I rarely write reviews. But I have to write this. The bouncers at the entrance are terrible people who do not know how to treat others probably. And btw, the music sucks. So better not wasting your money here. read more

Setting: Huge. Lots of stairs, lots of giant mirrors, and lots of fake smoke. Navigating this big/psychedelic/foggy place felt like a journey into a bar in heaven. Sound: Loud. The music overpowers most slurred screaming. Communicate by going into the more well-lit areas through american sign language. Crowd: Diverse but weirdly segregated. Bottom level was mostly all black with a few random asians who looked like they got lost while everyone else was on the upper level. read more

I'm so upset and at disbelief of how this club operates. My fiancé and I came from out of town to enjoy ourselves for a night. We seen the great reviews about this place and figured this would be the best spot to go. When we get there it's already a super long, 3 layer line. We wait our turn in line for an hour until we get to the front. This place has a dress code so we we're already prepared. Once we got to the front, we were passed by a good 50 people (probably more) because the bouncers (directed by JOSH) were only letting people in that Josh knew or an affiliate of some sort. He was even taking money to get in. We offered $100 for us two people. That wasn't good enough. So if you don't know anybody there you have to try really hard to bribe your way in, which is shameful because they would make way more money if tourists could get in on a Saturday night. We were ready to have fun and spend our money but instead we stood in line for 2 hours watching all of Josh's friends go in. read more

I come to visit Chicago with my friend, we decided to hangout at the nice club. After when we spent almost 700$ plus VIP table. We went out to smoke a cigarette, and when we came back the security start yelling on us step back, I try to explain to him we have a VIP table but he didnt listen, so he was just keep yelling on us. So after my explication in 20 minutes we can finaly go in to enjoy the music. Club is nice music is good, sercurity they need to be more respectful with people. Never again back read more

Humongous club with a Mario theme and two floors and lots of areas for bottle service. The music differs between the floors, so you get lots of variety throughout the night. I didn't like the strobe lights because they were so abundant; at any given point, one of them is surely stinging you in the eye. The music definitely gets really loud. At around 1:30am, they turned up the bass way high. I thought my head was going to explode. But if the music is your kinda thing, you'll have a great time. Drinks weren't too bad here. I think I paid 12 bucks for 2 shots. Bartenders were friendly and eye candy worthy :) read more

Wow, honestly worst club experience I've ever encountered. The bouncers are the worst archetypes of male toxicity and arrogance, and the club promotes a trifling amount of racial discrimination. No amount of inconsideration is worth an hour (or even longer) wait in line plus a $20 cover fee (at minimum, depending on what they think you should be paying). Unless you've got connections or flaunt your wealth, don't bother even walking by this place. read more

This place used to be the place to be on weekends but unfortunately it's not like that anymore. When I went here for my 21st, it was so fun especially when there was free cover and 3 free drink tickets before 11:30PM. Now it's stingy and they will not take passwords for free after 11:30 even if there's a password for after 11:30. The girls at the front were rude about the passwords and basically demanded my group of friends to pay $20 cover. So not worth $20. The upper level is fake EDM/house music with repetitive beats which is boring. I like the lower level which plays top 40 and hip hop but this place is loaded with creeps. I'm sick and tired of being ogled by creepy old men who grope me and my friends. It's so violating and disgusting and I hate that my girl friends experience this every time we go to SB. The floors are sticky and gross. This place has gone downhill. There's so many nice bars and lounges in River North so save your money and go somewhere else! read more

So let me tell you a tip to this place before people puss off their money - you need to pay to renter the club btw!!! And they don't tell you that upfront. One of our friends lost his credit card and realized 5 mins into coming in they made him pay almost back to full price!!!!! Was a horrible experience just FYI Although the music was pretty good. They have two floors with two separate djs and many places to sit. As long as you don't leave in the middle I guess you can have a good night :p read more

There always on BS here. I've gone to this place about 4 times, and out of those 4 I've only been in once. The bouncers are always making up stuff as to why you can't get it. You just came out of a party bus we can't let this group in. Those aren't the right shoes. (I had vans, granted a dude went in with some casual shoes similar to mine). Not dress right even though were dress up in club attire. Not looking trashy or gettho at all. Asian people seem to have an easier time getting in for some reason. Other than that, once inside it's actually a pretty cool place. Very big, with different rooms with different stlyes of music. Has a wear house/very elegant style theme. read more

