- Ahhh, Fabric. One of my favourite venues in London (or anywhere for that matter). Not only are the crowds almost always up for a crazy night, but the sound system there has to be one of the most amazing ones around. Bar none.
We arrived to find a good bunch of people in line that were well up for a good time. The atmosphere was wicked and you could tell that everyone wanted to get in and start dancing right away. After a short wait, we were finally inside, coats checked, and on our way to the main room. One the things I love the most about Fabric is that when you''re upstairs, you can''t really tell what music is playing. And then, as you make your way down the stairs, the beats get louder and cleaner and by the time you get to the dance floor, it's time to party.
We got to room 1 on time to hear the Drumattic Twins kicking ass. The dance floor was already heaving by the time we got in and the energy level was amazing. Happy smiles all around. I walked round the floor, taking photos of people as I went along (see the photo gallery on this site) and there wasn't anybody I came across that wasn't well into it. Back to the DJ booth for a few closer shots and I just stood at the back watching them work their magic. One dude on a keyboard/laptop combo and the other on the mixer/decks.
Next up was Soul of Man and I was pleased to see that the mood set by the Drumattic Twins was kept going without missing a beat. How many times do you go out to have DJs change over and just start doing their completely own thing without considering what was playing before them. That just ruins it for me 'cause I like it when things flow into each other nicely. Perfectly done this time and everybody was jumping around.
Thought I'd check out a bit more of what was going on in Fabric so went over to room 2 and was able to catch the last 40 mins of DJ SS's set. Now I''m not a D&B head (I'm a trance man at heart) but do appreciate it when the DJ is doing his thing and working the crowd. Obviously, DJ SS knew what he was doing 'cause this was hands up in the air stuff the whole time I was there. Really nice dude too as he was kind enough to let me get up close and personal to take photos from behind the decks. I stayed for a bit once Grooverider took over, but as I really wanted to hear some breaks, I went back to room 1.
And thank god I did!!! The Plump DJs were on and cruising by the time I got there. They'd turned up the tempo a bit and the crowd were loving it. It was awesome seeing Lee and Andy work the decks together. One thing that Andy kept doing was waiting for a good vocal to come along, turn down the volume just enough for the crowd to hear him scream and then everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, all screamed back. Magic. Having had a bit of a dance myself, by this point, I needed a slight rest so sat down against the back wall behind the DJ booth, just watching everybody and taking in the atmosphere. But it wasn't over yet...
The last DJ I heard on the night was Krafty Kuts. I'd never seen him spin live before so was quite looking forward to it and man was I not disappointed. I was in awe as he mixed and scratched the crowed into a frenzy and took the level just that one step further up. Hands up the air for everyone and no rest allowed for the breaks heads in the crowd. Sadly, we had to leave before the end of his set and then had the only bad part of the night.
I don't know if there was something wrong on the way out of the club but it took us almost an hour to get our jackets and finally make our escape. I've been to Fabric heaps of times, in the winter and summer, and I've never waited that long to get out. Hopefully it was a one off because it put a bit of a damper on an otherwise amazing night.
Will definitely be heading there the next time Fingerlickin' put on a night 'cause it absolutely kicked ass.
Cheers,
DJ Sylv