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Fat Daddy’s 3015 E. Fremont St. 702/464-3118. The former Calamity Jayne’s continues on with its cool red-velvet motif and hardwood dance floor restored. This open space is one of the best club venues in town, one that has hosted everyone from Nirvana to Sublime in its time. These days, the sounds are predominately punk and garage - The Bomboras, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion and Gwen Mars have recent blasted through with whiplash sets. The staff is friendly and everybody knows each other - normally a detriment, but not in this convivial atmosphere. Come for the bands,stay for the DJ’s, and don’t miss the fabulous mushroom cloud mural on the back wall. Parking is close and abundant. Capacity: 299. Tickets available at door on night of show.

House of Blues Inside Mandalay Bay, 3950 S. Las Vegas Blvd. (702) 632-7600. As colorful and hip a venue as any other House of Blues in the US of A, and perhaps a little more so. The HOB’s floor area is given over to standing room, with good sightlines save behind those four beams that support the stadium-seating balcony - truly the place to be. Outsider art covers the walls - in fact, not a single surface in HOB isn’t painted or textured in some fabulous way. The sound mix is clear and evenly distributed, but for some minor slapback by the rear floor bar. Weekend nights feature two after-hours clubs, SIN and Mr. Mojo’s; Sunday morning boasts a gospel brunch that you absolutely must indulge. Without any irony whatsoever, we declare the Vegas HOB our hands-down favorite. You might, too.

The Huntridge Theater for the Performing Arts 1208 E. Charleston Blvd., 702/477-7703. More than 50 years old, the Huntridge is seeing more action now than it ever has. This vintage room (circa 1943) is our venue of choice to enjoy nearly any band, and enjoy them we have - from Sarah McLachlan to Sepultura. Sight lines are exceptional, regardless of seating; the orchestra pit is actually lowered so you don’t have to strain to look through somebody’s big bad hairdo. The sound couldn’t be better, even if you were sitting onstage with the players.

The Joint Inside the Hard Rock Hotel, 4455 Paradise Rd., 702/226-4650. The Joint is reminiscent of The Palace in Hollywood in several ways, not the least of which is the eschewing of seats in favor of tables. While this may smack of showroom pretension, it actually manages to give this 1400-capacity room a warm cabaret feel. Multiple television monitors mirror the stage at all times, a rather helpful service while you await service at one of three bars. The sound is crisp, clean and absolutely stunning. Shows here tend to cost, unless it’s an all-ages gig; in that event, prices drop below $20, staffers remove all the tables, waitress service is suspended and you get what you pay for. A good evening all told, even before you’re released into the Hard Rock casino for an impromptu post-show blowout.

Sanctuary 1125 S. Maryland Parkway, 702/477-7703. From the team keeps the Huntridge Theater rocking comes Sanctuary, a 300-capacity club venue located inside the Huntridge District’s former postal substation, circa 1950. With tiered seating and a sound system that was built from the ground up, this is one of Vegas’ most comfortable and satisfying venues for live music and spoken word performances. Note: This is an 18-and-over venue. Abundant parking is available in the adjoining Huntridge Theater parking lot. Tickets available through Ticketmaster (702/474-4000), or at the box office on night of show.

MOVIE THEATERS

Regal Cinemas 4111 Boulder Hwy. (Boulder Station); 1301 W. Sunset Rd. (Sunset Station); 2101 Texas Star Ln.(Texas Station); W. Sahara Ave., 702/221-2283 for all theaters. Regal’s theaters are so damn gorgeous and well-designed that even such lowbrow tripe as Wing Commander plays like David Lean on their screens. These are the best movie theaters in town, with spacious auditoriums, terrific digital sound and a crack staff that never lets prints get dirty or concessions get stale. The Sunset Station cinema may have the most beautiful theater lobby built in years, with an arty motif lifted from Barcelona architect Gaudi. And the stadium-seating arrangement of the Village Square theaters (Sahara Avenue and Fort Apache Road) is a godsend.

Caesar’s Palace Omnimax Theater Inside Caesar’s Palace, 3570 Las Vegas Blvd. South, 702/731-7110. Las Vegas’s original “innovative” theater still screens beautifully crafted, completely encompassing Omnimax films. Unlike its big, brash IMAX cousins, many of the films shown at Omnimax are thought-provoking documentaries, like “Everest.”

Gold Coast Twin Inside the Gold Coast Hotel / Casino, 4000 W. Flamingo Rd., 702/367-7111. Though part of the Century Theaters chain, the Gold Coast Twin manages to maintain several important distinctions from the chain’s other Vegas screens. For one thing, concessions are inexpensive (ain’t it funny how gaming subsidies trickle down into everything?). Most importantly, the management sees to it that independent cinema plays here on a regular basis.

Luxor IMAX Theater Inside Luxor, 3900 Las Vegas Blvd. South, 702/262-4000. Since 1970, IMAX has presented what it touts as the Ultimate Film Experience: a really, really big screen with a really, really loud sound system. The Luxor IMAX screen is 68 feet tall by 84 feet wide, and the eight-channel sound system boosts 15,000 watts of sound - more than enough to curl your toes. While the artistic value of most IMAX films may vary, the medium itself will rock you.

ENORMODOMES

Mandalay Bay Events Center Inside Mandalay Bay, 3950 S. Las Vegas Blvd. (702) 632-7777. A 12,000 seat arena that hosts everything from championship boxing to Luciano Pavorotti to the Goo Goo Dolls. Free parking is abundant and conveniently close; valet parking is available.

MGM Grand Garden Inside the MGM Grand, 3799 Las Vegas Blvd. South, 702/891-7777. The MGM Grand Garden was patterned after New York’s Madison Square Garden. Sight lines are good, even for 15,200 seats, and the sound is just dandy. The majority of groups booked here are adult-oriented (read: VH1), which means the hard rock and rap groups that could really benefit from this room will be playing at the Thomas & Mack Center instead, while Phil Collins, Reba McEntire and Page / Plant kick out the jams at “The City of Entertainment.”

Sam Boyd Stadium 7000 E. Russell Rd., 702/895-3900. Until recently the Sin City resting place of the Dead, 40,000-seat Sam Boyd Stadium (formerly the Silver Bowl; old timers still refer to it as such) isn’t so much a stadium as it is a solar-powered barbecue. Aside from being at the mercy of the elements, the Boyd isn’t too bad a venue as stadiums go. We’ve seen and heard worse, and that was in temperate 70-degree weather. Parking, however, is a sandblasted nightmare; plan accordingly. Currently undergoing renovations.

Thomas & Mack Center 4505 S. Maryland Pkwy. (on the UNLV campus), 702/895-3900. Normally home to the UNLV basketball team and Caesars Palace boxing events, the T&M is so ill-equipped to host live shows that out-of-state concert promoters are damn near compelled to do what they do: Book the hell out of it, regardless of the consequences. Top acts ranging from Korn to N’Sync play here on a regular basis. Sight lines are fair. Currently undergoing renovations.