As a New Yorker, I was impressed by the bang for our buck we got at Sound-Bar! For the price paid for a table here you would not even be able to look at a VIP table in NYC. The vodka served with the table (Effen) is definitely not my first choice, but with mixers it was fine. The space is nice and open, and I liked that there were two different floors each playing different music. It was nice that there was a decent crowd there, but it wasn't so packed that you couldn't move around freely. Maybe not the place to go if you're trying to feel ~luxurious~ but definitely a good time with a group of friends. read more

This place is very rude and so yesterday, but yet they seem to think that they are the best night club in town. I witnessed the person at the door turning people around for super stupid reasons. Two guys in front of me were not allowed because one of them had on high-top sneakers, his friend point out that they had let others in who had on sneakers but the person working the door said, "Yeah, we let people in with sneakers on but not you cause you got on high-top sneakers." What kind of nonsense is that. Me and my group had no problem getting in but I wish they would= not have let us in cause this place just wasn't worth it. This place is kind of like the singer Madonna, too old to be cool and just like Madonna this place thinks that they are still the number one show in town but that is a totally wrong assumption. read more

EXPERIENCED RACISM from the staff. This place (or at least the people they hire) is not POC friendly. On Halloween weekend, I (an asian woman) my black friend, and black boyfriend were in line and had RSVP'd ahead of time. When it was our turn to pass through the bouncers, I and my friend (who was also a woman) walked through easily; however, the bouncer halted my boyfriend proceeded to pat him down. As we waited for him, the bouncer said we could move on. My friend said my bf was part of our crew and we would wait. After patting him down the bouncer looks at the other bouncer, asks "is he good?", receive a head shaking no and says he can't go in--their reasoning being we were "doing too much". Keep in mind that this is halloween weekend. Everyone and their mother is blasted out of their minds and dressed in ridiculous costumes. We're well-behaved and well-dressed and we're doing too much?? After we took a breather, my friend confronted the bouncer--asking why he didn't let my bf in. His response: "I'm just doing my job" BULLSHIT. read more

This is the best electronic night club in Chicagoland. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Club rules aren't fair and I feel sorry for people that have a hard time getting in, but Sound-Bar doesn't stand out as particularly discriminatory in any way shape or form. Stop leaving negative reviews just because you didn't make the cut. If anything, they let in too many dudes. read more

Incredibly rude staff from the bouncers at the front to the bartenders. I asked one of the bouncers how much cover was. He told me to "shut the $@!& up and get the $&@! inside." I learned cover was $20 once I got the $&!@ inside. Sticky floors. Pushy, aggressive Axe body sprayed assholes relentlessly hitting on my female friends in our group. Music so loud I lost my voice for a day after trying to shout at my friends. Terrible bass system that rattles your teeth in your head. Sinks broken in the bathroom. Go to any other establishment. read more

HORRIBLE SERVICE! all the security bouncers staff are very rude people! I got Bottle service and still treat you like crap. They gave us the wrong booth at first. Once we got the booth corrected the security by our booth was very rude yelling at people we were with because they were dancing to close to another booth. I would. It recommend this place at all!! read more

I was traveling from California and had the worst experience ever in my life. I showed my drivers license to the bouncer and he immediately said that's not you, your not getting in. I told him that's fine I'll just take my ID back and leave but he wouldn't give me my ID back. That ID was the only form of identification I had on me and I would of been screwed if I didn't have it back. I was very polite, said "sir you are going to be very embarrassed when you find out that ID is mine. Please just give me my ID so I can leave. " Instead, he told me to call the police if I wanted it back. I had to call the police in the pouring rain before they would finally give me my ID back. My 3 friends who went in just before me had to leave and they would not give them their 20 dollar refund. For some reason, the bouncer was 100% adamant that the ID was fake without even looking at it again. I even showed him all of my credit cards which had the same name. He wouldn't look at it. It was my birthday, I had to call the police in the rain and it left a very bad taste for Chicago in my mind. read more

Got robbed by the horrible management and staff at Soundbar. I would give this place negative stars if I could. Shame on me, I should've known better from the piss poor reviews and the general crappy reputation they have. At first I thought it couldn't be that bad, but every single negative review about this place speaks the truth. Please stop going here, folks. Spend your hard earned money elsewhere. read more

Major letdown. I went to Sound Bar to catch a DJ that I'm a fan of, Jason Ross. His album was great and I've loved it, so I thought this would be a great time. However, the place was small and the audio was terrible. Call me old, but it was literally deafening to the point where you couldn't even enjoy the music. Don't get me wrong, I like dance music and listening to it loud, but if I can't even separate the bass from much else, you lost me. I literally couldn't distinguish the songs I loved from the album. It's the first time in my life that I've left a club early. I won't be coming back to Sound Bar anytime soon. Glad I didn't spend $20 getting in or paying $200+ for bottle service. read more

