Footloose & Fancy Free
Where Santa Barbarans Hit the Town for Eating, Drinking, and Being Merry
![](https://www.independent.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/05/30/WEL_1483.jpg)
Things haven’t been the same since good old Thomas Edison figured out how to light up the night. The rhythms of life have been forever changed by that electrifying discovery, with ever-increasing hordes of party people choosing to get down after sundown. Though I am pretty sure it wasn’t his intention, Edison’s big turn-on was a stroke of genius that has since illuminated countless dance floor dreams and libation-soaked evenings.
Therefore, it’s with a tip of the hat to the true Patriarch of Nightlife that The Independent introduces this week’s cover story. In the coming pages, Michelle Drown interviews singer and karaoke missionary Jon Styles; Darian Bleecher pays a visit to some of S.B.’s newer post-sunset gathering places; Hannah Tennant-Moore asks, “Where have all the gay bars gone?”; Matt Kettmann investigates the newest-and sexiest-way for Santa Barbara party people to organize their lives; and Ethan Stewart lends some long-researched advice on how to kick off your night right. So, get a soundtrack and leave your inhibitions in the afternoon, baby; the sun is down, and it’s time get up, get out, and get some.
• The Last Meow: Where Have All the Gay Bars Gone?
by Hannah Tennant-Moore
• The Anacapa Strut: Anacapa Street Gives Young Professionals a Strip of Their Own
by Darian Bleecher
• Rockin’ the Hood: Singer Jon Styles Launches Rock Star Karaoke
by Michelle Drown
• Good for Looking, Better for Party Planning: Introducing Premiere Events’ Santa Barbara Calendar
Matt Kettmann
• Eat, Drink, and Be Merry: Zen and the Art of Happy Hour
by Ethan Stewart