…or even for those who do.

Thursday’s the day Adelaide stays out to play long after late night shopping has closed.

With a plethora of choices – Apple, Marble Bar, Rocket, Limbo, Sugar, Red Square, The Duke, Heaven – one of them sure to take your fancy, it’s no wonder Adelaide is leading the way in weeknight antics.

While Thursday’s are thriving, Saturdays seem to be settling down.

Marble Bar’s Event Co-ordinator and DJ, Ryley Smith, said Thursday nights appeal to a younger crowd because of the casual party atmosphere, and the fact that it’s not too much of a burden on their wallets.

“Cheaper drinks and the casual vibe are the big appeals for the Thursdays,” said Smith. “It’s a night where the younger clubbing crowd can hide away from the more serious Saturday crowd. Thursday nights are more casual, people are much more party orientated.”

With the market sitting around the 18 – 21 year old age range, Thursday usually signals the end of the uni week – a cause for celebration in its own right.

Resident DJ at Apple Bar’s Almost Famous, Leah Mencel, said the younger crowd’s different work/study hours meant they can go hard during the week.

“A Thursday crowd is definitely younger, a bit crazier, lots of kids drinking to get drunk,” said Mencel.

Apple is one of the leading examples of clubs pouring their money into Thursday nights rather than Saturdays.

Crippen Place is upping the ante tonight with the launch of THE PROJ3CTS – a three level bloc party across Electric Circus, Limbo and Rocket every Thursday.

Smokers will also be happy to know they don’t have to sit on the floor amongst questionable puddles anymore with the introduction of ‘The Crippen Place Compound’.

While details of this space are being kept secret, we hear there will be plenty of amusements and recliners down the alleyway – A Night at the Roxbury much!

The ever-growing success of Almost Famous and 8BitKidz hasn’t seemed to frighten off other clubs from getting in on the Thursday action.

Heaven is open for SHAG but don’t bother unless you’re on a pubcrawl, as Heaven is still fresh even on the Saturday market.

Red Square also recently launched Thursday club night, Disco Sucks.

Reds’ Marketing and Promotions Manager, Kelly Waterman, said Saturdays were still the biggest night of the week, but Thursdays had been progressing well.

“I think customers like the Thursday because it has a more relaxed atmosphere to it,” said Waterman.

“We have more regulars in on Thursday night, people that just love Reds for everything we offer.”

Waterman said that although they were fighting for a spot in the market, it is good to see so many clubs open in the city on a Thursday.

“The more clubs that open up, the more people want to come to the city on a Thursday which will benefit us all,” she said.

Marble Bar, which has always been a staple for Thursday nights, is still strong in numbers despite the increase of clubs open on the weeknight.

Smith, however, said there had been a huge change in the crowd since mid 2010.

“It’s been a real style change but that’s club life – you go with the flow,” he said. “The market is so fast paced at the moment; if you think back two years it was Block Party at Garage and Handbags at Marble.”

Thursdays have transformed radically in Adelaide over the past two years.

Jamie Bennett, who organises entertainment for a handful of Adelaide clubs including Limbo, Rocket and Sugar, agreed the Thursday night life has seen a big shift into city clubs.

“[Thursdays] always existed as a popular night out for the university market but has migrated from the suburban pubs to the inner city clubs in the past two years,” said Bennett.

“Since Thursdays have become more club focused and trade ‘til 4ish in the morning, this has obviously had an impact on the attendance at club nights on Fridays in particular and has also slightly affected attendance on Saturdays.”

With all clubs boasting cheap entry and drinks, Bennett said that in order to find a point of difference, everyone now looks for a headline act for the entertainment.

It’s certainly not hard to see that there has been an influx of quality bookings lately with international names in for the count on Thursday nights rather than Saturdays.

While Red Square has never booked guest DJs for Saturday nights, they’re keen to start bringing in acts for the weeknights.

“It’s great to get them on a Thursday or Friday night and pack the place like it is on Saturdays,” said Waterman.

Though it does come down to a matter of geography; international artists prefer the bigger Eastern states over the weekend.

Adelaide then scoops up the bookings for Thursday night antics, generating a buzz around town during the working week.

But don’t think you’re getting the sloppy seconds, Adelaide can enjoy the big name acts AND the Thursday night drink specials at the same time. Marketing gold.

It really comes as no surprise that Saturdays are starting to lull a bit around here.

Now that uni holidays have come around, Thursday nights are bigger than ever and there’s really no excuse for not going out during the week.

So take your pick Adelaide!

Photo: The Stafford Brothers at 8BitKidz, by Erick Watson