RSVP on their website said admission and cover was free until 11:30pm. We arrived at 11:08pm and they did not honor the RSVP. The lady at the front door said that all of their events say free before 11:30pm on the website but they really close the list at 11. Well, why would you put 11:30 on the website then? This poorly run establishment is deceiving customers and I'm really disappointed by my experience here. In addition to this unpleasant entry experience, the music was really subpar. One of the DJs playing before the headliner seemed to not know how to mix music, and the other DJ before the headliner kept playing what seemed to be the same song over and over. When the headliner finally came on past 1AM, we were all too tired and sick of this experience to stay the whole time, so we left early. After experiencing nightlife in LA, NYC, and SF, I really hope this "nightclub" isn't representative of the entire scene in Chicago. I will definitely not be returning or recommending this place to anyone. Hopefully we can find a better place around here for next time... read more

I am giving Sound-Bar a bad review because they scammed us, and I hope that they see this review and change their behavior so other people won't have a similar experience. Their website says that if you RSVP before 8:30pm, and get there before 11:30pm, then you won't have to pay a cover charge. So we get there at 11:05. The people working the door tell us that we were actually supposed to get there at 11:00, and that we have to pay the $20 cover. My friends, afraid of confrontation, accept that and pay the fee to get in. Im not as cool with being ripped off, and demand an explanation and even show them their own website, which states that 11:30 was the cutoff. They respond by saying they "don't follow what's on the website", just what's on their iPads. My friends are already in there, and the people at the door refuse to budge, so I'm forced to pay the cover. I was pretty pissed and felt so cheated, which I think is pretty fair, since they had such blatant false advertising and were basically tricking people into making the effort to go to their club and ending up having to settle and pay the cover, even when promised by that same club something else. That is a terrible way to run a business and treat your customers and I hope that they realize this and change their policy. Until then, I'm never going back and will warn others against ever going there either. read more

Can I give Sound Bar NEGATIVE stars? Let me tell you why, after suggesting this venue for a girls' night out of booty-shaking, I have done a complete 180 and then some. 1. If you are a girl, do NOT pay the $20 cover. I wish I had known this, because the doorman will readily offer you half-off without your even asking if you are in a group of girls. I saw that happen and that is skeazy. 2. The music sucks. If you're going to do a two-level bar, actually have different types and good quality music. Or at least try not to repeat the same exact song within 15 minutes. We're not that drunk. 3. Watery drinks. 4. If you're going to have people behind the bar, they should all be serving drinks. Having a busboy behind the bar is just annoying, especially when he's just standing there, occasionally wiping the same spot with a rag, while telling you he can't pour you a drink. 5. Crowded as hell and smoky. 6. DO NOT OPEN A TAB. This is why Sound Bar place gets NEGATIVE A BILLION STARS. Unlike any other bar I've been to, this place asks you not only for your credit card, but also your ID. So, if you happen to forget to close out your tab and you find yourself outside (and under the El, just outside the alleyway of this club's entrance) you won't be allowed in. Here is where the fun circular reasoning comes in: -Short, ugly, hipster/rocker-wannabe doorman does not let you in. -You explain that you merely want to close out your tab. -He says he has to have security escort you because you don't have ID on you. (NO SHIT, SHERLOCK, IT'S AT THE BAR.) -He tells you to wait "over there" in a stinky corner. -"Security" never shows up, but there are 5 staff members standing around in the alleyway doing absolutely NOTHING. -You tell him you need this to happen now or you're leaving, and they're just not going to get paid. -He says that YOU have an attitude, refuses to call security (who is some guy trying to chat up girls on the street) to escort you. -You leave, cancel your credit card, and file a police report, and drive around Chicago for the rest of Labor Day weekend without a license on you. FUCK YOU, Sound Bar. FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU. read more

