Do you like to listen to obscure indie bands, and feel smug when you can identify them being played in a bar / club? Do you go out of your way to find 'quirky' or 'vintage' clothing to express your 'individuality', and try to look cool without it appearing that you've made any effort to do so? Do you see yourself as a moody but intellectual type who really has never had very much in your life to actually feel moody about? Are you a grown adult in your early to mid-20s, but think it's 'cute' to carry a bag or purse or wear a shirt with a picture of a retro cartoon character from your childhood on it? If so, this could be the place for you. An indie poser's paradise is how i've always seen this place, and I spent a fair bit of time in here only due to playing gigs. It's a subjective thing I know, but I just find the clientele too posy and pretentious for my liking.
Still, the comments about this place as a music venue are quite accurate. A lot of up and coming bands do pass through the doors here, so it really can be the place to catch the 'next big thing' if that's what you are into. If you regularly attend gigs here, it is quite likely that at some point in the future, you'll be turning to your friends or people around you at a big gig and saying "I saw these guys before they were famous!" (famous meaning that they've now appeared on the inner pages of the NME a couple of times).
On a less sarcastic note, it is a pleasant enough place inside and you're not likely to get caught up in a punch up on a Saturday night, unless you find yourself in a really heated debate with somebody about whether or not White Lies sound anything like Joy Division. If you are a genuine fan of indie music, then this is probably the best place in Nottingham to come to, whether you are pretentious or not. read more