Compared to other cities – Berlin, Detroit, Manchester – Barcelona doesn’t have a consistent sound. However, it is a city that is fast moving: people are looking around and seeing how it can be done here. Sónar Festival has certainly helped put Barcelona on the map as a musical city, but during the rest of the year there are loads of independent clubs which you should check out.
City Hall:
Located in what was once the Barcelona Theatre, City Hall has become a focal point for Barcelona’s electronic music scene. The club mixes its own high quality productions with other external ones, of which Club4 on Thursdays is a must if you’re into stronger dance music and a great party vibe.
Saturdays see the takeover of local record label Happy Techno, whose resident DJs alone are worth seeing live. City Hall’s location in the centre of Barcelona’s metropolis make it one of the night’s references of the city.
Rambla de Catalunya 4, 08007, Barcelona
La Terrrazza is an alfresco club on the mountain of Montjuïc. The venue prides itself on its style, reflected in its setting in an historic part of town. The downside of this is the sound limitations.
La Terrrazza is open for the summer season—May through until September—and is a central point during the annual Sónar festival, with London promoters Secretsundaze habitually staging events there, as well as follow-up parties later in the summer. Musically speaking, house and techno are the main genres pushed at the club.
Avinguda Francesc Ferrer i Guardia 13, 08038, Barcelona
Macarena Club:
Macarena is an intimate house and techno club in the heart of the Gothic Quarter. Macarena is well-known for its super limited capacity—80/100 people—and DJ booth in the middle of the dance floor. The music programme is generally looked after in-house but also features guest labels and promoters. The club is usually open seven days per week.
Carrer Nou de Sant Francesc 5, 08002, Barcelona
Moog Club:
Found in the heart of downtown Barcelona, just off La Rambla, Moog Club is a two-floor nightclub open seven nights a week. It is a historic space that has worked as a venue of some description for a century. Head upstairs to the “mirror room” to find more pop-oriented sets while the low-ceilinged bottom floor is all about underground techno and house.
Arc del Teatre 3, 08001, Barcelona
Nitsa/Sala Apolo:
Open for over three decades in downtown Barcelona, Nitsa is a nightclub housed inside the Sala Apolo. Known for its cramped, sweaty atmosphere, it provides an outlet for techno, house and other types of dance music in the old theatre every weekend. Some of the world’s top DJs (Mano le Tough, Dixon, Ben Sims, to name a few,) have already played here this year, and many more are yet to come over the summer.
If techno and electronic music isn’t your thing then head to Nitsa for Nasty Mondays to party and dance to a wide range of genres, including rock ‘n’ roll, pop, indie and punk.
Carrer Nou de la Rambla 113, 08004, Barcelona
