Paris’ Alternative Nightlife IV
  • 12
  • Feb
  • 2011

Text: Rooksana Hossenally for Vingt Paris

Needless to say that Paris doesn’t quite have a bustling nightlife to rival London or New York, but it does have its fair share of quirky and traditional bars, restaurants and cabarets, as well as a number of alternative arty music events in venues all over the city. Popular with the capital’s ‘in’ crowd, venues like La Bellevilloise and La Maroquinerie in the 20th, Point Ephémère in the 10th, Glaz’Art in the 19th and Mains d’Oeuvres at Porte de Saint-Ouen are experiencing a rise in popularity, and it’s not hard to see why. The events held at these venues often combine art and music in quirky unusual spaces that have quickly become the place to be seen, especially for those of you dying to be part of the Paris Boho scene!

A little out of the way, further northeast near the Villette cultural complex, Glaz’Art is at your service with a varied program of concerts, a bar, an exhibition space, an exterior terrace and even a beach in summer! Don’t be fooled by the venue’s non-descript building that melts into a landscape of motorways and bus depots, as the easily overlooked concrete walls that hide an array of cultural happenings that are well worth dropping by for. Glaz’Art is one of the city’s most low-key places with some surprisingly big names gracing the stage, ranging from hip hop to punk, so if you are particular about the music you like to listen to, do look up what’s on before heading down.

The intimate gig space is hinged to the exhibition space that meanders around the building to its exterior terrace, by the Glaz’Art bar. Most people tend to be there to see a band rather than just to hang out ,as in the other places mentioned above. The venue opened 15 years ago, with the aim of being an atypical music base, which it has succeeded in doing judging by its storming success. Unlike the other venues, Glaz’Art hosts a series of free concerts in partnership with Radio Neo, which signals its open, community-focused spirit.

Glaz’Art, 7, Av. Porte de la Vilette, 75019 Paris, tel. 01 40 36 55 65, M° Porte de la Vilette

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