East London club Werkhaus announces permanent closure with final run of parties
Three closing parties will take place in September, featuring Steven Julien b2b Kyle Hall, and more to be announced
Werkhaus has announced that it will be closing permanently, alongside details of a final run of parties.
The team behind the East London venue shared the news via Instagram this afternoon (2nd August), writing: “It’s with a heavy heart that we are closing the doors to Werkhaus this September.”
“The last four years have been beyond special for us, challenging in many ways, but such a privilege,” the post continues. “As our time on Brick Lane comes to an end, we wanted to take a moment to say thank you to all the incredible artists, promoters and staff who have been a part of our journey, and of course to every single one of you that has come and danced with us.”
A combination of rising costs, shifting trends in club culture, and the lingering financial effects of Covid have made the 300-capacity venue “nonviable”, according to General Manager, Luca Pilato.
“In 2020 we were about to launch a huge new calendar with Disclosure opening our Spring season with a massive 2 night show... we all know what happened next with Covid,” he explained. “Two years on, and despite the support of our owners, we have decided as a team that with the rising running costs combined with a reduced interest in late night drinking culture and the fact we only have limited late night events per year have made the space nonviable.”
Since the early 2000s the space, formerly known as The Back Room of Cafe 1001, has hosted a multitude of high-profile electronic artists from acts such as Call Super, Sub Focus, and Conducta, to Lykke Li, Solomun, Ben Klock, and the late Detroit techno legend, K-Hand.
Werkhaus will host a final run of parties from 14th-16th September, kicking off with an ‘Inside The Night’ event with a line-up still to be announced. Steven Julien and Kyle Hall will go b2b all night long on the 15th — after recently reuniting for their first new EP in 10 years — before a final closing party on 16th September featuring secret unannounced guests. More details are set to be confirmed in the coming weeks.
It’s another blow for the London nightlife scene, which has already seen clubs including The Cause, Printworks, and Space289 close in the last twelve months. Werkhaus’ sister venue, Cafe 1001, which is also located on Brick Lane, will continue to operate as a HIFI audiobar.
Tickets to Werkhaus’ closing parties are available here.
