What’s up, clubbers — James here, and this is the first of a weekly series that’s intended to keep you up-to-date with each weekend’s club events and parties so you can make your plans accordingly.
Now, I’m not going to waste your time with every small party that gives itself a name and designs a pretty poster. Each week I’m going to stick to the four biggest electronic-music clubs in Seoul (Answer, Heaven, Eden, and Volume), as well as parties that have either proven themselves in the past or look interesting enough to warrant checking out. In other words, I’ll never post a party that I wouldn’t attend myself.
Throughout this series, I will also sometimes award a “top pick” — a recommendation for a party that I think will be better than anything else going on that night. Now, I’m sure there are a few among you who are snickering quietly to yourself and asking, “What does this guy know about the club scene?” Fair enough. It’s my first article, so allow me to provide some background on myself.
My credentials: I’ve been in Seoul for the past year and a half, and during that time the majority of my waking hours have been spent partying harder than could ever be considered sane or healthy. I’ve partied until the sun was high in the sky more times than I can count, and I’ve probably partied more cumulative hours in the past year than you and all of your friends combined. (If you’re reading this and that’s not true, then that means you probably already know me personally. Haha.) Ergo, I’d say I’m as close to an expert on the club scene in Seoul as one could reasonably expect. Yes, that’s me pictured above.
Hey; it’s a tough job, but someone has to do it. So without further ado…
Weekend Top Pick: Astro Voize
On Friday, Club Answer (Ex: “Le Nuit Blanche”) hosts one of my favorite Seoul-native DJs: Astro Voize.
[For those of you who are confused right now, last year Club Answer was renovated and re-opened as "Le Nuit Blanche." Everyone ignored this stupid and unnecessary name change, and continued to call it "Club Answer." Realizing this, they decided to officially change their name back to "Club Answer," but the sign out front still reads: "Le Nuit Blanche." How long will this ridiculous sign remain there? No one knows.]
So by what name should we call this club? It doesn’t matter, because Astro Voize is going to be there, and this duo has put on an insane show every single time I’ve seen them since December of ’08. If you can only handle one party this weekend, this is the one you don’t want to miss. (And for the record, just call it Club Answer. Let’s all pretend like the name change never happened.)
Their style? Electro — dirty, raw electro. The type of music that makes the crowd move. Every time I’ve seen these guys, the dancefloor has been out of control. Thus I have no hesitation in giving this my mark of 100% recommendation for the night — I guarantee you will not be disappointed.
For an idea of what you’re in for, check out this video (it has a long introduction, but watch from around 1:10 onward. In fact, ignore everything I just wrote and let this video speak for itself):
Raw. Dirty. Electro.
Anyway, here’s the rest of the weekend:
Friday (March 19th):
I personally can’t imagine missing Astro Voize, but if Electro isn’t your thing, here’s what’s happening at the other clubs on Friday:
Heaven: “Combination Vol. 1″
DJs: UJN & NOVA, Bagagee, Innu
Eden: “Colors Party: White Party”
Resident DJs: Yeonjun, Sundance, Ziro, etc.
Volume: Closed for Renovations
No parties this week — Volume is closed until April 9th
Saturday (March 20th)
Saturday looks pretty tame this week. Something that piqued my interest is this St. Patrick’s day party going on at Club Mansion (Sinsa).
[Let me take this time to clarify -- Club Mansion in Hongdae and Club Mansion in Sinsa are completely unrelated. Why they opened around the same time with the same name is beyond me, but it does lead to this same conversation every time one of them throws a party -- Person 1: "It's at Mansion." Person 2: "Hongdae Mansion?" Person 1: "No, Sinsa Mansion." Intentional? Who knows. Hilarious? Yes.]
Anyway, it looks like a two-part act. I’m gonna pass on the Spy Basement hip-hop show in Itaewon since it’s not my thing, but will probably check out the show at Mansion later in the night. The guys over at Mansion are really cool, and it seems like it will be an interesting change of pace.
Now, the poster says the party starts at 10pm, but that’s being optimistic. Sinsa Mansion is typically an after-club, so I’d recommend dropping by around 2-3am after partying elsewhere.
As for the main acts…
Answer: Revolver 69
DJs: Ryoo & DGuru
Heaven: “Bonnie & Clyde”
DJs: KiAnn, Psytonic, Fin, Roxy
Eden: Sergio Fernandez, “Buzzed About Series 1006″
Guest DJ from Spain. His style seems to be in line with the Tech House / Minimalism usually played at Eden. Here’s a sample of his music:
Closing Remarks:
That’s about it for this week. Party hard, SeoulGrid clubbers, and be sure to check back in with me next week for your weekly clubbing update. Cheers!
James
