Reconstructing the club:
fabric at Lovebox

Cameron Leslie

Founder, fabric

How did you get involved with fabric?

Well my partner Keith Riley was basically looking for a site for many years through the 90s and we came across each other because I got involved in the project for the restaurant next door – Smiths. I was helping raise the money to do the feasibility study on the restaurant and the work I was doing for them could sort of be replicated on the work that was being done for the potential club that was gonna be on this site. On the back of helping him with the report it just turned out that my background in hotels, operations was complimentary to what Keith need for fabric and we got on very well. I came on board and the two of us and the team opened up the club in the October of 1999.

What has been your involvement in the upcoming collaboration between fabric, Lovebox and Pioneer?

Heavy. I’ve been involved in basically every step. There’s a group that’s been involved in the decision making process and I’ve been one of those individuals that has been basically assessing which sorts of partners or partnerships we want to go into. Whether that’s the festivals or sound partners. There’s so many different variables you have to take into account. They’re basically completely crucial decisions. Financial, brand, impact on team, whether that’s gonna add anything to the experience of coming to the club or the impact of pulling people away from the club. There are so many decisions you have to arrive at on a decision like that but ultimately we have decided on Lovebox and Pioneer.

It’s such a unique opportunity you’ve got here. Can you give us an idea of how you’ve achieved the look and feel of fabric in the tent?

We wanted it to feel like a club environment. We didn’t want it to be necessarily a traditional festival experience. We wanted it to be representative of a fabric-ish experience. That’s the sound, the lighting, the fairly minimal stripped back feel of the space. The floor is a wooden floor.  Really though the attention has been on the sound and the light and that’s where we’ve put most of the focus on getting an experience that we feel people will really respond to.

What can we expect in technical terms from fabric’s stage at Lovebox?

Well I can tell you what I hope! We’re still fine tuning it literally today. The build’s taken the best part of four five days so we’re deep into the tuning phase at the moment as of yesterday it was sounding pretty special so I think for a pop-up environment such as this I think the sound is gonna be extraordinary. I’m really excited myself to be able to hear it properly later when it’s in motion. I think it’s going to be something really special.

How do you think the vibe at Lovebox will compare to the vibe at fabric?

It’s a hard thing to say because you don’t know how the festival’s gonna be this time but having been a fair few times myself and the team’s been to many times it’s something we felt fabric’s gonna fit into nicely and we feel it’s gonna form a really nice part of. By Friday, Saturday and Sunday and we’re gonna be doing different things across different days but then that’s no different to the club. So the line-ups we’ve got we’re really happy with them it’s again something that compliments the rest of the festival. We’re not expecting people to be going into the fabric tent and staying there all day that would be bizarre but it would be hopefully a great place for people to dip and dip out and hopefully spend a fair amount of time there and hopefully they’ll enjoy the day and we’ll be a part of it.

Will you be checking out the rest of the festival?

I think there’s so many different things there across all three days that I’m looking forward to. I couldn’t begin to reel off names but I’ll be there all three days so I’m gonna really enjoy it!

Terry Francis

Resident DJ, fabric

How did you first get involved with fabric?

In about 98 when I met Keith Reilly and Niki Smith in the sound shaft behind Heaven. He told me about some plans he had and it sounded interesting to me before I’d even seen the site. He had the right attitude and was believable. Not like other people who just talked shit to be honest in those days. I went to see a half built subterranean world going on and thought ‘this is gonna be special.’

To what extent have you been involved in the upcoming collaboration between fabric, Lovebox and Pioneer?

I’ve not been involved in the planning process at all. I’m just going to get to play on the system on the day.

What can we expect from your set on fabric’s stage at Lovebox?

I’ll be bringing what I do in the club week in week out to the stage. This is what it’s all about for us, to represent the club’s ethos. I think it will be great, the line up is on point and sound system will be loud.

How do you think the atmosphere of fabric will work in a field?

The team have done everything they can do deliver the atmosphere that we have in the club. So hopefully everyone there will be able to experience the vibe that we’re known for.

Have you been to Lovebox before?

