ABSTRACT

In many western cities, urban nightlife is experiencing a 'McDonaldisation', where big branded names are taking over large parts of downtown areas, leaving consumers with an increasingly standardised experience.
This book takes a new look at this rapidly changing aspect of urban life, examining the relationships between young adults, nightlife and city spaces. It focuses on what the authors call 'urban nightscapes' - both mainstream and alternative youthful cultural activities in bars, pubs, night-clubs and music venues, which occur against a backdrop of increasing corporate influence in the night-time economy.

chapter 1|16 pages

Introduction

Making urban nightscapes

part I|73 pages

Understanding Nightlife Processes and Spaces

chapter 2|25 pages

Producing Nightlife

Corporatisation, branding and market segmentation in the urban entertainment economy1

chapter 3|23 pages

Regulating Nightlife

Profit, fun and (dis)order 1

chapter 4|21 pages

Consuming Nightlife

Youth cultural identities, transitions and lifestyle divisions

part II|148 pages

Urban Nightlife Stories

chapter 5|31 pages

Pleasure, Profit and Youth in the Corporate Playground

Branding and gentrification in mainstream nightlife

chapter 7|26 pages

Sexing the Mainstream

Young women and gay cultures in the night

chapter 8|25 pages

Residual Youth Nightlife

Community, tradition and social exclusion

chapter 9|30 pages

‘You've Gotta Fight for your Right to Party’

Alternative nightlife on the margins

chapter 10|12 pages

Urban Night Scape Visions

Beyond the corporate nightlife machine