Never having been to Cardiff before, I was slightly concerned that I would find myself in a city full of beer-swilling rugby jersey-wearing neanderthals who wouldn't know a decent night out if it smacked them in the chops. I'd heard about sodabar, mainly from the papparazzi stories surrounding Mr & Mrs Gavin Henson who'd seemed to have made the nightspot their weekend retreat in recent weeks. 'So' I thought, 'it must have something going for it'... and I was right.
Set underground in a cavern-like space, it immediately gives the impression of cool. Lit only by a few dim spots and the bar lighting, the atmosphere in sodabar makes you feel like you've done well to gain admittance without it seeming pretentious or elitist. An awesome start.
And so to the most important aspect of a club - the music. I couldn't even begin to pigeon-hole the playlist, it was too eclectic to be summed up in a nifty phrase. But I guarantee that virtually every tune could be filed under 'Sublime'. The DJs (there were two of them I think) spun a concoction of funk, hip hop, New York classics (Talking Heads'Once In A Lifetime', Rolling Stones 'Miss You', The Clash's 'Rock The Casbah' etc) and a smidgeon of house. In amongst this I was amazed to hear 'Crazy' by Gnarles Barkley, a tune that I haven't even able to get my grubby little mits on yet! Amazing.
I stayed until the bitter end (4am) and could've dance for another few hours. I would definitely recommend sodabar to anyone who's looking for a chilled atmosphere, cool people and amazing tunes. This is the place.