THE NIGHT STUFF
Buddha Bar serves celebs, hobbits, common folk

By Derek Paiva
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

Sisters Sue, left, and Diwa Tharan, both of Waikiki, chat at the Buddha Bar, a place where TV stars and ordinary folks hang out. Photos by Rebecca Breyer • The Honolulu Advertiser

From top: Janette Bryant of Salt Lake, Rebekah Long of Hawai'i Kai, and Stephanie Stewart of Makiki dance at the Buddha Bar. The Waikiki venue offers an unpretentious atmosphere for all.

The Buddha Bar 260 Lewers St. 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. nightly 923-0202 Recurring parties: Wet Monday (DJed hip-hop, dancehall), hosted by Loot Leezee Entertainment & Sick Dog Productions, Mondays. The Bounce (DJed funk, soul, classics, hip-hop, house), hosted Tuesdays by Nocturnal Sound Crew. The Armory Hawaii (DJed classics, soul, old school, hip-hop), Wednesdays. Forbidden City (DJed funk, soul, hip-hop, deep house), hosted by Buddha Bar & Complete Industries, Fridays. For The People (DJed hip-hop, dancehall, deep house), hosted by Buddha Bar 7 Love 'n' Light, Saturdays. Industry Night (DJed mix genres), Sundays.

And that's about the only comment I'll make about the continuing controversy — already documented thoroughly in this newspaper — swirling around Buddha Bar since its August opening.

The Lewers Street club is promoted as the Buddha Bar, and the name rankles a number of local residents who find it offensive.

So here's where I open up my holiday e-mailbox to your tidings of discomfort or joy: I thoroughly enjoyed my first work-related B-Bar visit last Saturday.

It wasn't because a good portion of the cast and crew of "Lost" was either already holed up in the club or arriving when we showed up. Heck, if that was my only concern, I would've bolted as soon as I found out the smokin'- even- with- Mokule'ia- grit - all- over- her- face Evangeline Lilly wasn't there.

Simply put, the B-Bar was a loosely unpretentious, environmentally interesting and fun hang for a couple of hours. Even the "Lost" crew eagerly abandoned the VIP room en masse to hang with us common folk.

Patrons seemed to have shown up with intentions of having a good time rather than simply being seen. They oscillated wildly. They cavorted in cozy corners. They chatted on existentialism and Timmy Chang. They watched Matthew Fox get a bit lost himself searching for an upstairs mens' room hidden in the rear of the B-Bar's large but oddly intimate main lounge.

"We have a hobbit on the one's and two's," announced an emcee, as a female server in a tight midriff-baring top and skirt combo took our drink order. And sure enough, there really was a former Shire-dwelling Cypress Hill and Luniz fan working the second-floor turntables.

Truth be told, Dominic Monaghan whipped up an altogether enjoyable mix of old school and current hip-hop and R&B it even had the security staff near the VIP room grooving. The dance floor didn't cool when Monaghan abandoned the wheels 'round midnight to hang with the crew, but the sonics did turn a bit less eclectic in his absence.

On the way out past a smaller, Asian-themed downstairs lounge accented by red paper lanterns, Chinese murals, samba-tinged house and a slinky female on a lounge chair staring curiously at the ceiling, we found reason to stick around for another half-hour.

A perfectly dread-ed Jason Momoa glided past us as we left near closing time. Better late than never, I guess.

Reach Derek Paiva at dpaiva@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8005.

NIGHTSPOTTING ...

O-TOWN UNDERGROUND

So who the heck are Psychokinetics, anyway?

Only one of the best jungle- and jazz-influenced crews in Oakland's fertile underground hip-hop scene. Coaxing wickedly deep beats and lyrical flow out of a two emcee/one DJ trio, Spidey, Celsius 7 and DJ Denizen form an intelligent, precise, highly danceable crew.

It'll be O-Town in Our Town this week as Psychokinetics makes the performance rounds at a handful of watering holes.

They'll be at downtown performance space On The River (941 River St.), Saturday at 8 p.m. for "Oaktown On The River," along with O-Town-based singer/spoken word artist Jennifer Johns, Quadraphonix and DJ A2Z. Sick Dog Productions' "Howl At The Moon" at Brew Moon hosts the crew on Sunday at 10 p.m. And Flash Hansen and the Wave Waikiki crew puts 'em up for two nights — at Pussycat Lounge on Tuesday, and with Microscopic Syllables on Wednesday. Doors open at 9 p.m. for the Wave shows. Cover charges vary by venue.

NIGHT NOTES

DJ Babu from the World Famous Beat Junkies crew and Dilated Peoples at Pipeline Café, Thursday at 11 p.m., $10 ... An emcee battle at part three of Connect 4's continuing Battleground series at Bliss (327 Keawe St.), Thursday from 9 p.m., $8.