Clubs 2017". DJmag.com.
  5. "Join the campaign to save our culture. Donate to fight with fabric". Fabriclondon.com. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
  6. "Best of British: Outstanding Contribution - Keith Reilly & The Fabric Team | djmag.com". A.djmag.com. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
  7. "Fabric: An oral history". RA.com. 9 October 2009.
  8. "Further delay to Jubilee Line upgrade". London: BBC. 10 August 2010.
  9. "Fabric nightclub put up for sale". NME. 2 June 2010.
  10. "Fabric: Out of Administration". RA. 24 June 2010.
  11. "About fabric". fabric london. Retrieved 8 July 2017.
  12. "Club (About)". fabriclondon.com. Retrieved 1 August 2011.
  13. "Label (About)". fabriclondon.com. Retrieved 1 August 2011.
  14. "Exclusive: inside Fabric's new club Matter". Time Out. 17 June 2008. Archived from the original on 8 February 2009. Retrieved 10 August 2008.
  15. "Fabric duo take Matter into their own hands". Music Week. 17 June 2008.
  16. "Fabric's Cameron Leslie speaks out". London: RA. 13 July 2008.
  17. "Label of the month: Houndstooth".
  18. Rosney, Daniel (9 July 2016). "'Culture of drugs' at London's Fabric nightclub causes licence to be revoked - BBC Newsbeat".
  19. Rawlinson, Kevin (7 September 2016). "London nightclub Fabric to close permanently after licence is revoked". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 7 September 2016.
  20. Lynskey, Dorian (8 September 2016). "'Landmark clubs are evidence of creativity and energy in a city': why Fabric's closure matters". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 8 September 2016.
  21. Aron, Isabelle (23 September 2016). "The crowdfunding campaign to save Fabric has raised more than £210,000". Time Out London. Retrieved 21 November 2016.
  22. "The owners of Fabric are reported to be in talks aimed at saving the venue". BBC Newsbeat. Retrieved 21 November 2016.
  23. COUVÉE, KOOS; COOPER, JOE (18 November 2016). "Deal to reopen Fabric at advanced stage after secret talks over nightclub's future". islingtontribune.com. Archived from the original on 20 November 2016. Retrieved 21 November 2016.
  24. Jamie Bullen (21 November 2016). "Fabric nightclub to reopen after deal struck with Islington Council". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
  25. "NEWSFLASH: Friday Nights Are Changing In EC1 – fabric blog". fabric london. Retrieved 11 January 2017.
  26. https://www.cntraveler.com/gallery/killing-eve-filming-locations-you-can-visit-around-the-world
  27. "Top 100 Clubs 2017".
  28. "Top 100 Clubs 2017".
  29. "Top 100 Clubs 2017".
  30. "Top 100 Clubs 2017".
  31. "Top 100 Clubs 2017".
  32. "Top 100 Clubs 2017".
  33. "Top 100 Clubs 2017".
  34. "Top 100 Clubs 2017".
  35. "Top 100 Clubs 2017".
  36. "Top 100 Clubs 2017".
  37. "Top 100 Clubs 2017".
  38. "Top 100 Clubs 2017".
  39. "Top 100 Clubs 2017".
  40. https://djmag.com/top100clubs?field_year_value=2019
  41. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 18 September 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2018.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  42. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 17 September 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2018.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  43. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 17 September 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2018.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  44. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 18 September 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2018.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  45. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 18 September 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2018.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  46. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 17 September 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2018.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  47. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 17 September 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2018.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  48. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 15 September 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2018.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  49. User, Super. "World's 100 Best Clubs". www.international-nightlife.com.
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