No, this will be my first time so I’m even more looking forward to getting involved this weekend.

Will you be hanging about for the rest of the festival?

Yeah my girls Hannah and Rosie are coming so we’re set to have some good fun together.

Alex Barrand

Product Planning Manager, Pioneer

How did you get involved with fabric?

We had a discussion with the technincal manager of fabric a while ago to discuss a system for one of the rooms of the club and we provided a demonstration for it. They had some other companies aswell. The technical manager and the owners were impressed with the system and they decided out of three different brands Pioneer was the one they wanted to go for.

What has been your involvement in the upcoming collaboration between fabric, Lovebox and Pioneer?

Well they mentioned this festival, Lovebox, and that they wanted their new audio supplier to be involved which is why Pioneer were appointed to do this Lovebox stuff.

Can you give us an idea of how you’ve achieved the look and feel of fabric in the tent?

It looks like a festival still at the moment. Basically what they’ve done is taken a typical festival round tent and they’ve kinda draped all the inside out to try to mirror the acoustics of a midsize room. They’ve laid a wooden floor to ensure it feels more like a club with the vibrations and the subwoofer cause they’re all on the same platform.

What can we expect in technical terms from fabric’s stage at Lovebox?

We’ve used a six point system. It’s basically six stacks around the dance floor. Traditionally in the festivals you’d tend to find the left and right front of house and the subs in the middle and that’s the typical festival line-up. Using the GS wave system which is what we have here. It’s not a touring system, it’s too heavy and hard to build. All of our guys were building it and when they do an install it’s normally once and then you walk away and it’s all done. It’s very difficult to build a six nightclub stack in a field while retaining the sound quality.

How do you think the vibe at Lovebox will compare to the vibe at fabric?

I think the initial feeling as soon as you walk in is that you can’t help but notice how much it feels like a different environment to the rest of the festival. You walk through a door and it’s all black and there’s fabric looking out at you. It feels like a different environment to what you’d find at a festival. There’s even some brick facades they’ve put on the DJ booths to make it feel like the club.

Andy Blackett

Promotions Manager, fabric

How did you get involved with fabric?
I’ve been working here nearly 7 years as a booker but I used to come as a punter since 2000 so fabric has been a part of my life as a clubber and professionally for a long time now.

What has been your involvement in the upcoming collaboration between fabric, Lovebox and Pioneer?
I’ve really been at the core of it, working with all parties on the production and marketing aspects of the project as well as of course booking the line up.

What can we expect in technical terms from fabric’s stage at Lovebox?
Firstly we’ve exclusively partnered with Pioneer and will be installing their GS Wave system out doors for the very first time. It’s really a club rig but as we’ll be sound draping the stage and installing a wooden floor so it will work perfectly in this environment. Our lighting engineer Chris Binks has also brought in a lot of elements from the Martin lighting system – there’s a lot involved in what he’s doing and he’s gone into full detail in an article we ran on the fabric blog for anyone who really wants to get the full run down of what he’ll be installing on the rig.

How do you think the vibe at Lovebox will compare to the vibe at fabric?
We really hope that they will be a similar as possible. It’s all about bringing the vibe we’re known for to Lovebox for us.

Can you give us an idea of how you’ve achieved the look and feel of fabric in the tent?
The wooden floor will play a big part in this and the booth will also be jutting out onto the floor just like it is in Room One so it will be as close as possible. The sound draping will also mean that the tent will be darkened so that the lighting will be replicating that Room One feel too.

DJ Hype

Resident DJ, fabric

How did you get involved with fabric?

I first got involved with fabric when I was offered to move my monthly playaz label night from the end club to fabric 15 years ago. I have been doing playaz monthly ever since!

To what extent have you been involved in the upcoming collaboration between fabric, Lovebox and Pioneer?

Errm… I am DJing there.

What can we expect from your set on fabric’s stage at Lovebox?

I shall be hopefully creating an exciting set of drum and bass jungle mixed in my own special way.

How do you think the atmosphere of fabric will work in a field?

It should be great! I may play a few more commercial tracks than what I play at a normal playaz @ fabric night but who knows till I am there?