Under the Lazer in the Hazer: Bar Temp.

10 Minute Read

Art & Culture

Bangkok’s nightlife has a new pulse: Bar Temp. tucked into the city’s historic Old Town, has been quietly finding its rhythm since opening its doors in February.

It’s the kind of place we love, somewhere that doesn’t need to announce itself, somewhere that has just been quietly ‘getting on with it’.

A small bar and club where the focus is squarely on the music and the people in the room. The team behind it knows what they’re doing: experienced bar owners, the crew from More Rice Records and Human Spectrum, and familiar faces from the now-closed Never Normal Club. They’ve built something that feels intentional – good drinks, a well-treated room with a Martin Audio system (the same brand trusted by Fabric), and a rotating cast of local, regional, and international DJs. This autumn, it’s also the Bangkok stop for Ransom Note’s 15 Year Celebration Asia tour… handy

As Jay puts it, “A well-treated room and a well-tuned sound system is more important for us. If it’s good enough for Fabric, it’s good enough for us.”

For DJs, it’s a room that actually listens. Artists like ND Baumecker have felt it immediately: “As soon as I entered the room I felt the passion and knowledge that was put into its build… I could be me.” Mr. Ho called it “pretty much everything you want as a DJ — intimate venue with a truly open-minded and patient crowd.” For guests, it’s a place where you can hear yourself think between tracks, or lose yourself when the right one drops. Dita described it as “a true safe space, with light design by Human Spectrum and, most of all, hospitality that’s always 10/10.”

But perhaps what sets Bar Temp. apart most is its emphasis on residents. While many clubs chase expensive international bookings, Jay and his team believe the real heartbeat of a scene comes from the locals playing week in, week out. “These are the guys who at the end of the day will be carrying the scene in the city,” Jay explains. “Sometimes a resident night draws a larger crowd than an international night.”

In a city like Bangkok, where tourism plays a huge role, that kind of community-building isn’t just nice to have – it’s essential for survival.

We sat down with Jay to talk about how Bar Temp. came together, what they’ve learned, and where it’s headed:

Our first night was…:
Pretty crazy, we’d sold out our online tickets, we had about 10 on the door people came before doors opened to try to get tickets. Most things went pretty smoothly that night, one of my partners who’s the manager of the club used to run a club before so he knew how to handle it!

Our system is designed by…

Martin Audio

If we had all the money in the world our dream lineup would be…

Jirus: Or:la, Quest,
Sarayu (Me): Robert Hood, Erol Alkan, Ricardo Villalobos, Justice
Gunn Lee: Moodymann, Jeff Mills, Carl Craig, Point G, Ohmme
DOTT: Andrew Weatherall, Zip

And our soundsystem would be…

Still the Martin Audio we have, it’s perfect for our room.

The most misbehaved artists was…

Hmm…

If we had unlimited resources, our dream sound system would include…

I still swear by Martin Audios, it’s clean & punchy. The thing about our room is that it’s small, so we don’t need anything overly powerful. A well treated room and a well tuned sound system is more important for us.

Also, if it’s good enough for Fabric, it’s good enough for us!

The most complex technical rider we’ve ever accommodated was… you don’t have to say who!

None, luckily most of our bookings have had a pretty easy technical rider

And the strangest rider request we’ve ever received from an artist was…

Also none…

Our worst equipment failure happened during a set by… and here’s how we survived it…

Our equipment is pretty well maintained, saying that our CDJs have gone to repair almost every month, but luckily no big malfunctions during sets, we try to make sure everything is in good working order.

How important are residents in the age of overpaid guests….

It’s very important, these are the guys who at the end of the day will be carrying the scene in the city, exposing the locals to different kinds of music week in week out, they know the crowd. We place a very important emphasis on our residents, which is why we try to always have resident nights. Sometimes a resident night draws a larger crowd than an international night.

Our secret weapon for maintaining an incredible sound quality is…

We have a very well treated room and our sound is maintained by our very capable resident Kova O’ Sarin.

The music scene in our city has changed dramatically since we opened because…

Bangkok’s scene is always changing, now it’s a very healthy one, with lots of crews, DJs, parties every weekend.

Our biggest lesson learned about club culture and community happened when…

Well the club can only really only survive if there’s a community around it. This is what we at Bar Temp. and More Rice are trying to create. The community is so important for the vibe of the space also. Especially in a city like Bangkok, where we are so heavily reliant on tourists.

If we could go back and give ourselves advice before opening the club, it would be…

Think again, hehe.

Moments from Past Guests

nd_baumecker

“As soon as I entered the room I felt the passion and knowledge that was put into its built. I felt I was in a place where people listen to and appeciated an artists vision. I never felt I was pushed to go in a different direction. I could be me. Absolutely love this place and its creators.”

Mr. Ho

“It’s pretty much everything you want as a dj – intimate venue with a truly open minded and patient crowd and a sound system that that can handle a large variety of music very wells”

Dita

“A beautiful space designed with so much love and care. Not just a club or a bar, but a true safe space, with light design by Human Spectrum and, most of all, hospitality that’s always 10/10.”