Published
Tue, Dec 5, 2023, 21:00
- The new law will come into effect on New Year's Eve in the areas of Silom, Patpong and Ratchadapisek.
Bangkok venues in certain areas have been approved to stay open longer.
In October, Thailand's interior minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, proposed the new curfew in an effort to stimulate the economy ahead of 2024. Venues in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket and Chon Buri have since been approved to stay open and serve alcohol until 4 AM, beginning this New Year's Eve. Bangkok clubs currently close at 2 AM.
DJ Korn Varasarin, resident at Bangkok club Never Normal, sees this as a positive for the artists who may get to play longer sets. "People will have more time to sink into the music," he told Resident Advisor. "It'll also allow people to have more time to make decisions about whether they want to stay or go somewhere else—our current official closing time is too narrow to do anything. For me, two hours extra would already make the work of the night more valuable."
Pathompol Chainin, partner of DECOMMUNE nightclub, agreed. "People can stay very late and we could start pumping out [harder] music. On the business side, it [could increase profits] so that we'll be able to book more DJs, too."
But Frank Navari of Bangkok Community Radio also noted that the license extension only affects three designated entertainment zones: Silom, Patpong and Ratchadapisek. "I'd assume that initially this won't have a huge direct impact on underground music," Navari told RA. "The three areas that have been listed lean more towards the commercial side of dance music, with relatively high rent prices compared to other parts of the city."
He continued: "What it should mean for venues operating within those areas is more flexibility in terms of artist bookings, an opportunity for promoters to be braver in their bookings and for DJs to play longer sets. This should—and I think would if it was rolled out across the city—provide both a more diverse set of music to be heard within Bangkok and an opportunity for local artists to be more expressive within their sets when playing locally."
Navari wants the license to expand to all areas of Bangkok on a permanent basis. "Thailand has a bubbling music scene with a growing number of high-quality Thai DJs and producers," he said. "It would be good to have its nightlife industry match that of some of the homegrown talent."
Chainin also believes a move like that would enrich the local club community. "I hope people will get into this kind of late-night music more," he said. "We're here to try our best to educate our crowd and have a good party. [The extension would] help us a lot."
Photo: Never Normal