Apache Café
64 Third St. N.W. 404-876-5436, www.apachecafe.info
Since its previous incarnation as Yin Yang Café, this intimate downtown spot has earned a reputation for being the place to see both live R&B, rap, reggae, jazz and spoken word artists on the way up (Whild Peach, Goapele, Seek) and firmly established (Erykah Badu, India Arie, Omar).

Vision
1068 Peachtree St., Midtown, 404-874-4460, www.visionatlanta.com
The almost city block-sized club known as Karma reopened under its new name during the NBA All-Star weekend, and has been star-studded since. Yes that's Sean "P. Diddy" Combs making his way to the VIP room. Yes that's Floetry about to do an impromptu performance. And yes, you too can experience it all -- from hip-hop, house, R&B and pop --Thursday through Saturday nights.

Compound
1008 Brady Ave. at 10th Street, Midtown. 404-472-4621, www.compoundatl.com
With a combined 36,500 square feet of Japanese reflecting pools and gardens, smoke-free lounges, beds, giant video screens and of course, dancefloors, where you can hear dance, Latin and ambient music, the venue itself is as much of a celeb as the Ushers and whomever who have partied there.

Eddie's Attic
515-B North McDonough St., Decatur. 404-377-4976, www.eddiesattic.com
With a blend of rustic coziness and microbrew chic, this laid-back upstairs venue suits its yuppie-ish Decatur crowd. The listening room has good sound and sightlines for its attentive audiences. This is the place that helped launch the careers of John Mayer and Shawn Mullins. You'll hear mostly singer-songwriters, but don't miss the Gusto Show -- a wild and interactive musical theatre performance. The patio out back is a festive food-and-drink spot.

Echo Lounge
551 Flat Shoals Ave., East Atlanta, 404-681-3600, www.echostatic.com
This Eastside indie-rock hotspot is dark and loud, with a more sedate side room for conversations and cocktails. The club can get hot and smoky, but the stage is high, so you should at least be able to see. The venue's seating is limited, so consider yourself lucky if you get to take a load off. The club books an edgy and eclectic mix: everything from hip-hop to Japanese garage rock, plus a generous lineup of hot local bands.

Euclid Avenue Yacht Club
1136 Euclid Ave. N.E., Little Five Points, 404-688-2582
Where the locals hang, especially before and after a show at the Variety Playhouse down the street. Loud, pub-like and as comfy and worn as an old shoe.

Vinyl
1374 W. Peachtree St., Midtown. 404-885-9198, www.vinylatlanta.com
Located next to Earthlink Live, Vinyl is a smaller club unto itself. As soon as you walk through the door, you see a framed picture of Elvis Costello. Go further and the room opens up, with a stage in the front, a bar on the side and pool tables in the back. Vinyl also has a kitchen, so dig in. Often a showcase for the best in local music, from rock to neo-soul.

The EARL
488 Flat Shoals Ave. S.E., East Atlanta. 404-522-3950, www.badearl.com
The music space is intimate and back-roomy. That's probably because it's small and in a back room (in the front room you can chow down on some terrific burgers and justly lauded golden circles of heaven that transcend the name onion rings). The front of the stage juts from one of the room's corners and doesn't rise as far from the floor as most club stages. The space has a very cozy feel and, if you can ignore the other people, you might feel like the band's playing a private show in your best friend's basement. The club hosts touring independent bands in all genres, but tending toward the edgier end of the spectrum, along with some of Atlanta's best local bands.

Cotton Club
152 Luckie St. N.W., Atlanta. 404-688-1193, www.atlantaconcerts.com
Situated below the much larger Tabernacle, it's a dark, dank underground cavern that has an ideal set up for watching live music in a club atmosphere. The room is wide rather than long, so the stage is easy to see from most anywhere in the place. From pop-punk to hip-hop, the club has often hosted bands on the verge like Queens of the Stone Age, who played just before the release of the breakthrough album "Songs for the Deaf." But the club's lineup of talent is among the most varied in Atlanta.

Smith's Olde Bar
1578 Piedmont Ave. N.E., Midtown. 404-875-1522, www.smithsoldebar.com
Relaxed and remarkably fluid considering it seems to take up an entire Midtown block. But for all that space, once you make it past the room where everyone's watching the game, and the room where Jagermeister shots and wonderful quesadillas are consumed, then up the stairs to where most of the performances are, it's still a warm, up-close experience. The music is primarily rock and singer-songwriter types, with bits of roots, country, blues and jazz in between. Then there is the Smith's staple, the hilarious Josh Rifkind, who draws whomever and whatever to his open mic nights, and his band's (Lithp) puppet show/performances.

Andrews Upstairs
56 E. Andrews Dr., Buckhead. 404-467-1600, www.andrewsupstairs.com
Imagine some candlelit ski lodge in Aspen that Julia Roberts and Will Smith types frequent. Except the people underneath the tall angular ceilings, sitting on the leather sofas, and placing their bottles of import beer on napkins atop the rich dark woods are comfortably dressed in khakis as well as in full, night-on-the-town-in-Buckhead gear. The best thing about this all-ages attraction is the sound, which can be heard as clearly in the tall booths facing the stage as it is in the room-sized bar to its right. You'll hear everything from a bluegrass band that covers Kiss, to jazz, to breezy Brazilian pop, to college rock.

10 High
816 N. Highland Ave., Virginia-Highland. 404-873-3607, www.tenhighclub.com
From the yuppified street above, you wouldn't know that a loud, sweaty rock club lurks just beneath the Dark Horse Tavern. But 10 High has the basement vibe down cold -- the ceiling is low, the room is crowded and the cool factor is cranked way up. The clientele: girls with expensive haircuts and dangling cigarettes, boys with the Strokes' fashion sense. The music comes from young local rock bands and the occasional major label act trying to break its debut album.

Jake's Toadhouse
2272 Lawrenceville Highway, Decatur. 404-633-4111, www.jakesroadhouse.net
Well, it looks like the kind of place Patrick Swayze might bust up, but the folks inside wouldn't hurt a fly. The venue famous for "The Dunhams" radio show has a mellow, music-loving scene once you walk through the door. You can get a decent meal before the show and a decent beer during, and the music room has plenty of room to boogie. If you like jam-bands, this is the place.

Northside Tavern
1058 Howell Mill Road N.W. 404-874-8745, www.northsidetavern.com
It's a little on the ragged side, but that's part of its rustic charm. The walls are adorned with photos of some Georgia blues greats, giving the place a real feeling of connection and a reverence for the music's history. The club's own Web site captures the vibe of the place very well: "Bikers meet Buckhead businessmen, South Atlanta meets Georgia Tech. A resident bunch of bands play Sunday through Thursday, including a usual Wednesday night gig for walking blues encyclopedia Danny "Mudcat" Dudeck. There's a healthy respect for the past here, but it's hardly a chin-rubbing, navel-gazing kind of place.

Star Community Bar
437 Moreland Ave. N.E., Little Five Points, 404-681-9018, www.starbar.net
A live-music room (and downstairs Vinyl Lounge) that tends toward rockabilly and roots music, though you can hear most any type of tune here. Pabst Blue Ribbon is the house wine.