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DJ Mag Top100 Clubs
36
Alte Börse
| NEW ENTRY

As far as any club in our Top 100 list goes, get the sound right and the rest will follow. Luckily, Alte Börse has got perfect acoustics, which the new team have exploited with a stunning soundsystem.

You might think the use of the word 'luckily' is a little harsh for a club that seems to thrive on perfection, but Billy Bildstein and Daniele Bürgisser had no idea that they'd struck Swiss gold when they dragged an acoustician into the old bank's trading floor. For it turns out the 500 square foot main room was made so that dealers could holler to each other without getting sore throats.

Millions of Francs have passed through the room and now the music sounds like a million dollars thanks to walls that are covered with metal panels dotted with thousands of tiny little holes.

Billy and Daniele also run Zurich's Cityfox parties, legendary for the last three years, which they've now ensconced into Alte Börse. And Cityfox DJ Dejan counts it as his favourite club in the world, thanks to the crystal clear noise that fill the place.

"Quite simply, it's got the best soundsystem I have heard in years," he says.

But it's not just the audio that has made this a favourite with DJs like Marc Houle, Samim and Mathew Jonson - Bildstein and Bürgisser have put as much into the way the club looks. Long tubes of lights line the walls, making the place feel like you're in the middle of an intergalactic pinball machine. A listed traders' ring makes up the bar, while the seating is straight out of Tron.

But as glam as it is, at it's heart is the underground. Cityfox grew from warehouse parties to become the most successful night in the city - quite a feat considering the competition. There might be plenty of disposable cash in Zurich but there aren't loads of people to go round - the city is 20 times smaller than London.

Recent visitors to Cityfox have included Akufen and Miss Jools, while sponsorship from Nokia has seen 2manyDJs and Kosheen as recent guests, and Bacardi have brought Groove Armada over for their B-Live event. And that's in addition to regular nights by Perlon, Dial and the My My gang.

Seth Troxler, a regular at the club, doesn't hold back with his praise.

"The minds behind the brilliant Cityfox parties only opened their own club four months ago but already it's amazing!" he exclaims. "And with its size, design and over all perfection this club could one day be the world's best."

Well, they've certainly hit the ground running. This old bank trading floor is quite simply on the money.