Anti-Karaoke

Something absolutely unique takes place every Monday night at Sidecar (pronunced SEE-day-kar by the locals), a bar at the northern corner of Placa Reial, in Barcelona's Gothic Quarter. Yes, it's karaoke, but it has to be seen to be believed. Anti-Karaoke's Milwaukee-born hostess, Rachel Arieff, has made getting drunk people to sing into underground performance art of the highest caliber.

Do you want ABBA? Damn you to hell, but they have ABBA. Would you prefer the Ramones? Better. They have that, too. Earth Wind and Fire? A funky hellz yeah. Urging to croon "My Way"? They have the Sinatra version and the one by the Sex Pistols' Sid Vicious to boot. Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, and Johnny Cash are some of the other icons on the list of 500+ songs at your disposal. But even if you don't want to sing, you will witness a spectacle unlike any other. Energy, madness, and creativity ooze from every pore of those who dare to take the AK stage.

In between a guttural rendition of The Police's "Roxanne" and a choir of faux nuns chanting Madonna's "Like a Prayer," hostess Rachel Arieff presents her repertoire of comic skits in scathing Spanglish. At the mid-point of every show, Rachel sings "New York, New York," kicking just like a Radio City Rockette, and pouring a bottle of Jack Daniel's down the throats of the ready spectators in the front row. "What the hell am I doing here?," you might ask yourself right then. Either you will love it or it will just plain scare you. Or better yet, both. Like a roller coaster.

You never know what will happen or who will be there. It seems like every other week a TV crew is there to report on the goings-on. Hard rocker Sebastian Bach (ex-frontman of Skid Row) stopped by to party a few weeks ago. The protagonists of Barcelona's thriving porn industry show up from time to time as well. And it's all just for 7 euros, which includes your first beer. However many more beers it might take to get you up on that stage, drink 'em, and live like a rockstar for a few hours on Monday night.