The F-visa Ghetto around Fahuazhen Road and Dingxi Road has all the slacker might want.
It's based around a nice garden/historical street Xinhua Road. J. G. Ballard grew up there, RIP. It is in the city centre and yet has loads of affordable and cheap housing nearby.
It has music bars and dives like Yuyintang, Logo, C's, Sus2 and err, the other one where Slappy Toy rehearse. It has Shanghai Super Music and Juju Rehearsal Studio. It has the Canart space and also Shanghai Sculpture Space and lawn (all free!). It has a cheap all-night Hong Kong food strip. Cool people like Brad Ferguson, Levi and Tim from Mortal Fools and ... errr ... me, live there.
But how can the average slacker foreigner work part time and use most of their day slumming it and doing art and music when the F-visa is continually under attack?
This just in from Shanghaiist.
I've already had to get a proper job again. And I'm not happy about it.
I live here too! Albeit a little further north on Dingxi lu.
I was already somewhat familiar with Shanghai when I moved back here from Nanjing a few months ago, but it was still somewhat of a roll of the dice choosing where to live within only a week, but I haven't regretted it at all.
Great area.
Juju technically is Bobo-land, ie former French Concession, being on the east side of Huashan Lu - but it is cusp.
And don't forget Ke Art - the contemporary art and community theater center adjacent to Yuyintang.
FYI Canart will be hosting a big party on 5/1 to fundraise for the Mommy Foundation, which aims to support young artists and is run by Biljana Ciric, Shanghai's rising star home-grown curator. Check it out.
The visa inconsistancies suck for anyone still nebulous, my sympathies. It seems like the Magic F days of 2003-2007 are mostly over - and to be fair to the government, it was a loophole that had gotten somewhat corrupt and exploited. (In China? Never! ...and we all have the Jiangxi-issued visas to prove it...)
The problem is that the Chinese attitude remains that the only foreigners here are tourists and expats; with little provision for "half-pats" and immigrants. (Unless we're rich enough or toady enough to get the coveted "green card".) Ie, anyone not explicitly sent on behalf of a MNC for a short-term job posting - an "expat" - doesn't easily fit into the system.
I claim Juju for the Ghetto. FC people won't be needing it anyway :)
Also, Fahuazhen Lu has Fanfare near Dingxi Lu which is a music bar/rehearsal space/low rent studio room. I haven't done any updates for a bit.