Has anyone else noticed how dead most bars/clubs are now?
I remember just a few months ago bars and clubs being super packed and now there's hardly anybody at them. What's going on?
Edit: I'm in the Los Angeles area
People are terrified.
Everyone is more subdued, people are going into debt as prices continue to shoot up when they're already stretched to their limit, and ice is kidnapping people willy nilly
Oh, plus tourism is basically over
All in all, this doesn't surprise me. Things are getting very bad
just look at vegas/reno, dead city, actually dying before trump came in, he just accelerated it, plus state schools in west coast was suffering enrollment problems for the whole pandemic as well(prior to trump), last article i read is the schools are so desperate they have becoming offering easy admissions to the schools to hs students if they complete minimum amount of these courses, i dont know how long this will last, from what ive gathered almost everyone who was in school during the pandemic had really negative experience(dint learn much) after graduating. and people's futures are uncertain as the schools arnt offering much in career development.
csu system felt like it was on the verge of collapse; i think only a few schools were not suffering severely.
UC doesnt seem to suffer the same effect though, at least not yet.
People are terrified.
Funny way to spell "poor."
Average people aren't nearly as worried about ICE as they should be, but people are definitely feeling the pinch of a dying middle-class and wealth inequality skyrocketing.
It's not just money. There's very real fear as well, it's both
Too fucking expensive.
And at least for me, I have little interest in alcohol-centric outings because transportation becomes an issue.
I imagine there's a lot less tourists since ICE started showing up in big numbers in LA. The presence of a large oppressice force also makes some question whether they want to go out or not, especially those close to the people who have been kidnapped.
not just ice, but border/custom detainment, requiring review of your phone of any anti-trump, anti-zionist material, which already deter tourist, plus canadians dont like trump constant messaging of invading thier country.
I mean here in Canada why would I go to a bar and spend like $12 on a single pint of beer when I can go to the store and pay the same amount and get like 6 pints?
Back in my 20's when I could go to the bar and pay $1.50 for a pint of PBR, sure it made sense. it was cheaper and i was with friends. I could get drunk on the cheap and have a good time.
now? there's no point. Cheap Dive bars (the ones I used to frequent) are going the way of the buffalo and in my city there's literally like only one left out of the dozens I used to go to all the time. I'm not paying over $10 for a single beer. Plus the patrons that still do go to bars are crap. they all would rather be on their phones then have a conversation at the bar.
so to sum up A. it's more expensive and B. younger generations killed the vibe.
In addition to Summer Student Season, I hear there's a lot of ICE pouring through LA this year.
You gotta watch out for that dangerous black ice, it’s transparent and sneaky
...Might help to mention what hemisphere you're in, or continent you're on? Or country? Or city?
The reason for your local change in nightlife could be anything from a wide, wide range of reasons, almost all of which depend heavily on where you are.
Let's not be like the uncouth Defaultist Americans that assume everybody in the world lives where they do. Let's be better, and let's provide a location when it's key info.
If you just looked at the replies you would think OP said they were on an expired visa in Los Angeles.
I get that the ICE situation is scary, but for most of the world, this isn't a concern, the world economy however is always shifting and America is definitely on a downturn, as wages stagnate and prices skyrocket even before the full weight of the tariff nonsense hits. I don't know about other countries, but the US is going to be just like every other developing nation with a vast swath of citizens living in shanties while a few dozen people hold ALL the money.
In many places, people are still going out and partying, but also in much of the world, the idea of "clubbing" isn't nearly as popular and people tend to gather in streets and neighborhoods to celebrate and get drunk.
Sooooo fucking on point. If you arent a sports fan in my area you would be so curious of the same question depending on time of year or success of season. Super anecdotal but just 1 example of tons and tons of variables that effect the bar/restaurant/hospitality industry
Nobody has money to burn.
I mean, I could go to a bar and get a $10 drink.
Or, I could have a whole-ass $11 bottle of wine, at home, in the quiet, with my dogs and a damn good book.
