Le Bataclan 50 bd Voltaire, 11e tel 01.43.13.35.35, www.bataclan.fr. Classic ex-theatre venue with one of the best and most eclectic line-ups covering anything from international and local dance and rock musicians – Francis Cabrel, Chemical Brothers, Khaled, Moby – to opera, comedy and techno nights. M° Oberkampf.Café de la Danse 5 passage Louis-Philippe, 11e tel 01.47.00.57.59. Rock, pop, world and folk music played in an intimate and attractive space. Open nights of concerts only. M° Bastille. La Cigale 120 bd de Rochechouart, 18e tel 01.49.25.89.99. An eclectic programming policy in an old-fashioned converted theatre, long a fixture on the Pigalle scene. M° Pigalle. Le Divan du Monde 75 rue des Martyrs, 18e tel 01.44.92.77.66. A youthful venue in a café whose regulars once included Toulouse-Lautrec. One of the city's most diverse and exciting programmes, ranging from techno to Congolese rumba, with dancing till dawn on weekend nights. M° Pigalle. Élysée Montmartre 72 bd de Rochechouart, 18e tel 01.55.07.06.00, www.elyseemontmartre.com. A historic Montmartre nightspot that pulls in a young, excitable crowd with its rock and dance acts. Also hosts up-tempo Latin and club nights. M° Anvers. La Flèche d'Or 102bis rue de Bagnolet 20e tel 01.43.72.42.44, www.flechedor.com. Friendly alternative venue set in a converted train station. Most nights from around 9pm there's a cutting-edge programme of inexpensive electro, dub, world music concerts and club nights, while political and arty events take place in the daytime, and there's a bal salsa from 5pm on Sunday afternoons. M° Porte-de-Bagnolet. La Guinguette Pirate quai François Mauriac, 13e tel 01.52.61.08.49. Beautiful Chinese barge, moored alongside the quay in front of the Bibliothèque Nationale, hosting relaxed but upbeat world music nights from Tuesday to Sunday. Your best bet for an inexpensive (€6) good night out. M° Quai-de-la-Gare. Maison des Cultures du Monde 101 bd Raspail, 6e tel 01.45.44.72.30, www.mcm.asso.fr. All the arts from all over the world, for once not dominated by Europeans. Runs its own world music label, Inedit, and holds a festival of world theatre and music in March. M° Rennes. Maroquinerie 23 rue Boyer, 20e tel 01.40.33.30.60. The smallish concert venue is the downstairs part of a trendy arts centre. The line-up is rock, folk and jazz, with a particularly good selection of French musicians. M° Gambetta. Péniche Makara quai François Mauriac, 13e tel 01.44.24.09.00. Another barge moored to the banks of the Seine, this time with a chilled-out reggae and world flavour. M° Quai-de-la-Gare. Tues–Sun 6pm–2am. Trabendo Parc de la Villette, 19e tel 01.49.25.81.75. The ex-Hot Brass revamped and with a wider range of programming – world, jazz and rock, as well as big name French and international acts. Open nights of concerts only. M° Porte-de-Pantin.
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