Skip to main content

New 24-hour venue to open in London

FOLD opens on 18th August with a massive opening party...

London is set to get a brand new 24-hour venue this month. FOLD will open its doors on 18th August for a huge opening party featuring some of London’s finest promoters and collectives.

The venue is the latest project to come from Shapes Collective, the team behind newly opened spaces like Hackney's The Glove That Fits and Many Hands, Bermondsey. FOLD is located on an industrial site in east London between Canning Town and Star Lane.

The new club’s main room has a 600 person capacity and will have a strict no-photo policy. A second room is set to open in the space later in the year.

According to the venue’s co-founder Lasha Jorjoliani, AKA Voicedrone, 24-hour parties will tend to take place on Saturdays while Friday night events will run “till late”. Events held during the week will be able to run until 3 am.

"FOLD presents an uncompromising schedule of forward-thinking electronic music,” says Jorjoliani in an official release from the venue. “Veering away from the regular four to the floor, we offer a smorgasbord of alien sounds from the unknown... “Expect extended set times, obscure b2bs and a generally more expansive pallet of sounds over the course of one event."

"London, unlike other leading European cities such as Berlin or Amsterdam, has struggled in recent times.” adds fellow FOLD co-founder Seb Glover. “Gentrifying forces has put huge pressures on artists and musicians, with many leaving as a result. Licensed venues, which is where artists and DJs are predominantly able to earn their living have come under attack."

"What we have created at FOLD is a new home, tucked away from the pressures of the city, a place where you can listen to extended sets on a tuned soundsystem tailored to the specifications of the room to maximise the experience of the space. We strive to do things differently in London, cultivating a more continental approach, creating a place where you can spend extended periods or coming and going as you please."

The venue's opening party takes place on 18th August and will feature a huge bill featuring contributions from of London’s most exciting promoters and curators as well the incredible Dimensions Soundsystem and Worldwide FM’s Global Roots Soundsystem. Other additions include Left Alone, Snap, Crackle & Pop, Body Motion and Make Me. Full details and tickets for the party are available here.

There is also the promise of upcoming label showcases parties with the mighty Ilian Tape, Clone and Pinkman are in the works.

FOLD champions an ethos of inclusivity with their official statement reading: "We welcome All Races. All Religions. All Genders. All Countries of Origin. All Sexual Orientations.. Our focus is creating a safe space that is disconnected from the intense pressures of London life, that allows freedom of expression, positivity and inspiration to take form."

As well as being a venue, FOLD offers five purpose-built studios which artists will be able to hire "by appointment of the FOLD crew.”.

This announcement comes as a refreshing burst of good news just weeks after members of east London’s Hackney council voted unanimously for a policy which rules that all new pubs, clubs and venues will be required to adhere to a strict curfew of 11 PM on weekdays and 12 AM on weekends. That decision has, naturally, been met with huge criticism and protest.