Hongdae clubs will cohabitate

The era of small clubs in the Hongdae district may be changing. Ohoo, a new, five-story megaclub in the area around Hongik University, is throwing its official opening night party tonight, with Derrick Carter behind the decks. The club had a sneak-preview opening yesterday as part of Hongdae’s monthly Club Day festivities.
Choi Sung-min of Art Shop worked on the interior, which has a different concept for each floor. The fifth floor houses the airy club offices. The fourth floor is a gallery, done with stainless steel, white walls, concrete floors and sliding panels. The third floor is for One Lounge, a bar done in a retro, purple-polka-dot scheme; the floor is black Italian marble, with exposed ceilings and light fixtures made of metal and cocktail glasses.
The second floor, which has a masculine look with hardwood floors and wine-colored fabric, is the new location for the Hongdae club Hodge Podge, which will host monthly hip-hop parties and live music. “Live music doesn’t get enough play in Hongdae,” Ohoo manager Robb Harker says. Every second Wednesday, Hodge Podge will host a variety show called “Lee Hyuk-jae’s MTV Party King,” to air on MTV Korea.
The first floor is the newly relocated club Matmata, now called M2. Each club can hold about 1,000 people. Hodge Podge (which plays hip-hop, rock and alternative) and Matmata (house music) moved to the same building because of their owners’ friendship. With three other investors, they bought three homes that were razed to make space for Ohoo.
The opening was planned for last December, but preparations took longer than expected. “We didn’t want to open just to hit a date. We wanted to do it properly,” said Mr. Harker.
“We’re going to have a big impact on the scene, with international DJs on a regular basis and tickets for a decent price,” he said. He also plans to hold theme parties and showcase local DJs. “This is the kind of venue I’ve been waiting for,” Mr. Harker said.

by Joe Yong-hee