PROFILE: BUILDING SIX (FORMERLY MATTER)

The closure of the Jubilee Line might have been the event that put the nail in the coffin of the club formerly known as Matter in 2010, but an Olympic tube upgrade might just be one of the things that saves it.

With an improved rail link, a taxi rank and bus service now getting clubbers to and from the venue, a programming schedule that picks its moments will also be the secret to its survival, LWE's Will Harold tells DJ Mag.

“I was involved with the venue previously and we had some incredible shows there, it was just hard to find enough shows to do that twice a week,” he says. “It's such a big space that it'd be really hard to put events on week in week out, so it's great that we can just put the biggest and best shows in there.”


Acquired by London Warehouse Events (LWE) and renamed Building Six, the club — reserved for the promoter's most prestigious events — launched with Mistajam's SpeakerBox in October, and has Cocoon London (30th November) and a massive NYE party with TEED, Breach, Bondax and T.Williams also in its diary (see box-out). Still boasting a monster Martin Audio soundsystem and “body kinetic” dancefloor, the venue has been given that rough LWE touch.

“It's always been an incredible space with great production, but we've worked with AEG to put it back to its stripped-down industrial best,” says Will. “We use it almost like any of the warehouse spaces that we throw events in. We go in and set it up the way we need for each show.”

Adding Building Six to its already stocked armoury of untouched urban spaces in the Big Smoke, LWE — the same group famous for throwing parties for the likes of Drumcode, RAM and CLR — will continue to cherry-pick clubbing brands with an open policy, parties that balance “great music and a demand from fans to hear that music”.

“I think like the other warehouses, car parks and venues we frequent, we take time in selecting an appropriate space for every event,” Will explains. “It's one of the things I love about not being tied to one venue, we can find exactly the right home for every night. We've confirmed shows with Skrillex, Cocoon, Hospitality, Breach, TEED, DJ Fresh and more...”

Considering closures in the capital left, right and centre over the past 12 months, crews as ambitious as LWE are a sight for sore eyes. And with the recent dance music renaissance there's a lot to be positive about in London at the moment, Will believes.

“I think there's been a real shift in London's scene. The more underground scene is pretty consistent, but the mainstream being so dominated by electronic music recently [has] had a big impact,” he concludes. “If you think how bass music, then deep house and now some of the more garage-influenced UK house sounds have been dominating the airwaves, I hope that this turns a new generation onto electronic music in a broader sense. That they then start to look deeper and become obsessed about finding new music in the same way we are.”