Category Archive for Nightcrawling
Budapest Hipster District VII: Ruin pubs & young nightlife. Szimpla bar, graffiti walls, hip cafes.
With a toss of hair, my Eurail-Vision coverage begins! As you’ll recall, Eurail.com sent my filmmakers and me around Eastern Europe by train. We’re thrilled to share our first-hand finds: underground bars, concept boutiques, music festivals and more.
Let’s start with Budapest, Hungary. I’ve wanted to visit this city for years, and it lived up to its cool reputation.
We were traveling during a heatwave, can you tell? I wore:
Banned Apparel sugar skull dress: gifted by Little Wicked’s Emporium, a wonderful indie online shop for dark fashion, based in the UK. Brands include Hell Bunny and Too Fast. You can order the same style (and more) here.
Red leopard print hair bows: gifted by Sourpuss Clothing
Photography by Melissa Rundle.
Our favorite neighborhood was District VII (Elizabeth Town), the traditional Jewish quarter. Today, it’s known for gritty ruin pubs like Koleves Kert.
Ruin pubs or “romkocsma” are run-down, abandoned buildings that have been converted into hip, young bars. The first and most famous is Szimpla.
Szimpla Kert was my favorite among the ruin pubs we visited in this area. The exterior hardly reveals what awaits inside…
… a hipster free-for-all. Multiple floors and rooms, jammed with bizarre decorations like antique dolls and water bottle sculptures.
That night, the largest section (filled with lights and mismatched chairs) had a retro 60s band, film projections, and random girl selling carrots!
I felt at home in the 90s-cyber computer room. My glass of blackberry wine cost about $1.
In addition to ruinpubs, District 7 is the best place to see graffiti. My filmmakers and I couldn’t shop shooting material here.
Budapest’s fascinating history over the centuries (from the Austro-Hungarian empire to Communism) has left old-school architecture at every turn.
It contrasts with the modern street art that now covers these old surfaces.
So many secrets and layers in District VII, the current youth neighborhood.
Budapest has a creative energy, more so than in most European cities I’ve visited.
I recommend wandering around Kazinczy Street, the Jewish center that contains many historic buildings.
On Király Street you will find youth hostels, cool cafes and design shops.
The VAM Design Center is the top contemporary art and fashion museum in Hungary.
A row of sunflowers cleverly announced a Van Gogh exhibit.
The modern industrial design of this cafe is typical for Kiraly St. Everything’s very affordable in Hungary, so spend your forints (note: they don’t use Euros).
Inside a souvenir shop, I found Alphonse Mucha postcards. (I reviewed his Art Nouveau exhibit in Tokyo.)
District I is another good place to stroll. The area’s more touristy, but contains beautiful historical buildings and sculptures. I stumbled upon this Michal Negrin boutique…
Love the colored jewelry and Rococo-patterned clothing by the Israeli designer.
(My cross nail art is by Glam Nail Studio.)
That’s only the start of my Budapest journey. Coming up: a food tour and Sziget music festival.
Thanks to Eurail.com for making our reports possible. You can find out more about their various train pass packages on their Facebook.
Were you surprised by the scene in Budapest, Hungary? Have you heard about Ruin Pubs or visited any?
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Montreal Kinetik Festival! Gothic Industrial EBM concerts & nightlife: Katacombes club, Bar Passeport.
Ready for my Montreal Goth clubbing and travel guide? Here’s a round-up of the city’s best Dark Industrial and Punk parties, and review of Kinetik Festival 2013!
When night falls, I’m ready for a crawl. Full info about my hair and clothes are in this outfit post.
The friendly door person invited us into Bar Passeport, located near many restaurants on St-Denis.
It was the first stop on a nightcrawl with my friends, Lauren and Asta. The lady at the bar recognized me from my Myspace days! To welcome us to her city, she gave us shots of whiskey and maple syrup.
Bar Passeport has various themed nights, as illustrated on the flyers. (Funny how you can see our faces in the reflection.) We had fun dancing to “EBM, Alternatif, Synthpop, New Wave, Gothique”. Upcoming darkwave parties are listed on their Facebook page.
Right next door is Club Chaos, a legendary punk bar. Cheap drinks and skeletons are always a good sign.
Another classic bar is Foufounes Electriques, which often has live music performances. In the 1980s, this club was a gathering place for punk and Goth subcultures.
The metalwork inside “Foufs” and outdoor enclosure remind me of the Monster bar in Berlin.
Lauren and I had fun at Coop Katacombes. From the exterior, you can guess this is a heavy metal hangout.
Our stay coincided with Queer Ass Punk. To our delight, the night was dedicated to Grrl Riot! DJ Velvet Underparts blasted music by L7, Joan Jett, Sonic Youth, and even the Daria theme song.
John Waters’ movie Hairspray aired above the bar, and Millie Rosado sang while playing keyboards and guitar.
On to the main attraction: Festival Kinetik at Le Belmont. Known as North America’s Wave Gotik Treffen, the event brings in international Industrial-Noise-Goth-EBM bands for a weekend of performances. Previous years have featured Nitzer Ebb, Funker Vogt, VNV Nation and more.
2013 featured a scaled-down version of Kinetik, which created a friendlier atmosphere. Everyone gathered in one place, to see bands like Project Pitchfork and Terrorfakt.
Lots of fun fashion at Le Belmont. In the side room, Goths gathered at the bar and browsed CDs at the merch table. (My deconstructed top is by h.NAOTO Red.)
We perched at the upstairs balcony, which gave us an unhindered view of the stage. My silhouette proves I’m an alien…
I was impressed at the level of organization; all the bands started on time. Suicide Commando took the stage with a giant cross projected in the back.
They showed a countdown for their “Cause of Death” song: “Every 40 seconds someone attempts suicide…”
The next evening, I met up with my friend Daniel Graves of Aesthetic Perfection, one of Kinetik Festival’s headliners. We filmed a hilarious “bagel tasting battle” together — can’t wait to show you the video!
As always, Aesthetic Perfection performed with charm. Daniel has a knack for making the audience smile and dance.
After a long night, it’s time to put on our slit-eyed sleep masks. They’re gifts from Velvet Moustache, who we met during our art studio visit.
What’s your impression of Kinetik Festival and the Montreal Goth alternative scene? Did I miss any nightclubs or parties? Let me know by leaving a comment.
Coming up next… Goth and pin-up shopping in Montreal, and an announcement about my August destinations!
LA CARMINA
