By Trista di Genova / The Wild East

Pubs in Taipei and Taiwan in general seem to have difficulty staying afloat! Several Taipei bars which used to feature open mic events closed doors, such as The Living Room and Citizen Cain, as well as Bliss.

But there are still a few places to go for a creative night out in Taipei.

Bobwundaye (嘸問題) (which means ‘No problem’ in Taiwanese) is a homey pub, offering a stage, drinks and snacks. It’s located near the Hoping/Tunhua intersection and has one of the few open mic nights in Taiwan, every Wednesday night. Usually “Bob’s” has been packed to overflowing at these events, but last week when I visited there was plenty of breathing space, opportunities to perform, some great live music jams, and some fine local talent — both foreign and Taiwanese. Bob’s open mic night starts around 10pm these days, and the coordinator is Charles.

The other open mic is the “Sit Down And Shut The Fuck Up” event at Revolver bar, near Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, #1-2, Sec. 1, Roosevelt Rd. Revolver was named after the owner’s favorite Beatles album, and was formerly The Source; and before that it was a beautiful old teahouse. However SDASFU is held less frequently on the first Thursday of every month (check their Facebook page to sign up beforehand; contact Jez at revolvertaipei@gmail.com).

Both events have no cover charge.