I'm generally not a clubby kind of person, but I thought what the hell -- my friend was going there for his birthday and I found a coupon online that got you entry and 4 drinks for 10 dollars. So they did let me in with my coupon, but the fine print must have said that the drink tickets weren't honored after 11:30, so I was only allowed one drink. Nice, you tricked me Sound-bar. Now I had to pay for the overpriced drinks, which I was hoping to avoid doing. Not knowing the protocol, I tried to walk in to meet my friends and a bouncer violently gestured towards the coat check, which was required, at $3. *cash register noise*. They also wanted to charge me $6 because they counted the sweatshirt lining my jacket as a second coat *cash register noise*. They have guys positioned on the stairway whose sole job seems to be to scream at everybody to keep moving. Isn't it nice being treated like a farm animal? The bartenders are nasty. My brother got screamed at for trying to buy two drinks at once. Why? I don't know. Their tempers are volatile. You have just met them and you are already in an abusive relationship. Later in the night, my friend's brother, who I hadn't actually met, and another friend were in some kind of conversation with a third guy. Little did I know, my friend's brother was in some argument with a bouncer which I couldn't hear due to the general loudness. Innocent as a babe, I walked up and tried to talk to them. Another bouncer immediately started accosting me: Bouncer: ARE YOU WITH THEM? Me: Well, I was trying to talk to them Bouncer: ARE YOU WITH THESE PEOPLE? Me. I'm sort of with them, I mean... Bouncer: YES OR NO! Me: ... Bouncer: YES OR NO!! Me: I guess... Bouncer: YES OR NO! IF YOU'RE NOT WITH THEM MOVE ALONG! How about just saying, "Your friend is about to get kicked out, could you move along, please?" Too complicated, better to berate the confused patron until he says yes or no. They overcharge you, they treat you like an unwelcome deadbeat, they make you wait forever to get a drink -- long story short, if I had been turned away at the door, they would have been doing me a favor. read more

I'll begin by saying that I've travelled the world. I've clubbed my ass off. I've seen some of the WORST clubs ever, and still managed to have fun. That being said, I have never in my life felt the need to fill out a police report based on the bad times I've had...ANYWHERE. However, my experience at Sound Bar was horrific. The music was shitty- their house DJ on Friday nights was one of the worst. Their bartenders were unfriendly, and the managers who work there should all be fired. Upon leaving the club, there was an unexplained incident I endured at coat check. A tall white Caucasian boy who claimed to be working there, physically attacked me when I got up to the front of the line. He seemed to think that he could man-handle me for no reason other than thinking he was the shit. Upon calling him out on how he didn't work there, he hit me 3 times, and literally picked me up and threw me to the side. Needless to say, I left the club immediately in attempts to find a manager and rectify the situation. I spoke to a Lawrence Lau, who took me inside to identify the man (btw, Lau told me he was a manager, I found out later, he was full of shit and lied to me). Lo and behold, he was still in there pulling the same shit on other girls. After pointing him out, Mr. Lau told me to wait outside. After waiting 30 minutes, I went back inside and shocker- the tall dude and Mr. Lau were no where to be found. Another "manager" came outside to speak to me. He denied the incident existed and when I saw Mr. Lau come outside again, he claimed the guy was gone. Either Sound Bar has a deal with this tall white dude, or they helped him leave via back door, because they claimed he didn't exist. Kinda makes you wonder why Sound Bar is helping out a guy who gets inappropriately physical with girls. Needless to say, I left the club, and filled out a police report. Sound Bar, FUCK YOU and your shitty customer business. I truly hope something comes of my police report and that Lawrence Lau, Director of Promotions, gets fired. read more

TL;DR Same ole douchey vibe, David the bartender redeemed this place with his attentiveness. Let me just preface this review with the fact that I'm not a big fan of clubs. My group and I stayed in the lower level most of the night, and I noticed the DJ played some of the same songs repeatedly, I was not impressed by their playlist, although they did offer the occasional surprising addition of throwbacks, Brazilian funk, and other Latino hits, I can definitely appreciate that. Now, one of the biggest reasons I'm not a fan of clubs is usually the personnel. While Sound-Bar had the usual pushy security detail, one particular bartender, I believe his name was David, really made my night. I was expecting the usual dismissive attitude from the bar, but David not only remembered my drinks on repeated visits, but he actually remembered that I had asked about a dirty martini, and on a future order completely delivered on an excellently prepared gin dirty martini. While I might visit again unless I really have to, I hope David is at the bar and I hope other bartenders subscribe to his respectful way of dealing with customers. read more

