For the past 50 or so weeks of Tuesday late nights, a Chinatown weekly has quietly nurtured a sweet home for Honolulu's indie band scene and the young souls who dig it. Introductions are in order.

KALEIDOSCOPE

Where: NextDoor, 49 N. Hotel St.

When: 9 p.m.-2 a.m. Tuesdays

Cover: $7, ages 21-plus, $10 ages 18-20

Web site: www.myspace.com/thekaleidoscopeshow

Got parking? I took to the Chinatown streets for the free stalls.

The appeal: A successful, well-stocked weekly showcase for homegrown indie bands that don't play Jawaiian, roots reggae or "Mustang Sally." Like-minded DJs. And it's all designed by the boys and girls who actually play in these bands, and populated by the kids who love 'em.

The crowd: Mostly 20-somethings ... mostly loyal regulars, giving the bands and NextDoor an impressive-sized crowd for a weekday evening.

What to wear: Whatever you want ... and fear not the oddball accessory. Seen: jeans/tees, sundresses, cocktail dresses, polo shirts, Loverboy-era head bandanas, Una-bomber/post-Nirvana Krist Novaselic facial hair, vintage Members Only, suit jackets, porkpie hats, backpacks, etc.

Bands that have passed through: Include The Malcognitas, The Hell Caminos, Linus, Dolls Till Daylight and At Sea. ctrl+ alt+del opened the night I dropped by with a warm wash of synthesizer- and Casio keyboard-filled originals blending '80s mope rock with a dash of Beck- and Radiohead-inspired experimentalism and thrash. Closing band Our Distance proffered a sublime blend of spacey atmospheric sonics with a solid guitar, bass and drum attack delivered confident and crisp.

The rest of the soundtrack? Fearless and eclectic spins from the solid music crates of DJs Ross Jackson, Vagina and guests between live sets.

Chances of hearing Franz Ferdinand: Swell, if Jackson is spinning. "Tell Her Tonight" turned up = joy.

Chances of hearing Freda Payne: Not only was "Band of Gold" spun in all of its '70s soul-glow splendor, but the Gen Y kids actually grooved to it.

Pabst Blue Ribbon: ctrl+alt+del was sucking it down. So were many boys and girls in the crowd. The former blue-collar brew's continent-spanning mini-comeback among the anti-establishment finally hits the kids here. David Lynch would no doubt be pleased.

Next Tuesday and beyond: Linus, G. Liu Jr., Jessy Atomic, The Hell Caminos, Cherry Blossom Cabaret, Commando (Sept. 25); Temporary Lovers, Lyle Matsuura, Awry By Design (Oct. 2).

Reach Derek Paiva at dpaiva@honoluluadvertiser.com.