{"id":324718,"date":"2026-08-19T05:34:50","date_gmt":"2026-08-19T05:34:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/324718\/"},"modified":"2026-08-19T05:34:50","modified_gmt":"2026-08-19T05:34:50","slug":"review-i-went-clubbing-in-brooklyn-and-lived-to-tell-the-tale-the-daily-tar-heel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/324718\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: I went clubbing in Brooklyn and lived to tell the tale \u2013 The Daily Tar Heel"},"content":{"rendered":"

I went clubbing not one night, but two nights this past weekend. On Friday, Feb. 23, I saw Palms Trax and Solar at Elsewhere, a nightclub in Brooklyn, New York. On Saturday, Feb. 24, I went to another nightclub called Good Room, featuring Antenes, Sofia Kourtesis, Amourette and Justin Strauss.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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I\u2019m going to be honest and say that I don\u2019t know who was playing when I got there at 1 a.m. And I\u2019m going to be honest and say that I don\u2019t know who was playing when I left at 4:30 a.m. Some parts of my night are as foggy as the smoke machine in the clubs.\u00a0<\/p>\n

When we made it to Elsewhere, I was expecting the venue to be small and intimate, but when I walked in, I felt like I was going back in time to a middle school \u201cBlackout Dance\u201d at the local YMCA. At least those dances didn\u2019t cost $25 and serve $8 beers. There was a stage where the DJ was set up and a large dance floor in the middle. This room was called \u201cThe Hall.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Palms Trax and Solar were DJing together, playing house music. I would describe this music as fun and rhythmic. I\u2019d heard Palms Trax before because I like a lot of artists on the Lobster Theremin label. His sound is reminiscent of Detroit Techno, so it\u2019s always fun to dance to.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Or was I just drunk?<\/p>\n

We explored the other, smaller room called \u201cZone One.\u201d I wasn\u2019t too keen to stay here, because the music wasn\u2019t as fun as in \u201cThe Hall\u201d \u2014 it was too intense. The beat felt dense, like it didn\u2019t allow me to breathe. The room featured Delroy Edwards, Russell E.L. Butler and Andrew Devlin. I\u2019m sure you\u2019re wondering why there aren\u2019t any women in this lineup, and well\u2026 That\u2019s the electronic music scene for you. And I don\u2019t think Elsewhere is doing much to change that.\u00a0<\/p>\n

My friend, Nathan Helms, wasn\u2019t a huge fan of Elsewhere.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cElsewhere felt thrown together by young people in an admirable DIY sense, but somehow failed to avoid corporate sterility,\u201d Helms said. \u201cIt was harsh and still felt huge even though every room was full.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Fast forward to Saturday night. I\u2019ll skip the hangover in bed and the trying to revive our hangover with smoked salmon bagels and New York pizza.\u00a0<\/p>\n

We got to Good Room at about 1 a.m. We walked upstairs and made our way into \u2014 what do you know \u2014 more smoke machines! No wonder New York has such terrible air pollution. I immediately recognize the venue from an episode of \u201cMaster of None.\u201d The entire place was dark, except the bar area that gave off a red glow \u2014 almost like a warning for the night.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Helms, who spent most of the night on the couch, didn\u2019t love Good Room either.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cGood Room had a more comfortable aesthetic, but I wouldn\u2019t call it comfortable either,\u201d he said. \u201cThe entire place stunk of scented fog, and I felt so watched by security I couldn\u2019t relax. They literally had eyes on their black T-shirts \u2014 they looked and acted like secret police. Both places were like something you\u2019d see on TV, but once you get there you realize the abstract spectacle is much better than the act of dancing in a room full of people that are happily overpaying for drinks.\u201d<\/p>\n

Helms made a good point.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The whole place felt fake, and I didn\u2019t get the sense that the people were there for the music. The idea of clubbing intrigued me. You see it on TV and have this idea of what clubbing in the big city is like \u2014 dancing, drinking, meeting people and taking a break from the outside world.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But you have to deal with the logistics of all of that \u2014 you don\u2019t have room to dance, no drink will be under $10, you won\u2019t meet anyone that won\u2019t want to punch you in the face and the \u201cbreak from the outside world\u201d sounds fun until you step outside and it\u2019s daylight and raining and have to get a $30 Uber to get home. Not to mention the recovery in bed the next day until 5 p.m.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I went in to this whole experience with an open mind. I left with a cold and an empty wallet.\u00a0<\/p>\n

@emmalstrickland<\/a><\/p>\n

[email\u00a0protected]<\/a><\/p>\n