Forget the Foo Fighters (Not Really) and Catch a Small Show

I'm not going to the Foo Fighters concert in Sioux Falls on Saturday night. Not because I don't think it will be a great show -- pretty sure it will be -- but the big venues just aren't for me.

The Denny Sanford Premier Center isn't a stadium or anything -- 12,000 seats -- but it's big enough that it can be less interesting that the Washington Pavilion or The District or any number of smaller venues.

I'd rather spend my concert time in that sort of setting. Not that you shouldn't take in the Foo Fighters. You should. If you can get a ticket that is. The show sold out like in an hour or something so it's going to be rocking pretty good.

Front man Dave Grohl's rock-n-roll credentials can't be questioned. As the drummer in the legendary power punk trio Nirvana, Grohl already has a significant spot in rock history. And he's a great musician leading the Foo Fighters. So no problems there.

But as Scott Hudson and I discussed on The Patrick Lalley Show on Wednesday, there's a fairly constant stream of smaller, no less interesting or entertaining acts, passing through on a regular basis.

Listen to Hudson's segment here. And listen to The Ledge Live on RealPunkRadio.com on Friday nights at 6, or subscribe to Hudson's podcast here.

That's in part to the emergence of Total Drag Records, but also promoters such as Fuel, Pepper Entertainment and Collective Efforts Union.

(Note: Fuel's main man Andy Howes is my guest on The Patrick Lalley Show on Friday.)

There's a decent number of small venues these days, starting with Total Drag but including Icon Lounge, Bigs, Fernson on 8th, The Orpheum, Club David and TommyJacks.

Don't believe me? Just click through those Facebook pages and see how many shows are coming up.

I'm not hating on the Foo Fighters or the Denny, but you just won't see me there that often.

Have fun everybody.