I'm not so sure. The Village isn't great and the sound can be poor but I've witnessed some great gigs there recently (Ray LaMontagne, Juliette & The Licks, The Bees). Sometimes it can attract a good crowd. In saying that though, when it's bad - it's terrible. I wouldn't agree with The Point being good though, never liked that place even though I've seen some cracking shows there. My vote would go to Vicar Street, without a doubt. I also like the Sugar Club alot too.

aye the sugar club is a good venue alright, tends to suit more chilled nights than all out gonzo though. If ya get a chance to go to the "Il Lusio" night there, (think its on one sunday a month, or was anyways) do, its well worth it. Had a great night last time i was there, sober.

Well said that man. Everytime I go to the Village, I marvel at how stoopid you'd have to be to build a venue like that. Hmmm, lets see now, where is the the worst place to put the entrance. Right beside the stage. Check! What about the toilets? Behind the stage. Check! OK. OK. What about that drop in height of the ceiling half way down. Won't those at the back not be able to hear? Bingo! Jam a few tannoy style speakers down there, they'll be grand. Also, stood down the back for the last gig I was at. The goddam place stank like a urinal. Honestly, I thought it was the random punter standing beside me, then I moved, same stink. Even started thinking it was me until general pong was confirmed by a mate. Tis as if sweat seeps from the very pores of the place. The irony is that Dublin really needs exactly that size of venue. The place was a better venue when it was the Wexford Inn....

Vicar Street has good sound, but I like the Village for comfort in the upstairs part, I've only been to a couple of gigs downstairs, so your experience is probably more valid than mine in that respect. I know everybody bashed the Hub for being a s**t hole, and yeah, the roof was low, the stage was in the wrong place, but it was a great place for a sweaty gig, because it was so small and chaotic and never seemed to close. The Sugar Club would be a better spot if they made the 'dance floor' bigger, or ripped some of the middle seats out and put another open space there. They need a decent place to smoke too. By far, the worst venue in town is Voodoo. s**t. Hole.

Anyone know for sure when Sufjan tickets are one sale? I've heard saturday but the MCD and ticketmaster sites say they're supposed to be on sale now but I get a no tickets available message from the ticketmaster site, Road have yet to recieve any tickets.

Just got a mail from someone at MCD, Sufjan tickets on sale this Saturday.

Daire Hall's review of 'HOWL' led me to check out the record and download 'Ain't No Easy Way' from i-Tunes. Respect Daire, may the Gods of Country Music walk with you in their mud caked boots.

Perhaps Vent My Spleen or Binokular can give me a music recommendation right now... Want to pick up a good new order album, but not lowlife or substance. Any recommendations?

if that's a serious question, then 'technique' from 1989 is yer record... new order's best and one of the best albums from that era... power, corruption and lies is pretty good too

I'm a serious guy palace! thanks for the recomm.

Yeah, I'd probably go along with that. Technique is a great record, New Orders "Ibiza" record. It was listed by (the now sadly departed and much missed) Muzik magazine as one of the 100 greatest dance albums of all time and it reflects a kind of an interesting time in dance music too, when places like Ministry of Sound were actual clubs rather than a brand (not that I'm old enough to appreciate that first hand or anything!). The thing with New Order though is all their records are worth a spin in my opinion, if you like one, chances are you'll quite like the rest, pick up the cheapest, you'll probably buy 'em all eventually anyway (I did, in the space of about a month!). Even a weaker album such as "Brotherhood" isn't half bad in retrospect. Personally I also really liked "Get Ready" from about 2000, "Power, Corruption and Lies" is prety good too. The latest one "Waiting for the Sirens Call" is deinitely one their weakest, but even that is enjoyable enough in its own right.