Friday, July 20, 2012

Hongdae Nightlife

Last time I was in Seoul I only had the chance to go to Hongdae for just one night and on that night we had the pleasure to have a few drinks at a random Ho Bar, eat 떡볶이 (tteok-bokk-i) and dance to some hip hop & kpop tunes in Harlem club until the sun came out again.

This time around I am hoping to experience more on the nightlife of Hongdae by visiting some, if not all, of the following bars/clubs:

Club FF: It's a very small live music club. To get there, you take line 2 and you get off at Hongik University station, Exit 6. The entrance fee is around 10.000KRW and if I am not mistaken you have either 1 or 2 drinks for free.


Bbang Club: This once is a small basement club, located across the street from the Coffee Prince coffee shop (close to the Sanullim Theater). Five times a week, various shows take place there. One of the oldest clubs for indie music scene (since 1994).


Club Drug (aka  DGBD): This one is also close to Club FF. To get there walk past the alley where Club FF is and turn left to the next intersection. Down that street keep going straight, you'll see a convenience store on left, and on that intersection, Club DGBD is on the opposite corner on the left.


Club Ssam: Yet another live music club. Still looking for directions on this one and will update info later on~


Strange Fruit:  A really small place with live music. Get off exit 8 and turn right. Turn left at Cafe Egro onto a wide street. Take a right at the Family Mart on the next block. You'll see Strange Fruit four doors down (on the left underground)


Club NB: Across the street from Harlem, you can see Harlem's sister club NB one of the major clubs in the area which mostly plays hip hop and R&B. You can actually enter both clubs with the same wristband. NB has separate rooms that play other genres of music. As stated on the visitkorea website, a shower system is installed in the ceilings for unique water parties and a rest area in the 2nd level overlooks the 1st level, so that guests can catch up on some rest while not missing out on the happenings down below.
Price: Weekdays 10,000 won, Weekends: 15,000 won (includes 1 drink) or 20,000 won for both NB & Harlem


Club Hooper:  On the 3rd floor of the building next to Route 66 (Wausan-gil). To get there, you take line 2 and you get off at Hongik University station, Exit5. On weekends & special occasions, live performances are held. Local artists & DJs perform regularly at the club.
Price: Weekdays free, Weekends 10,000 won (includes 1 drink)


Club DD: If you can't make it to NB or Harlem, since they are always crowded, you can always go to club DD which is less crowded and plays the same music. It is also cheaper than NB & Harlem. The initials stand for "Discovering Day". DD is located close to NB.
Price: Weekdays 5,000 won, Weekends 10,000 won (includes 1 drink)

(credits to original uploaders for the photos)

I am not a huge fan of electronic music so by choice I won't be making comments on clubs such as Cocoon and M2. On top of M2, there's also QVo Club. Maybe the only place I might visit, that also sometimes plays electronic music, is Joker Red since it seems to have a variety of music genres and not just electronic.

Either way, if you have any favorite club/bar in Hongdae let me know~ I am extremely interested.

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