Question of the Day - 16 April 2006

There are a lot of venues on the pub/bar/club circuit where new and up-and-coming bands have a shot at getting a gig. As a first stop, we'd recommend signing on to www.yourlocalscene.com, a Web site dedicated to the Las Vegas local music scene. A thread on their free forums has a lot of information about venues, just click here to view it. As the thread explains, it's hard to stay totally up to date as venues come and go, but these lists should give you a good starting point. You'll need to call the individual venues to find out what kind of music they specialize in. One contributor to the thread even offered to supply a list of local promoters, who can help you get a foot in the door, if you post explaining what kind of music you play.

In terms of the requirements of the individual venues, we did a call-around to a few of them and here's what we were told:

• The Art Bar, 1511 Main St., NV 89104 (702/437-2787): Deana’s the lady in charge of booking bands and events, so you need to call in or drop her a demo tape/CD and if possible a press pack that includes a photo of the band and any info about other venues you've played. They look for "alternative" bands at this venue, so the photo will give her a good idea of whether you're a fit or not. Saturday-night spots get booked some time in advance; other nights are booked a couple of weeks to a month ahead, so are easier to get.

• Double Down Saloon, 4640 Paradise Rd., NV 89109 (702/791-5775): This venue, which mainly books punk and garage bands, referred us to the Web site. Visit www.doubledownsaloon.com/booking.html for a full explanation of the booking policies, which includes the following rule: "WE WILL NOT BOOK A BAND that is playing at another Las Vegas venue the same week. We know you need gas money, but the Las Vegas scene is very small and double booking is not fair to either venue."

• Freakin' Frog, 4700 S. Maryland Pkwy., NV 89119-7660 (702/597-9702): For a gig at this venue, located opposite UNLV, you need to come in and speak with the owner. Call ahead to see if he's around and if he's interested. Make sure you have a demo with you when you meet up.

• Money Plays, 4755 W. Flamingo Rd., NV 89103 (702/368-1828): Thursday is open-mic night featuring acoustic sets only –- you get the use of the house PA system, but anything else you need to bring with you. Show up early (7-8 pm) for a spot, which lasts 13 minutes. Saturday features local bands from 9 pm and tends to get booked up way in advance. If you want a shot at this spot, call on Thursday night after 6 pm and ask to speak with Stan, who's in charge of all bookings. If he likes the sound of you, he'll tell you what to do from there.

• Spanky's Pub, 6720 W. Cheyenne Ave., NV 89108-4588 (702/645-5524): Has live music Friday and Saturday nights. Mail or bring in a demo — either CD or tape format is fine — together with your phone number and a photo of the band. Mark it for the attention of Bobby, who handles all the booking. He's too busy to take calls (they get inundated) but if he likes you, he'll be in touch.

Hope this helps. Good luck!