This sprawling, state-of-the-art complex in East Williamsburg has become Brooklyn’s epicenter for glitzy warehouse shows that feel somewhere between megaraves and minifestivals. During the summer, fans flock to the iconic Brooklyn Mirage—an open-air venue lined with 3D video screens and decks with views of the Manhattan skyline. In colder months, the two indoor rooms—the massive Great Hall and cozier Kings Hall—host some of dance music’s heaviest hitters until the wee hours of the morning.

On an industrial block in Brooklyn’s rapidly changing Gowanus neighborhood, this sleek bar and dance spot is a hub for avant-garde, experimental electronic music. With several distinct spaces—a hi-fi record bar, intimate dance club, outdoor garden, and an airy vegan café—it’s the kind of stylish, laidback spot that hums from brunch to after hours. Expect the unexpected: A carefully curated slate of live acts and boundary-pushing DJs plays everything from tunneling techno to dub reggae.

The passion project of local mainstays Justin Carter and Eamon Harkin, Nowadays began as a seasonal expansion of the DJs’ long-running Mister Sunday parties before blooming into this year-round, era-defining club. For serious house and techno heads, it’s a mecca: a sprawling backyard with bars and barbecue next to what many consider to be the best club in America. Attendees are asked to protect the vibe: A strict no-photos policy ensures that everyone on the dance floor stays in the moment.

Clustered in a buzzy section of Bushwick where bars and clubs line the streets like coffee shops, this converted warehouse—now a three-floor complex of music venues—has fans coming to see bands and DJs on the brink of mainstream crossover (think: Charlotte de Witte, DJ Seinfeld). In the summer months, a spacious rooftop hosts upbeat day parties. Indoors, boundary-pushing dance music acts perform across its many stages all year long. A plus: The L is just three blocks away.

When Trans-Pecos first opened in 2013, Queens hood Ridgewood wasn’t the cool-kid enclave it is today. The area was desolate, eclectic, a dumping zone for mobsters. Its owners loved that and named it after a desert region in West Texas to symbolize the venue’s place in New York nightlife: a far-out underground alternative to the ritzy clubs in Manhattan, a real-deal community center. The venue has held true to its mission, operating as a community center by day and DIY venue by night.

This former glass and door factory in Maspeth, Queens, has become a destination for boundary-pushing art and music: small-scale festivals, gallery pop-ups, film screenings, ambient and noise shows, and raucous raves that thump and rattle into the wee hours of the morning. Upstairs, the main hall hosts large house and techno showcases by some of the scene’s most pioneering DJs (Honey Dijon, Moodymann). Downstairs, a Berghain-inspired techno club called BASEMENT opened in 2019.

One of the newest additions to New York’s underground electronic scene, this visionary Bed-Stuy club—owned by the folks behind Bossa Nova Civic Club—was designed as an alternative to the cold, dark, warehouse-style clubs that dominated Brooklyn for most of the early 2000s. Inspired by churches and spiritual architecture, Paragon is at once whimsical (a bold, black-and-white checkered dance floor; large, dramatic archways) and cutting-edge (TYGAPAW, AceMoMa, and Juliana Huxtable are regulars).

When the owners of this Bushwick watering hole bonded over a shared love of sci-fi, mixology, and music, they opened this slender club in 2016. It was partly inspired by the bunker-style bars in movies like Blade Runner, with neon tube lights and a tunnel-like shape, but Jupiter Disco has an undeniable warmth. The DJ booth—complete with a custom analog rotary mixer and suspended speakers—is state of the art, and the itty-bitty dance floor makes an intimate gathering feel like a party.

In January 2022, a fire broke out in an apartment above this legendary club on Bushwick’s rowdy Myrtle Avenue, forcing owners to close for nine long months. When it finally reopened, devotees were relieved to find that their teeny-tiny, sweaty, sticky, smoky, utterly beloved rave room looked, felt, and smelled exactly the same (and had resumed its notorious around-the-block entry lines). Go to hear surprising, boundary-pushing house and techno in a special, singular space.

With two very distinct rooms (the large Good Room and cozier Bad Room), as well as a sizable U-shaped bar, this Greenpoint party spot has something for everyone. The crowds—usually stylish late-twentysomethings—splinter off based on the tunes: edgier, more daring selections fill the Bad Room, which is lined with sleek wooden shelves and stacks of vinyl, while heavier, sturdier house and techno echo throughout the main room, where the more spirited ravers tend to congregate.

The owners of this psychedelic Myrtle Avenue gem—a low-lit, astrology-themed bar with a young, ultra-hip crowd—sought to create a space for queer and trans people of color that was friendly, open, and inclusive to all. Mission accomplished. Every weekend, people of all stripes pack into the art-filled space, playing arcade games, dancing to a mix of techno and New Wave, and sipping on colorful cocktails with names like Mercury in Retrograde. Stop by on a weeknight for more elbow room.

Entering House of Yes feels like peering into a fun-house mirror—a glimpse at the immersive, theatrical side of dance music that doesn’t take itself too seriously. Popular among East Coasters who attend Burning Man, it’s a go-to spot for cabaret shows, drag nights, burlesque performances, and funky disco parties that feel like an escape to another world. Disco balls drip from the ceiling. Ribbon dancers twirl from the rafters. More is always more at this carnivalesque sanctum of self-expression.

New York has long taken style cues from Berlin, particularly when it comes to nightlife: big, sparse industrial warehouses converted into strobe-lit, thumping clubs. Nowhere is this reference more evident or straightforward than at BASEMENT, the city’s first club dedicated to techno that was directly inspired by (where else?) Berghain. Situated underneath Knockdown Center down an ominous concrete hallway, it’s a foggy, smoky, brick-walled dungeon surrounded by Funktion-Ones. Techno heaven.

While most of Manhattan’s nightclubs have become glitzier and ritzier than ever—a blur of bottle service, guest lists, and dull commercial house—Le Bain is one of the few with an ear toward new music. Perched at the top of the Standard Hotel in the touristy Meatpacking District, it’s got a few things that keep locals coming back: an open-air rooftop bar with places to lounge, an infamous plunge pool in the middle of the dance floor, and bathrooms with some of the best views of Manhattan around.