Great gig venue just near the Hauptbahnhof in the centre of Hamburg. It's usually metal-focused, so…read morereading the posters with the names of all the upcoming acts is amusing to say the least. If Skelton Warfare or diediedie are your cup of team (I just made those names up), then here's your place. We were here to see the Black Rebel Motorcycle club, and even if you are really short, you can still see them, because it's all tiered standing down to the stage. Great sound quality, good service at the bar, and it's a free sauna too!

The Markthalle is a bit of a Hamburg metal mecca. If a metal band has been to Hamburg, they've…read morealmost certainly played the Markthalle. It's a mid-sized venue, which (I assume) holds a few thousand people. There's no seating, thankfully, but around the stage the standing area is tiered by quite high steps, meaning that even the smallest person will have a good chance of beign able to see the stage. Tip: The beer is reasonably priced (for a concert venue) at EUR3, but you can easily bring that price down by picking up a few cups which all have a EUR1 deposit, which metallers don't seem to care about so much. Without trying to find any cups, or even moving from my spot, I brought the beer price down to EUR2 per beer :)

Yet another dive bar in the Kiez! I was beginning to think that I'd been to them all and then…read moresomeone brought me here. Washington bar is a decent bar, but also it is just another decent bar out of hundreds in Hamburg, so I'm looking for a bit more these days. In the back corner they have a little dance floor and a DJ. The night I was there they were playing latin music, and it seemed that quite a few people were there for that

Weird place. From outside looks like they are closed, inside mixture of styles and unrelated…read moreobjects. Very dark, shabby, small. Downstairs in the toilet it strikes you with meldew and dampness odours. I was holding my breath, being sure I get lung infection if I inhale. Two positive things: low prices and damn good music. Won't go again though.