Trump economy. Enough said
It's bigger than one administration. Capitalism separates the majority of people from their wealth, which destroys their ability to go out to the club. All of that money you hear about that billionaires and even millionaires make is just the club money that you and I use to have. Now, instead of going to club, we sit in the dark and watch the ultrawealthy fly really high and call it space travel.
Everything that they have was taken from you and I.
thats why vegas/reno is also dead from what ive read on reddit(people are asking why it so dead). besides the tariffs/and detention of tourists which also is one primary reason. vegas is a failing city for quite a number of years already. losing out to ONLINE gaming, and sports isnt going to save the city if nobody is going there.
I've been reading this for the past 20 years online, and yet not a single fucking movement has done anything within my life to change this. And im sick of reading this, becuase so far no one wants to do anything about it.
You're preaching to the choir here.
Trump put a 100% tariff on fun.
More a tariff on life itself.
It's a financial thing. There's a K shaped economy, with no middle class, and the lower class dealt with inflation for a while with credit card debt... and... those credit cards are filled up.
No money and too expensive. Your option for water is sold in a can that costs $5. Alcoholic drinks are almost double the price now. And at least for my city, the bar districts are now just full of assholes who post-pandemic seemed to forget how to act in public especially when alcohol is involved.
of course they are all caught in the traffic jam at the Gotthard tunnel
I walk past a couple bars a lot and they seem to have the same amount of people. All the outside tables had folks last night.
I'm not going to bars because I'm unemployed. Like I say, if capital wants me to spend money they can give me some, first.
I just read some article about how Germany has supposedly been experiencing a decline in the club scene for some years, and how there's a word for it.
kagi
Not the article I was thinking of, but the word is clubsterben.
https://www.dw.com/en/is-berlin-in-a-club-death-spiral/a-70341859
Is Berlin in a 'club death' spiral?
I'm a Kagi user and you still had me thinking that the German word was "kagi" for a moment there
Do you live in a college town?
bars and clubs run on disposable income.
I think the effects of tariffs and unemployment and everything are starting to be felt.
I've seen a small decline in busy days at local bars or restaurants. I also live near areas that depend on summer tourism, and that is way down.
Thing is, as that goes down, so do the revenues/employees. As that happens, places close or cut employees.
No one wants some 20 year old jackass taping them for TikTok clout.
I was at a packed one last night for my friends that were DJing. I didn’t drink there though to save money
In addition to the economy thing that everyone else has already pointed out (and is totally valid)
I think it's worth pointing out that in the northern hemisphere it's summer right now, so if that's where you're located there's a lot of people going on vacations and having parties right now.
My social circles aren't exactly rolling in it, but at any given time over the summer, there's still at least a couple people I know are the beach, camping, having a BBQ or bonfire, or hanging out at a pool somewhere on their downtime when they might have been at a bar or something otherwise.
If you live in a touristy area, yeah, that's the economy, bars should be booming there.
I remember a couple years ago on a whim a couple of friends and I decided to go to a bar that's usually packed with a line well out the door of people waiting to get it. But it just happened to be a holiday weekend so lots of people had other plans, and we got in no problem.
There’s an obvious answer here if you live in a College town/city.
Probably depends on the area, but I’m in a high COL work-focused one and I’ve been noticing people going on their phones more these days. Even the bartenders. It’s kinda sad.
Yeah, man, I get the feeling you're talking about. There's stuff to talk about, but no one wants to talk about it anymore. But it's hard not to think about that shit though...
I haven't noticed anything in particular, which country are you talking about?
Too expensive, too many handsy douchebags, just not fun.
bars n clubs are lit here in the american south
Could be finals season for summer students if you live near a university.
west coast practically has very little bar/dating scene, and the colleges here doesnt seem to be into it at all, at best its a commuter sort of area anyways.
The stuff I've been going to in the SF Bay Area has been pretty lit lately.
Tried to go to an event at my favorite bar last week and it was sold out, so I can't confirm the issue.
The climbing gym is fucking packed though
that would be different from a BAR /club area, where people go to pickup other people.