NXNE -- Last Minute Tips

Well, who would have guessed that the Opening Night Party for NXNE would be so totally lame!

You'd think that a party for the year's best live music festival would have live music, wouldn't you? But, noooooo! A mediocre DJ. I guess they blew the budget on the shuttle bus, running continuously from downtown to Palais Royale. If you weren't there, here's what you missed...

1. Unless you drove, you took the bus from Union Station to the party.
2. You lined up to get in, lined up for drink tickets, then lined up for drinks.
3. You chatted with the friends that you came out with, and waited for something to happen.
4. Nothing happened.
5. You wished you hadn't bought so many drink tickets and started giving them away to the new suckers who were just coming in the door.
6. You got back on the bus.

I'm guessing that there were more people on the bus at any given time last night than in the cavernous Palais Royale. But that's history now! The action starts tonight!

If you're still wading through the club and band listings and are looking for a strategy, I have a few tips that have always worked for me. (I won't tell you which bands to see, because I don't know your taste in music. These are more general tips.)

1. NXNE is about discovery, not reliving past memories. If you're mapping out a strategy based on band names that you recognize, you've got the wrong idea. Why go see a favourite band do a little 40 minute set when you could see them do a full show another time? Make at least 75% of your picks bands you've never seen before, and only go to the familiar names, if you haven't seen them in a year or so.
2. Pick a zone for each evening, geographically. Running or even cabbing it across town in the 15-20 minutes between acts is fun the first time or two, but it does get tiring. If you're very lucky, you might find a single club that has the kind of mix you're looking for. If so, get in and stay there. If not, pick a starter band/location, then check out the listings for the venues closest to the one you're in. Our Clubs map should help, but here are some clusters that you might consider...

• West end -- Gladstone, Art Bar (same address), Cadillac Lounge, Drake,Vatikan
• College/Spadina -- Ciao Edie, Rancho Relaxo, el Mocambo, Silver Dollar, Free Times
• Spadina/Queen W -- Horseshoe, Rivoli, Black Bull, Cameron
• Bathurst/Queen W -- Reverb, Holy Joes, Kathedral (all 3 in same bldg), Healey's, Bovine, Crowbar
  
• Bloor W -- Lee's Palace, Clinton's (a bit isolated, but Lee's is often worth the trip)

That's it. If you don't have a wrist band yet, get one, and make sure they give you a programme. Sometimes they forget. If they forget and you forget to ask, go to the NXNE.com site and print out the one page grids for each evening. Use them to mark down your picks. Your memory may be great at 9pm, but not so great at 1 or 2am.

The $28 wristband is the only economical way to take in a bunch of acts, unless you're only out for one night and stay at the same club.

And, finally, pick up today's issue of NOW and/or EYE. You'll find their staff's picks for the next three nights and at least a short blurb on what all the bands are like.

See you out there, and enjoy it live!