A weekend of music in Amsterdam
I spent a few days crate-digging, hi-fi chasing and bar-hopping in the Dutch capital
I’m back from another trip on the road with my camera. This time, a weekend in Amsterdam.
I spent the trip rummaging through record stores, hunting down listening bars and chasing the city’s musical undercurrents.
I lived in Amsterdam for a period between 2017 and 2018, and had the time of my life. It was a city bursting with creative flavour: food, music, art and everything in-between were bursting from its seams.
Somehow, I’d not managed to revisit the city until this weekend. With goals to live there in the future, this trip was a scoping mission at heart. I wanted to see how it had changed, what the hidden gems were and whether it could still be a fertile abode for someone who loves music and decent scran.
A vinyl lover’s dream
I wasted no time getting down to the record stores, of which there were plenty. Our first stop was Zwart Goud on Geldersekade.
Tucked away under a flat block in central, Zwart Goud is an unassuming shop with a big slice of charm. Upon entry, the guy on shift asked us if we wanted a coffee and made sure to let us know he was on hand to help.
We dug through dense bins of local favourites, staff picks and white labels spanning across the dance music spectrum and beyond. There was a particularly fruitful Gabber and Hardcore section which we made sure to have a listen to.
As is tradition on these trips, I blind bought this rusty 7-inch, which is a 70s disco golden oldie party banger.
At the checkout, the manager mentioned how he’d just moved to the city from Berlin, and talked about the shop’s open decks and DJ lesson workshop sessions, which instantly reassured us that Amsterdam is very much still a city with open arms.
From here, we meandered down to Killacutz, another brilliant space with plenty to dig through.
The attendant was whistling along to a hip-hop hook that blasted from the speakers above as we entered, and we were soon stood over a plethora of digging bins that were to die for.
Split into a more mainstream/commercial upstairs and underground/alternative basement, Killacutz is definitely a shop where everyone could find something interesting.
Our record rendezvous concluded at Rush Hour Records, perhaps the bastion of the Dutch capital when it comes to vinyl curation.
Here is the place where you’ll find the J-Pop rare gems, the Bossa Nova deep cuts and the long-lost alternative bands from suburban European cities. With a strong city affiliation to the Music From Memory label, their selection spans pretty much as far as the roster goes.
Funnily enough, when I was last here in 2017, I was flicking through records when Nina Kraviz pulled up and started setting up equipment. Unbeknownst to me, she was lining up to do a surprise set for Amsterdam Dance Event.
From the shelves to the speakers
It wasn’t long before the May sun began to say its farewell to this glistening Friday in Amsterdam, and we began to hunt for a listening bar to see off the night.
We stumbled across San Francisco Bar, a calmingly minimalist outlet lodged in the centre on of the city.
With a crisp, ceiling-high soundsystem and a red-neon-lit deck station, we sunk into a sofa with a negroni, soundtracked by sludgy downtempo and dub music.
If you read my Osaka piece in March, you’ll remember I touched on how I feel a venue’s toilets can bizarrely add to its allure. In San Francisco Bar’s case, the toilets are underground, and as you open the door, you’re greeted by a huge cellar with ‘FREE PALESTINE’ sprayed onto the walls and one singular candle-lit table.
I’d never been so charmed.
As the next day arrived, we headed down to Studio Wieman, a disused Mercedes garage in Amsterdam-Noord now acting as an events space.
It was hosting Het Hapjesfestijn, a day of hapjes (Dutch appetisers), wine, music and creativity. It was a collaboration with wine bar Sebonsa and culture magazine Double A, and included 11 food vendors from around the world, Sebonsa’s signature wine bar and a lineup of DJs curated by various local radio stations.
A classic Mercedes sat elevated in the garage above a rota of DJs, surrounded by the vibrant smells of cuisines from all continents. It was an all-ages affair; the perfect day out for families, young people, friends and everyone in between.
As the event wound down, we went for dinner at a nearby pizza restaurant, which morphed into a dancefloor as the sun set.
After a quick stretch of the legs, we headed over to our final stop for the weekend, murmur. A listening bar in Aambeeldstraat in Noord, this spot is practically invisible from the main street, casting a speak-easy glaze over it.
Inside, it was a cozy, sofa-laden, orange-hued cocktail-soaked haven of music and dance. As a seated DJ coaxed out a soft array of downtempo, entranced body-dancers slinked and glided across the room.
We were soon to join them, to give our best (albeit Britishly-rigid) attempts at interpretive dance.
The room to enjoy yourself
One thing that quietly impressed me was how easy it is to do things on a whim in Amsterdam. Living in London, plans tend to calcify a week in advance; guestlists fill, tables get booked, the free stuff disappears. Last-minute usually means staying in or overpaying.
Amsterdam feels a little looser in that regard. We wandered into most things without much fuss. Entry to the Studio Wieman party was €8.50, and many people we were with made the plan a few hours beforehand. Locals mentioned it’s often like that. Not always, but often enough to notice.
That ease changes how a weekend feels. When a city gives you room to be spontaneous, it gives you room to enjoy yourself.
I’m planning to move to NL soon and this piece got me quite excited! Idk if it’s the algorithm or destiny, but thank you 😄
Delightful read, loving this format