Music trip to Lisbon

After a short sentimental journey to England, it was time to visit my Polish soulmate, who moved her life not anywhere else than to the capital of Fado - Lisbon. Contrary to what it might have seemed like it is actually beneficial to have your loved ones abroad and see them less often, as well as to have this indescribable feeling of enthusiasm when it feels that we saw each other yesterday, not two years ago. A meeting with Karina took place in the late October and with the such unexpected return of summer with thirty degrees Celcius of heat. Even though that during meetings like this one music is less important, it was enough time to discover something interesting and to be able to share the brand new discoveries .

First of all, thanks to Karina, we managed to attend Sofar's concert. I reckon that some of you have heard about Sofar. They promote young musicians, or those who still are a bit less known. Sofar gigs take place in secret locations and only the specific number of people can take part in. I encourage the supporters of small concerts to look for such sort of initiatives wherever you live. I love intimate gigs. It’s cooler than listening to someone's music amongst the crowd where every person passing next to you is spilling a drink onto you. Sofar becomes more popular in Poland. Search for their gigs in Krakow, Wroclaw, Warsaw, Toruń, Poznań and Gdańsk. More info how to apply for entry as well as details about events you can find at the official website: www.sofarsounds.com.

Summarizing the subject of the music clubs, bear in mind that Portugal is the capital of fado and not rock music. Presumably you will hear a melancholic song accompanied by two acoustic guitars and jazz tunes... more than Hendrix songs. It is a good reminder that Portugal is one of the multiple countries where 30 degrees Celcius are present all the time, so the nightlife begins later, too. Usually concerts start no earlier than 10 pm. This time I wasn't able to be everywhere due to late opening so the majority of the photos I took are “the outside of a veue aka still shut”. Unfortunately opening hours just simply outgrew me.I hope you will like them anyway! Let's get started!

And those jazz tunes I mentioned are nothing else but the Hot Club de Portugal. It's the oldest jazz club in Lisbon but also the best one in the whole city. Probably a fan of disco music won't feel welcome there, but everyone else should. At the beginning there was the radio program called Hot Club. Hot Club was broadcasted (tak, to jest poprawna forma :P) since 1945 and quickly became a well-known radio broadcast addressed to jazz music listeners. A growing number of listeners contributed to a jazz association opening in Lisbon under the name Hot Club de Portugal. Hot Club de Portugal still runs as the venue and the jazz school. It is located by Praça da Alegria square which translates gracefully into English as Square of Happiness.

If you are anywhere near of the party district Bairro Alto, head over to Alface Hall. You may recognize this place if you've visted Lisbon before. You can also find the hostel under the same name whose located just by the venue. Maybe it will be childish of me but I find Alface Hall very cozy. The cafe itself is decorated in the old, storage room style – it has lots of antiques, pretty little trifles, and what's most important to me – large and comfortable sofas. The main idea behind Alface Hall is to enjoy live music while sitting on a comfy sofa. Get a drink, immerse yourself in the depths of a velvet sofa, and flow with the waves of sound. This is Alface Hall for you. I find it very convenient that the venue opens around 4 pm.
The last two places I want to familiarize you with, are the venues located so-called “Pink Street” – Sabotage Rock Club and Music Box. Yes - you guessed them right, and I don't have to explain anything more. Let's go and see those places.

Sabotage Rock Club is a relatively new place but it's already on the most attended music clubs list in Lisbon. The doors are opening at 10 pm every day, and almost every single day you can find a different band playing live music. The venue is known for weekly events such as Rock n Roll Survival Sessions, Lisboa Vintage Club Night, or 70s Hard Rock.

The Music Box is located under a bridge that runs through the “Pink Street”. It is very easy to miss it while you walk past the area, so this is something to remember about it. Many people find this place as the best one for gigs in Lisbon. Allegedly, you can find a quite big concert room with amazing sound system as well as lighting. I am not able to confirm those allegations as I haven’t attended any concert in there. I also heard that The Music Box is not the most friendly place to be, and smoking is permitted. This may highly discourage non-smokers to attend this venue.

So where are you going for a gig?
🙂