Why do they all play the same kind of music everywhere?

Can anyone recommand a good place with different type of music? Somewhere special and unique. I am so sick of the bar scene in Taipei b/c they all play the same kind of music. :sunglasses:

Different from what? I know of at least three musical ā€œthemesā€ that local bars/clubs gravitate towardā€“techno, rock, or jazz. Most dance places play various sub genres of techno and a little rock and hip hop. Most pubs and bars play a mix of classic and ā€œalternativeā€ rock with a little jazz and techno thrown in for good measure. Some high end ā€œloungesā€ play trance and ā€œchill-outā€ techno. There are a handful of pubs that focus on jazz and R&B. What kind of music are you looking for? Bulgarian folk? Samba? Calypso? Gregorian chant?

Wellā€¦apparently live DJs arenā€™t the standard in Taipei clubs. Because I have yet to see oneā€¦

What?

Here.

If that were true Iā€™d be out of my new Friday night gig.

It would probably be more difficult for me to come up with a list of local watering holes that donā€™t have DJs, rather than the other way around. You need to get out more, ā€œanswererā€ :wink: .

For starters you can try Bien near the on JinShan Rd. near Hsin Yi b[/b] Rd. I just started DJing there on Friday nights (early shift). Itā€™s a cozy little place with three levels. I wonā€™t make any claims about by DJing skills. Iā€™m still trying to relearn everything about the equipment that Iā€™ve forgotten since university. One thing that I have noticed during my brief DJ stint is that there is a pretty large (mostly local) DJ community here made up of men and women that take it very seriously, organizing events and parties on a weekly basis (see the link in the above post).

I should point out that Bien isnā€™t a dance club, the focus is on drinking on socializing rather than booty shaking. You are more likely to hear The Pogues, The White Stripes, and The Specials in my set than techno, not that I have anything against the latter.

Wow, Pangolin, three of my favourite bands. Whatā€™s ā€œearly shift?ā€ I have to work til 11, but I might pop in afterwards. What kind of place is it? Is it new?

Well, I start around 7ish and finish around 11ish, or whenever the next DJ shows up and kicks me out of the booth.

Bien itself is about 3 months old and owned by the same folks who brought you 45 and Spin/12 Monkeys. The food is better 45 and, IMHO, worth dropping by on its own. NT$80 drafts until 9 p.m. Iā€™ll stop now before this starts to sound like a commercial.

A quick correction, thatā€™s 7-9 p.m. It turns out the 9 p.m. DJ didnā€™t show on my first night, so I had a bonus 2 hours added to my shift that week. The regular schedule looks like just two hours in the booth. sigh. BTW, I just doing this for the fun of playing my music, there is no pay involved, which would make it feel more like a job.

Shameless self promotion strikes again!

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