The difference between cost and value is about getting what you pay for. In Singapore, rising cost and falling value is evidenced by a plate of tasteless chicken rice costing more than $6; a 15-minute cab ride after midnight for over $20 and your job paying you peanuts for work supposedly meant for three monkeys. These are your daily chores and you complain but do nothing about it. But the contrary is true of our clubbing circuit; you do get more than what you paid for.
Complaining is an attempt to justify that you got less than what you think you deserved and I’ve heard the lot: “I paid to party and it’s so boring here!”, “$25 for cover charge? That’s crazy!” and my all time favorite, “I have to take a cab to and fro from a club and it’s so expensive! Still must pay cover charge and buy drinks.” Are these valid? For a typical Singaporean, probably; but please allow me to be blunt: Are you blinded to the party’s value because you were burdened by the cost? Then don’t go out! Stay home and tend to that fish in your aquarium or something.
Over the last few weekends, Joris Voorn, Martinez Brothers, Judge Jules, Boys Noize, AC Slater, Carl Cox, Scope and DJ Aki played their hearts out at Zouk, Zirca, Stereolab and Home Club. That’s estimated to be a quarter of a million dollars worth of musical magic. By the way, I have not included the sick parties thrown by our local DJs like Hong (Zouk), Ming (Home Club), Marcus (Zirca) and Bedsty and Midnight Shift’s nights. This coming weekend sees Copyright, Heidi, Heartthrob, Tokimonsta, Kid Massive and John O’Callaghan rocking different venues all over Singapore. The last weekend of this month? I won’t even go there; I shall surprise you because I think you deserve the slap in the face.
Our monthly international DJ bookings have constantly surpassed the million dollar mark. You don’t get this many DJs over in our neighboring countries weekend after weekend. In Europe, kids drive for days to catch a DJ. In Singapore … it has came to the point that you’ve been so spoilt with the awesome musical selections that because of your constant need to complain, you pick a bone with the price of the party. Standard cover charge ranges from $15 to $30 with two drinks. So what are you really complaining about?