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When I was a youngster in Wollongong, live music was nothing unusual on a Saturday night - or a Thursday, Friday even Sunday night.
Young musicians in the Illawarra were given the opportunity to practise their performance skills in front of an appreciative audience, or just a bunch of people having a quiet drink at the end of the long week.
And even if there was not much dancing happening on the sticky, multi-coloured carpets of the various establishments in and around the Wollongong CBD, there were plenty of great conversations and a lot less aggravation and violence than seems to be the norm in today's city nightlife.
Which is why it is refreshing to see one Wollongong venue making a move to encourage the exchange of cultural ideas, music-making, art expression and giving the younger generation of partygoers something to do other than fight on the streets.
For the past few weeks, I've been making a regular pilgrimage to Rad Bar in Crown Street to listen to Gameboy's first foray into the entertainment industry, as well as to support the other young musicians who are putting their talent on show.
I'm usually the oldest one there, sipping a coffee on the couch while the Gen Y groovers mingle in the middle and shuffle their feet to the bass and drums that emanate from the small stage area just on the other side of the wall.
And although my mum clothes are probably out of place among the short shift dresses, tight black jeans and dark make-up, no-one blinks their black-lined lids at me, accepting my attendance as a matter of course rather than an intrusion on their adolescent rituals.
There's never a voice raised in anger, only in congratulations for a job well done, shouted in good cheer over the riffs of rock'n'roll dreams and punk super stardom.
I've not seen a sign of ego or bravado and soft drinks and caffeine are the drugs of choice for the crowds who come to listen to the tunes. Instead of pushing their own agenda, these music fans are pushing for recognition of those young hopefuls who are still wanting to go the traditional way of perfecting their performances in front of a live audience in a way that only Australian bands have seemed to enjoy for generations.
The demise of live music - not just in Wollongong but around Australia - has been lamented by many, but it wasn't until I had to contemplate the possibility of my own children experiencing what is arguably a much less laid-back atmosphere of a night out on the town have I fully realised just how much live entertainment can help keep the calm around town when the sun goes down.
A few weeks ago, there was an exhibition of the bands that populated Wollongong in my own youth.
Back in the heyday of the 1980s and 1990s, there was no thoughts of coward punches or unruly behaviour when we ventured out to hear our favourite local lads belting out a tune or two.
Rather, there was a sense of camaraderie, of belonging and of a mutual respect for the people brave enough to showcase their talents and for those who came to support them.
The young people I've had the pleasure of tapping my feet with over the past few weeks have shown that the spirit of those days gone by is still alive and kicking, and just needs a place in which it can be nurtured.
Live music may not make the venues as much money as selling cases of alcohol and spirits, but it does encourage a different attitude that ensures a dream date doesn't end up as a nightmare.