This being a holiday weekend, party-goers are facing an embarrassment of riches for places to let their hair down, or in one case, blow out their Afros.
Starting tonight, those busy bees at Liquid Lifestyle are putting on yet another bash, this time at the Lava Bar in a collective celebration for all those people out there with February birthdays. Prove you're a February baby and get a free drink. Those who aren't can stop whining -- orange juice, whiskey cokes and Heinekens all will cost only NT$100 per drink all night. Working the decks will be Noodle, Sam, Analogue and Lucky, spinning club-banger hip hop and R&B. Entrance is NT$350 before 11pm, NT$500 thereafter. The Lava Bar is in the Neo19 building next to Warner Village (Xinyi).
PHOTO: DAVID MOMPHARD, TAIPEI TIMES
For hip hop of a more cerebral nature tonight, head to Party Room to catch Japan's DJ Yas. Mentioned often in the same breath as DJ Krush, he's been a fairly prominent producer of abstract hip hop since the mid-90s and is known to put on great shows. Entrance is NT$500 for ladies, NT$600 for men (with that NT$100 price difference, the ladies should be flocking). Party Room is located on the 12th floor of the Core Pacific Living Mall.
The biggest hip-hop show of the weekend, however, will be Green Lantern aka the Evil Genius tomorrow night at Luxy. The mixtape champ and general scratch master blew up huge about two years ago when he backed Eminem on his world tour and then got onto Shady Records which launched him into producing for the likes of Jadakiss and Terror Squad.
The line for this gig could reach down to section five of Zhongxiao East Road, so the wiser among the punters will get there before 11pm. Those who do will also save NT$400 on the NT$900 entrance fee.
Also tomorrow, Adam Freeland is in town (again) playing Ministry of Sound. It's a pre-228 Memorial Day party, the bill for which tells us that "Life is too short for boring politics" and encourages party-goers to "Rave for peace."
The fun starts at 11pm with DJ @llen, who we hope will become a more frequent feature at the superclub, then Freeland, followed by local floor-filler Jimmy Chen at 2:30am. Entrance is free after 2am Sunday morning.
Club 70s is closing down after this weekend, so to go out in style, the club is bringing in DJ Tommy of Hong Kong's now-defunct hip-hop band LMF.
There'll be a tribute to Hunter S. Thompson on Saturday, called Goodbye Gonzo, at Vortex, the Zhonghe pub done up to look like a cave. It starts at 10pm with the band .22 and will go well into the small hours with DJs Gorgeous and Casual Johnson. Entrance is NT$350.
Vortex is located at 302 Zhonghe Rd, Zhonghe, Taipei County (
Sundays aren't usually the party night of the week, but with Monday being a holiday, mix master Marcus Aurelius is rolling out Revenge of the Roller Boogie, Skatetown 2 at Ximending's Wan-nian Building. It's part two of last year's Roller Boogie, by far one of the more memorable events of the year both for the change of scenery -- it's in a roller skating rink -- and the change of music (what would roller skating be without the Steve Miller Band?).
In true Skatetown style, NT$1,000 prizes will be awarded to the best outfit on the floor and another blueback to the winner of the roller boogie contest. Lace-up your wheels for games of Fox and Hound, Triple Trouble and Stuck in the Mud.
In addition to the "Goodfella of Funk" Marcus Aurelius, the decks will be handled by Saucey, Nancy Cheng, Hooker and Remedy, all spinning under different, funkier, aliases.
In addition to the grooves and games, there will be art on display by Citystalker, Levi and Dabs. If you can't skate, make your way to one of the pillars in the middle of the floor where their work will be hanging and make like you're an aficionado.
The whole joint closes down at midnight, so come early. The action starts at 6pm. The rink is located in Ximending at 6F, 70 Xining Rd, Taipei (
The vinyl word: lace up.
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