As you already know I was a huge fan of Sound-Bar till my frightening experience this past weekend. I went out with a bunch of my friends for my birthday and of course wound up at Sound-Bar. We had arrived around 12:30-1:00 am and were dancing the night away on the main level. I excused myself from my friends to use the washroom, and on my way back I swung into "VIP" to grab a drink. On my way back to my friends two men stopped me claiming to be security guards. They bring me into some odd private room away from the rest of the night club. Red flag right there. Hm, that's a good idea. Let's take an intoxicated female into a back room where no one can hear or see what's going on. That makes me feel safe. I immediately felt threatened by these two men. As one stood in front of the door the other continued to tell me I was drunk. Uhhh gee really? It's 2:00 am and Im at large night club on my birthday? Should I be sober right now? I am no sloppy drunk. I don't trip over things, slur my words, fall asleep, dance like a crazy stripper, or do anything outrageous that would require two creepy men to take me into a back room to tell me Im drunk. Sounds like Sound-bar has some explaining to do. As they refused to let me go and continued to question me and harass me, I started to become irritated and defensive. I yelled at this guy. He yells back at me and gets in my face. "I don't like your attitude". Hmmmm? I wonder why I have an attitude. Again, Im back here, none of my friends know where I am. Little do they know I've been kidnapped. I want these guys to let me go but they refused to just let me go find my friends and leave. They had to escort me to get my coat (btw I didn't trip, stumble, or fall on my way to the coat check which was on the opposite side of the club wearing 3 inch heels). They bring me to the alternate side of the club (not the main entrance) to throw me out on the curb. I of course couldn't get ahold of my friends. Im freezing, my feet hurt, and ended up on the sidewalk because my friends had my keys to my apt. I couldn't go home. I couldn't get in touch with my friends. I was completely screwed over. Thanks for disrespecting me and making me feel threatened. I finally got a cab home to find out my friends locked my keys inside my building. I ended up walking around Evanston for 3 hours trying to find a cab to go to a friends. I didn't get one till 6:30 am. Plus, i just moved to Evanston so I hadn't a clue where I was going. This could have all been avoided if they allowed me to get in contact with my friends instead of kicking me out and not telling anyone. I wonder if they reported me to management. Doubt it. I have a picture of the two gentlemen and of the odd room they took me into. Not good, Sound-Bar. **Still waiting for my call-back from their gm. Tick-tock.... read more

Not worth it, so many better hype clubs in the area. We RSVP'ed in advance expecting to get in and have a great time. Our RSVP was set till 11:30 pm, we showed up at 11:05 pm. The bouncer told us as could no longer longer come in for RSVP. We paid anyways and the floor was slow. No one present and definitely not worth the price. If you have to pay a cover, I advise choosing another. read more

One of the worst experience I've ever had at a bar/club. I remained 100% sober the entire time, and it allowed me to really sense what was going on around me. I was and still am horrified. -I witnessed a bouncer blatantly make fun of my intoxicated friend at the door who had tried to sneak alcohol in in her purse (to be fair, we were coming off a party trolley and she didn't plan on drinking it, just wanted to save it). She jokingly told him to make sure the bottle went to a good home, and he smiled and told her it would. He then turned to a group of people standing by the line, directly next to her, and said, "Just trying to please the bitch." -I was called a "f*cking drunk bitch" to my face when I hadn't consumed a drop of alcohol all night. And when I tried to explain that I was very sober and just standing out near the smoking area, taking care of my friend, he completely ignored me. -I was told to "check my f*cking aggressive tone and attitude" to the doorman while trying to politely explain I was waiting for an Uber to pick up my friend to go home. -I was questioned at the door upon reentry for a smudged stamp by the very employee who just let me out not 3 minutes before. -I had to repeatedly watch grody, creepy men try and hit on unsuspecting girls. Some of these girls were the friends I was with, and the men were disgusting and relentless. The bouncers walking around seemed to enjoy watching this. -I was told I wasn't allowed to "carry" my winter coat while in the club. I either had to check it (I wasn't planning on spending any money that night, nor do I carry cash around), or wear it the entire time. The employee told me there was a "mandatory coat check" at Sound-Bar. Excuse me? -One of my friends was almost certainly roofied while dancing/getting drinks on the bottom floor. Her eyes were rolling back and she couldn't stand up without the assistance of others, and yet all the bouncers walking around with flashlights didn't think it was unusual at all. I don't believe any establishment who treats its customers like this deserves to have its doors open. I would suggest training your employees to better handle your customers, or lose them to this terrible, irresponsible, hideous, and unacceptable service. read more

