Only a handful of my friends know that I’m a sucker for electronic club music and despite Beijing being a bit behind the west in some ways, this city has a more to offer in terms of nightlife than any city I’ve lived in.
Last night I went out with a group of friends to one of the many “mega-nightclubs” near Worker’s Stadium in the Chaoyang District to see one of my favorite club DJs - Paul Oakenfold. He is one of only a handful of techno/trance DJs who has crossed over to the mainstream. You may not know the name, but I’m sure you’d recognize some of his music from movies, commercials and TV shows like Alias.
The clubs adjacent to Worker’s Stadium are crazy (but that describes a lot of things here). In front of them is an endless row of Porsche Cayennes, BMWs and Mercedes belonging to the “little emperors” - an extremely wealthy (or seemingly wealthy) group of 30-somethings. Parking lot attendants direct the nice cars to the front and the rest are relegated to the back. Ironically, a black license plate (which indicates a foreigner ) on a $7500 Chinese vehicle must give it enough stature to park next to $120K BMW - yes…they let me park my Soldier up front and when I left, I had to wait for a $600K Maybach to move out of the way. Well, enough about cars.
Once inside the club, the first thing you will notice is the great sound quality and light show. But you will also notice that the clubs have lots of private VIP areas akin to skyboxes at an arena. The large groups of Chinese usually share a bottle of cognac which they mix with a popular, sweet ice tea beverage that you get for 2 RMB at any corner market. Last night’s event was sponsored by Hennessy and the logo was glowing everywhere. China appears to be a battle ground for beer and liquor companies and it’s rare to see a bar without logos everywhere.
Anyway, I was really worried that last night was going to be a big disappointment (living here makes you a bit pessimistic). But for once, my expectations were blown out of the water. The show was incredible and the crowd was really well mannered despite being shoulder-to-shoulder. This particular show drew a large number of western foreigners (like myself)…probably about 30% non-asian. The staff were abundant and very professional. Even the bathroom attendants would give you a a shoulder rub as you washed you hands ;-).
At 3:00 am, Paul seamlessly handed off to the local DJ and we decided to leave then. I’m not sure what time the clubs close but we seemed to be the only ones leaving. I think I’ve answered the question about all the people who sleep on the sofas in Ikea.
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