CULTURE/SPECIAL INTEREST: Troop Cafe

 As I talked about in the post about Jam Jam Cafe, I spent last Friday night at the Troop Cafe, a night club that mainly holds events for electronic dance music (techno, electro, house, trance, drum and bass, and all that other stuff I can't tell the difference between, most of the time...). It is the most constantly recommended night club from my experiences in Kobe, and it certainly matched the expectations. Aside from the 500 yen water ($5, or more I guess given the weak status of the dollar) and the no-reentry rule, the venue was near-perfect. The main dance floor was big enough for the crowd that came out, with plenty of room in the smoking/sitting section in the back. The bar was also well placed for easy access to over-priced drinks. Security was also very beefy, a sharp contrast to the next-to-nye security at the club I went to in Nagoya. 

 The club-goers in attendance were also somewhat livelier than at the Nagoya venue. One interesting thing that I noticed was that the closer people were to the front, the more they were dancing by themselves. As far as I could gauge, the people with a deeper interest in the music that was being played were in the front going all out. People dancing with each other or mingling between sexes were toward the back. In the middle, the mood balanced out. Several girls approached me and did nothing but shout "yaaaaayyy!!!", a universal phrase they figured would fit the mood. Japanese guys too offered high-fives and elaborate hand shakes as they walked by. I was the only foreigner until a tall blonde girl showed up with an entourage of Japanese girlfriends. Clearly, the foreign presence attracts a lot of excitement at night clubs in Japan. I was glad I was at a spot that Japanese go to rather than some of the foreign-catered venues around town, serving as jump-off points for foreigners and the Japanese girls who are so eager to seek them out.

 All in all it was a good night, and I left the club with my friend from school around 3:30am. The atmosphere in Japanese night clubs, at least ones that cater to a Japanese audience that are interested in electronic dance music, is one directed toward fun instead of hyperbolized ego and machismo that can be found in venues in the United States. It's refreshing and offers a good look into how young Japanese people relieve their stress and cut loose. I'll keep posting on anything else I find interesting at Troop Cafe or other clubs. Stay tuned!