Because of out-of-town guests who chose to come here, I was roped into coming here recently for the first time in four years. Back then, SoundBar was the average dance space for blue-collar, first-generation, ordinary Chicagoans like me. Nothing to look forward to; nothing to be against. Danced-drank-went home. Now this place is a hellish nightmare. It's outdated, and filled with out-of-towners, hood rats, and wannabe millionaires. All under 22. Every single kiddie standing around, trying to look good, has an ugly attitude. The music isn't even close to being current, and in a bad way. At first, I wasn't allowed in because I had on a soccer jersey (bouncer said "not dressy enough"). My friend came out, told me to try just wearing my white UNDERSHIRT, and that GOT ME IN. Sadly, I had to pay cover, and she had to pay a $10 "re-entrance fee." That's disgusting. I'm admitting I went to this desperate joke so others will never attempt to waste time and money here. read more

Ladies have to pay $20 at 2am and we can't leave our purses and jackets next to the railing while we dance?? Absolutely ridiculous. You would think you'd want ladies free to have fun! Leaving our jackets and expensive purses next to the railing so we could have fun and dance would seem like the right thing to do. No. The rude bouncers on a power trip decided to yell at us to pick up our LV and Gucci bags. Ridiculous We were a well dressed group of guys and girls that comprised of doctors and business people. The rudeness by the bouncers was unnecessary. read more

If you rave to thumping techno, first floor. If you booty bump to throwback hip-hop, second floor. If you enjoy getting watched raving and/or booty bumping by creepers, the whole club's your oyster. Fine enough to have a Chicago-priced drink or two, let loose with your girlfriends and then head out "early" so as to hit up 2 more clubs, followed by McDonald's. Nothing caps off a night quite like having your dignity still in tact before scarfing down a small fry. read more

Why! Why! Why do people pay $20 to get in and don't even know if there gonna have a good time? You could give that money to the homeless or buy school supplies for the under privileged or anything! But I'll be damn if iI pay $20 for a club, then over pay for drinks with no guarantees! And us women are the reason the men come anyway, so why should we pay! Sorry that had to be said. Soundbar is beautiful. Mixed crowd and pretty good drinks, great bartenders. Get as dolled up as you can this place embodies the downtown clubbing experience. But remember the clubbers rules for a good time. !. Always go online to the clubs website and get the free vip text. and 2. get drunk as soon as you park the car (never drive drunk) or if taking taxi, before you leave the house. Yeah its wrong but don't get caught. If you don't have a good time at least you don't have $20-$60 less in your pocket too. read more

Oh. Hold up. filthy harlots? Yessssss. total tools? Yesssssssssssssssss!! Euro trash? Yessssssssssssssssssssss!! A dash of sleaze? Yesssssssssssssssssssssssss!!!!!!! Assortment of Asians? present! Methinks you have to be in the mood to tolerate the place such as being in the mood to perhaps whoring it up a notch with your wardrobe, makeup and hair. Asswipe-ish attitude. Yeah, like that. Bring those traits along and you'll be just fine. I mean I guess you can be your normal self but you'll probably end up sulking and rolling your eyes the whole time if you know what I mean. Decent music. Decent dancing can be accomplished. I was lucky enough to not encounter waiting in a line. I was looking for an alternative to just hangin at some regular bar on a weekend and this place was a pretty okay plan B. But...I'd still rather go to Smart bar. read more

If I could give 0 stars I would! I'm from Indianapolis, came into town for the weekend with a group of couples to celebrate a 30th birthday. Our main plan was to check out soundbar, all because we had heard great things! A week before we arrived we RSVP'd on the soundbar website for free entry. Everyone in our group did this. When we arrived Saturday night, 4 of our friends had already went inside (just 5 mins earlier) so we got in line. We first encountered the doorman checking IDs and holding a large list. I gave him my name and informed him I had RSVP'd. He just looked at me, then said that the email system automatically generates a response, that they were having a special DJ and unless I had the special 'password' we would not be able to enter. I explained to him that I was confused, as the website said nothing of the sort. And also our 4 friends had just arrived minutes before us, were inside and did NOT give a password. He said you'll have to speak with the manager and asked that we get out of line. We called our friends inside. They couldn't believe it! They spoke with a few ppl inside, but they we unable to help. The manager came out. He spoke with someone else and then I approached him. I explained that we came from out of town to celebrate a birthday here at this club, we did what the website said, and our friends were inside already. He informed me that the club had a special DJ and over 700 ppl were already expected, and unless I had the password he would not be able to let us in. I even pleaded that we would be willing to pay any kind of cover to get in. He informed me that it didn't matter if we could pay. I explained how unfair this seemed and the website completely mislead us. He just looked at me and shook his head. I hate to say it, but it seemed we were not allowed in because the majority of our group is African American, but I honestly can't think of any other reason... our friends that got in before us are mostly white. It's very disappointing to be treated with such disregard. Definitely will never try to go back, nor recommend it to anyone in the future. read more

