The Underground

I love this place. I love the sulky bartenders and the stone-​faced security guards. I even love it when the sound guy leaves the reverb on for an entire Intergalactic Gary set, I love this place. One of the best places in town to get your discofinger on to.
As another reviewer mentioned, though, most nights are designed for people that care about choons, and as such, can be pretty specialized. So see who is playing before you head in.

Once you descend the iron staircase, trading in the comforts of Dublin favourite Kennedy’s for its darker, more subversive cohort; ‘The Underground at Kennedy’s’, you cross the threshold into a much more shadowy world. ‘Underground’ is located in Kennedy’s basement but it is in no way coupled with Kennedy’s in terms of vibe, music, décor, lighting and usually even the crowd they attract are different, the Kennedy’s clientele seldom travel south to the basement as rocking out to techno beats would rarely be their cup of tea. ‘Underground’ appeals to a youthful crowd who are in search of an intense night of well-​regarded DJ’s playing pounding, electronic sets within the very small and shady setting that this basement proffers. The small space and muted lighting however do, positively, suit the alternative DJ sets and go well with the general vibrations being radiated. It would be difficult to create an atmosphere that is as successfully concentrated as ‘Underground’ in a bigger and more exposed setting and so I am happy to report that it’s space encouragingly compliments the music as well as general ambience. What may seem claustrophobic to some I deemed to be apt for the passionate vibrations at play. I would only recommend you go to ‘Underground’ on the grounds that you are an avid party-​goer as the dance floor is an undersized, yet powerful nucleus of rigorous beats and sweaty brows.
Admission price depends on the calibre of DJ playing but it is usually round the 7 euro mark.

The Underground tends to put on gigs that other venues wouldn’t touch, like minimalist electro and open-​mic comedy. Naturally, it tends to swing from the edge of greatness to depths of terror normally associated with a Butlins Variety Performance.
The interior would be great for a film. Dark, subterranean, pillars everywhere, lots of creepy shadows-it’s really quite cool. And because of it’s teeny tiny size everything sounds much louder than it should, throw in a few fancy lights and this is one of the best ‘loud music’ venues in Dublin.
But it’s not, I’ve seen some absolute clangers in here. So I’d advise checking out who’s playing before dishing out a cover charge, and maybe invest in some ear plugs too.