Lives In Music: FOLD

In this series we shine a light on the people that make the wheels turn behind the scenes in London’s music underground. From venue owners and agents, to record label managers and bouncers, we chat to these individuals about their tastes and motivations.

Seb Glover and Lasha Jorjoliani are the minds behind FOLD, the 24 hour licensed night club that opened its doors in 2018. Part of the Shapes umbrella, the venue has made it its mission to host forward-thinking electronic music and label showcases with collectives from across Europe and beyond.

Adam and I step off the train at Canning Town. It feels dystopian, derelict, otherworldly. It’s the perfect place for a club. Seb and Lasha have found a recent explosion of press as they address licensing issues. A clear statement was made at the time stating ‘We at FOLD deny any accusations of wrongdoing’. When we meet them in July it is prior to the furor and the two gents are fantastically welcoming and excited about the community they are creating. After a tour of the club we find them both discussing the music policy and the growing momentum of positivity surrounding the place. The interview questions begin to become more pertinent as we chat, we slip into the first one naturally…

Most Iconic London Venue?

Both – FOLD

Seb – Also the End.

Last gig you went to?

Lasha – Empire line. Very experimental techno live music. Very dark, incredible sound. It was here and they were jumping all over the stage, it’s really unique. But I do really like Pilot Wings.

Seb – Giant Swan was incredible here. Raucous live techno. They played in amongst the crowd in front of the stage facing each other – it got heated and wild with a mosh pit like a punk gig.

Last DJ set that really impressed you?

Seb – December, from RINSE France. Techno, hard EBM & experimental sounds. His hard hitting set was unanticipated and really blew me away.

Lasha – Mani D was amazing on a Sunday here at FOLD. But every night here we are hearing so many different things.

Last meal you really enjoyed?

Seb – Food… hmmm… Deliveroo – can that count? Not enough time for proper meals!

Lasha – A great Romanian restaurant around the corner. Super nice soups. Smoked pork ribs and bean soup. It’s CLOSE BY so we go as much as we can.

Photo credit: adam__adam__adam

Last record you bought?

Lasha – Scorpio – Michael Bailey

Seb – Music Beamed Through Dimensional Waves by Abstract Thought on Clone Records. 

Best bit about working in music?

Seb – Being around passionate and talented people that feed off creativity.

Lasha – Having like minded people around you to support your creativity. We search for people with a like-minded brain and when you meet those people it’s like you share the same brain, like a marriage. We believe in each other and support each other. That’s the best part. People fighting to make a community.

Toughest challenge about working in music?

Seb – Not sleeping enough! It was tough trying to carve out the FOLD ethos (such as the no photos policy). 

Lasha – Yeah we had to implement that right from the start. Also the smaller details like getting our security right. We wanted to make sure that they acted in a very professional manner whilst being approachable and helpful. It took us a few months to find the right team. We have had to really fine tune the whole FOLD environment and we continue to do so. We call it FOLD as we want to bring everyone into it.

What was the first break in your career?

Seb – The beginning of my journey was running a multi-venue music festival for a charity organisation and that gave me the initial skills and experience that led to opening my first music venue Shapes in 2012…

Lasha – For me it was when I moved to London around 10 years ago. I am from Georgia and I was making music and playing in clubs but all of my influences were from London. So I needed to come to the roots. My musical journey really started then.

Best headline act you have seen?

Lasha – Freq nasty. About 12/13 years ago in Goergia. It really resonated at the time.

Seb – Well the first that springs to mind is Dillinja on Fabric's birthday when I had just moved down form Manchester as a 19 year old. The energy blew my mind and I think by the time it was finished the lights had been on for 15 minutes and the tempo was almost 180 bpm!

Photo credit: adam__adam__adam

Best place to eat before you go out with friends? 

Seb – Somewhere cosy preferably with soup as I cant get enough of the stuff. Lasha – Somewhere with Russian salt-based products and tomato soup.

Person that you have worked with that you found most inspiring?

Both – Each other.

Best thing about the music scene in London?

Seb – the passion and drive of those engaged in it, it can be a tough place for the scene with high costs of living and lack of affordable spaces so you really have to stay motivated, especially early on. Also the range of styles that have emanated here…

Lasha – Jungle music and FOLD of course! My mother was teaching in school. She went on a school trip and came back with a cassette that a student had left. Prodigy – Fat of the Land. That changed my life. When I heard that everything changed. When you grew up in a post-soviet era when not a lot of music was making it in.

Any labels that you are enjoying at the moment?

Lasha – I really like headstrong right now.

Seb – So good. I've been listening to Hypnus Records, deep and hypnotic.

Last thing you shazamed? 

Lasha – Krystal Clear – Keith Harring (Downtown Mix) 

Seb – Luca Lozano – Super Rhythm Track

Any advice for anyone who is looking to start working in music?

Lasha – Stay humble. This industry has lots of snobs but it is important to stay humble. You can fail many times but without failing there is no success.

Seb – Follow your passion and nurture resilience.

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