I recently booked a party with a promoter for this past Friday. My guest and I showed up only for the door man to ask if we had a password. When providing them with my name, they explain that we would have to step to the side because that name was not on the list and only people with a password are allowed entrance. After seeing several African Americans being told to move to the side, my friend then asked a group of Asian women if they had a password, they informed us that they did not, they were simply just having a girls night out. When they reached the guy with the clipboard he did not ask them for a password, instead he allowed them to enter the club. We surveyed the line and saw that everyone who was not of a darker color was allowed entrance. Thirty minutes of pleading, trying to understand what was going on, and reassuring my guest that it wasn't a racial issue I then had to swallow that tough pill. We were being denied entrance to a night club because of the color of our skin. It's extremely hard to believe/accept but it was real, real harsh! I would not recommend this establishment to anyone, no one deserves to be treated the way that we were treated by Sound Bar's door men. read more

Went here for a medical student mixer organized by a few of the Chicago area medical schools where $10 admission and 4 free drinks before midnight (with drink tickets that were given at the door) was advertised. Once inside the bar the bouncers were excessively aggressive in forcing one of our friends to get coat check. The bartenders blatant ignored anyone with drink tickets - I ended up not getting to redeem any of them. The music was ridiculously loud and pretty bad. Once we got the attention of one of the servers to PAY for drinks the drinks despite our tickets were weak and when I checked my credit card the next morning I was overcharged. One of my worst bar experiences in Chicago I will never go here again. read more

I've always wanted to go to Sound Bar and last night I finally did. My girlfriend and I had originally planned to go to Sound Bar first, but we accidentally walked into Y Bar next door instead...oops. We obviously can't read. After a few minutes at Y, we left and walked next door to Sound Bar. We were immediately pulled to the front and given VIP passes to waive the admission fee. You can also RSVP to an event on their website and you can get free cover before midnight, otherwise, it is generally $20. This club is fairly big, with a few rooms. We only went to two of them.The main room has a lot of dancing, and another room was more chill and had a lounge feel to it. We bought a drink, $11, and were invited to the VIP section in the main room. Great music, I love it! On Saturdays, my favorite radio station, Dance Factory, is there. I did notice that the crowd was very diverse, so I don't think the club is very pretentious...but, like everywhere, I am sure being pretty and/or greasing palms helps. I had a great time, I'll definitely come back! read more

So, I came to this place to see a super sweet dj from Europe the promoters of this place managed to bring in. I have enjoyed many clubs bringing in renowned DJs across the city, including the Mid and Primary nightclub. This place was the worst. Hands down. Let me begin. The RSVP for free cover prior to 11:30 pm is actually a big SCAM. These folks should be investigated by the Better Business Bureau. We arrived to the establishment a little after 10:30 pm. However, there was a long-line, probably fifty people long. Fine. Ok. This place is probably packed - we get it. We waited outside until the line started moving...which happened to be right at 11:30. We unfortunately get to the entry at 11:45 pm - and end up having to pay the $20/person. Fine, worth it for the dj. When we get inside...the place is BARELY filled. Sparse. Low population density if you get what I'm saying. The managers have a pretty good racket going. Getting people to RSVP and then making them wait until they have to pay for entry. I'm not asking for the royal treatment here, but hey a little respect for the patrons may be nice. Additionally, not a single employee knew ANYTHING about what was going on in terms of the music or djs. This establishment is designed just to shepherd people like their animals. They could give less of a crap about the actual music. Don't get me wrong; it's looks nice and flashy on the inside. But this place sucks. read more

