I've just finished a degree at Sheffield Hallam University and, well, I'm going to miss the place. If there was once thing that stood out about Sheffield when I arrived it was the music scene, I started there just as the Artic Monkey's became famous outside of the city; if there was one thing that stood out about Sheffield when I left..... it was still the music scene. That really is all the inspiration needed to do a quick piece listing the major music venues in Sheffield and what they each have to offer, so here it is:

The Leadmill on Leadmill Road is a stones throw from Sheffield Hallam University and has been the hub of alternative music since first opening in 1980, helping to launch the careers of several Sheffield bands including none other than the Human League and Heaven 17. Such is its fame that it has several times been voted favourite live music venue by the readership of NME and band's to play at The Leadmill include Coldplay, Klaxons, The Coral, The Maccabees and of course The Artic Monkeys who sold out The Leadmill quicker than any other band in 2005.... before they had released any albums. Infamous gigs include The Libertines in 2002 who were supported by the Kaiser Chiefs, then known as Parva! If you want to catch up and coming indie bands, before they become real famous, then The Leadmill is your place.

Sheffield Plug is a dedicated music venue with a capacity of 1,000 and puts on events covering a diverse range of tastes. Indie/alternative groups including the Artic Monkeys, Babyshambles, Jarvis Cocker, Graham Coxon, Reverend and the Makers, and Milburn have all played there. The list can go on and on. The venue is also well known for a more underground sound with various frequent electronic music events. Plug also holds various normal club nights and student nights, always with very cheap drinks!

The Octogan Centre is a multi-purpose music venue and conference centre based at, and owned by, Sheffield University. It has an 8 sided auditorium (hence the name!) and has a standing capacity of 1,600 or/and a seating capacity of 1,300. Although music is not it's primary purpose, it does hold regular gigs by a wide variety of different acts, these have included in recent times DJ Shadow and Supergrass. Every Friday it is transformed into a nightclub and every Tuesday it holds 'The Tuesday Club' featuring a diverse range of underground/alternative music such as dubstep and drum & bass.

Sheffield Arena is the place for the really big names and it has a maximum capacity of around 13,500; due to it's size the events at Sheffield Arena are a lot more mainstream. To give you a few examples, recent gigs have included Elton John, Queen with Paul Rodgers, Take That and Coldplay. Forthcoming gigs include Cliff Richard and Pink, at least in between the Disney on Ice shows that they hold regular every year. I've never been there, and never intend to!

The O2 Academy, which until recently was called the Carling Academy, is a live music venue and nightclub near to Sheffield Hallam University in the centre of the city. The Academy was opened in 2007 following the refurbishment of the old Roxy Disco Nightclub, costing £3m and now has a capacity of around 2,500. The genre's of music played at the Academy are pretty eclectic but focuses more on rock/alternative and the first band to play at the venue were Sheffield band Reverend and the Makers.

Sheffield City Hall is an old Grade II listed building in the centre of Sheffield which was renovated in 2005 at the cost of £12.5m and features several venues. The Oval hall is the biggest in the building and holds 2,271 people. Basically you are more likely to see Jane McDonald or Michael Ball than a slurring and sweaty Shane McGowan! Sheffield City Hall is Sheffield's answer to the Royal Albert.