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By Elaine Corden
Staff Writer
Photos by Sprout

If, like 99.9% of Vancouverites, the last thing you want to do is participate in the gas guzzling, noise polluting, corporate snobbery of the Molson Indy, John Curle (last of the indie diehards) may have a suitable hiding place.

Music Waste, celebrating it's sixth anniversary, offers noise pollution of a different kind. The kind which neither requires, nor accepts corporate sponsors. The kind that just wants to rock out.

Originally created as an alternative to the highly commercial MusicWest festival, Music Waste is an event that exists for all the right reasons. While MusicWest has been criticized as largely an excuse to sell beer, MusicWaste has remained indie to the core, chock full of local talent at a reasonable price.

This year's festival boasts the usual eclectic list of bands and venues, all charging between $3-8 cover. Also available are free shuttle buses running between the Cambie Hotel and various venues.

Although the best part of Music Waste has always been drunkenly meandering between venues (The ANZA Club, The Media Club, WISE Hall, Blunt Bros, Cobalt, The Columbia, Bourbon St.Bar, The Pic and the Lamplighter), there are some shows which definitely merit more than a casual observance.

Thursday night's kickoff features Threat From Outerspace and the always enjoyable Free Coke for Supermodels at The ANZA Club, along with the not-untalented Andy Mason at that refuge for grannies and priests, Blunt Bros. For those not able to make it out Thursday, Jesse's Girl, despite being named for a Rick Springfield song, promise a good show at The Pic on Friday, with openers Zen and the Feelies.

Hissyfit, whose recent promotional gimmick saw them handing out bars of soap embossed with their name, bring their dirty punk rock to the just-as-dirty Cobalt on Saturday night. Also on Saturday, JP5 play their high energy tunes to The ANZA Club, along with openers Blem de la Blem, who seem worth checking out if just for their ludicrous moniker.

Also on the Music Waste bill are Solarbaby, Morning Maker, Durango's Daughter, Mark DeSouza and a host of other unheard of talents. Although you proabably haven't heard of most of these bands, and some of them will quite likely be crap, one things for sure: this festival's gonna be a hell of lot more fun than a bunch of cigarette ads on wheels. For those of us who prefer indie to Indy, Music Waste provides refuge. Just look both ways when you're stumbling across the street.

See Hissy Fit, Free Coke For Supermodels, Marq DeSouza, Solarbaby, JP5, Morning Maker, Jesse's Girl, Zen, Durango's Daughter, Andy Mason, FLOOZY Bookmark Hissy Fit, Free Coke For Supermodels, Marq DeSouza, Solarbaby, JP5, Morning Maker, Jesse's Girl, Zen, Durango's Daughter, Andy Mason, FLOOZY Go to Anza Club, Bourbon St. 50 Pub, Columbia Hotel, The Cobalt Bookmark Anza Club, Bourbon St. 50 Pub, Columbia Hotel, The Cobalt

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