They say variety is the spice of life and it is thanks to this spice (and the birthdays of coworkers) that I occasionally find myself at places I otherwise wouldn't think to set a foot in. Cue my night at Sound-Bar. During the few times I've watched *ahem* Sex & the City, it seems ol' Sarah Parker and the gang always find themselves at these impossibly glittering and overtly glamorous (and thus generally tacky) nightclubs. Filled with an abundance of smoke, lights, mirrors and unconventionally shaped and oddly patterned couches, they imbibe expensive drinks amongst people with shoes worth more than what I spend on food for the month. Take a look at my photos. I'm not really a dude who is the type to roll with SJP and crew. Cue a potentially awkward night. Perhaps I'll just never be able to wrap my mind around the concept of paying a $20 cover to get into a place with $10 drinks so you can stand in a crowded room and listen to blaring shitty house music, but I don't understand this scene at all. Luckily for me, I was on a birthday guest list. While I still had to stand in line for 20 minutes, I got in for free and was greeted with a handful of drink tickets. Cue my beeline to the nearest bar. While service was slow, as there's only one bartender per station pouring for a teaming mass of social rejects, the bartender didn't seem to mind me and the misses hovering around the bar - clearly on a mission to burn through the drink tickets so we could get the hell out of there. The drinks were surprisingly strong, though since I was drinking for free I was tipping pretty well so that could certainly explain that. Still, it was appreciated that there was a mutual understanding between the bartender and I. "You get me pie-eyed and out of here as quickly as possible, I'll tip better than the rest of these assholes." And that's how the next hour was spent. Me trying to make small talk with coworkers by screaming over the lame house music while tossing tickets over the counter like a kid at Chuck E Cheese. I left tastefully stewed, glad to wish my coworker a happy birthday and begrudgingly pleased that I was able to check "Go to Awful Nightclub" off my list of things to do once every 18 months or so. Cue a cab ride to Logan Square to regal friends with a tale of my night spent on the other side. A cab ride which I didn't fail notice was both quicker and less expensive than the time and money spent by most just to pass through the doors of that dreadful place that for me was but a glittering memory. This is a good place to go if... you have a handful of drink tickets and a high tolerance for bullshit. read more

I use to be a big fan of sound bar back when I was still in college, years have passed and the experience got worse. The music is loud with decent light effects, but leaves you deaf, the crowd gets worse and worse as well. Perhaps native chicago people know this isn't the place to be. My last experience over the weekend threw everything away. First the staff there are very rude and not willing to help. My girlfriend lost her phone while looking around we couldn't talk so stepped outside the smoking area. Coming back they wanted to charge us $20 to get back in even though I said I was looking for a cell phone and wanted to look around again. So I paid the $20 to get back in while very upset about it looked around and the place was about to close down. Asked for the lost and found and they said "NO" and to call in monday and ask for it. Well I was already there it wouldnt hurt just to step in and ask if they found a phone or not. Instead they told me to "go home" after I said can I just ask if they found a phone or not. They said NO GET OUT OF HERE AND CALL MONDAY. REALLY? Now I understand why everyone give them such a bad review. Walking away there was a huge fight outside the venue, this really tells what kind of people go to Soundbar. If you want rude staff, overly loud music, rough sketchy crowd, this is the place to be. If your like most people who want to have a good time during the weekend? GO SOMEWHERE ELSE! They lost my business and all my friends for sure! 1- Star is being nice already. read more

Every year or so, for the past 10 years, I find myself in the situation of asking myself "why did I go to Sound-Bar again?" And the answer I inevitably come to is the classic quotation: "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results." In other words, I must be insane. It's just not a place where you go to enjoy the music or dance. In fact, they ensure an extra-douchey atmosphere by nit-picking about your shoes. If you wear fashionable sneakers with nice jeans and a nice shirt, they tell you you can't get in. But if you wear those Converse All-Star-like canvas but dressy kind of shoes, you're all good. The bottom line is that there's going to be a lot more poseurs at a club where they exclude you for wearing shoes you can actually dance in. Nevertheless, I did eventually get in after some guff from the door man, and I can't complain too much because I got in free and my first three drinks were free due to some promotion. Ultimately, however, the clientele consists mostly of people who don't appreciate the music and are just there so they can say they went to "the club" over the weekend...and the ratio makes it a huge sausage fest of mostly dudes in button down shirts with the top two buttons open and Axe body spray trying to get laid by anything they stumble across that is inebriated to the point that they are no longer capable of conceptualizing "regret." In other words, despite the dress shoes, this place is sleazy as hell--and not the good kind of kinky, artistic, risque sleazy. I mean sleazy in the "I got my fashion tips and my hook-up strategy from a second-rate men's magazine targeted toward the insecure wannabe alpha-male demographic." And as for the girls, they're mostly in a bad mood from getting hit on by douchebag guys all night. I guess I'll give this place two stars though, because the bartender was nice and all the free cover and free drinks and such. And there was actually some room to dance earlier on in the night. It's going to take free drinks to get me to go here again, because you'll never catch me exchanging actual valuable currency for this experience (although, apparently, I will exchange my dignity and my time to get free booze). Also, the people I went with were awesome, so I still had a decent time nonetheless--a time that I now realize would have been even better if it weren't set in Sound-Bar. read more