Special New Year's Eve edition.

Judging by the horrendous traffic anywhere in the vicinity of the city's bridge and highway entrances, it's time for people to start hightailing it out of town. You're on your own if you want to find the coolest events in Poughkeepsie, Kalamazoo, Wichita Falls, whatever your holiday destination may be. For those of you who will be back in town to ring in 2005, we have suggestions for you. First and foremost, we recommend saving all your going-out money for the next week if you want to buy a ticket to a New Year's Eve event, because most of them ain't cheap. Here's a rundown of some of the many events going on in the bay area.

We'll start with the priciest options we heard about, so you have advance warning to start saving your holiday cash. The Red Devil Lounge is charging a steep $95 for Pop Rocks featuring Soft Release. We'd like to tell you why this event costs so much, but when we clicked for more information on their website, it kept taking us here. If you can set us straight, please leave information in the comments section. The Independent presents Soulive, Bing Ji Ling and DJ Raw B for a whopping $85. With an open bar included in the price, it could actually turn out to be a bargain for you heavy drinkers. $75 is the price for the celebration down at Bimbo's. With that ticket, you'll get performances by Reverend Horton Heat, Zooma Zooma featuring Vise Grip & Connie Champagne plus Kitty Kitty Bang Bang Burlesque and a special appearance by Dolphina, a.k.a. The Girl in the Fishbowl. Dress is cocktail attire, black-tie optional, and they'll provide you with a glass of bubbly, hats, party favors and a traditional balloon drop. Fans of all ages can attend the 5th Annual New Year's Eve Frog Out! with the Les Claypool Frog Brigade at The Fillmore. For a solid $57.50, Les and his cohorts will be performing works from Colonel Claypool's Bucket of Bernie Brains debut album The Big Eyeball In The Sky, and they promise "eclectic midnight antics."

SFist Matt alerted us to Kinky Salon's Timeportal 2005 Party, and though he forwarded a full description of the event, we're still not clear on what exactly is going to go down there. Something about wormholes in time, folding space...oh, we get it, they want you to dress up in costume from certain time periods: 1920s Berlin, 1970s Porn Stars, Roman Emperors and slaves, Futuristic Avatars, Time Travellers. Expect some creative debauchery and an erotic accoutrement emporium as well. Go here for the skinny, and please note that "single guys will need a license." Shouldn't they always? Tickets are $40 for members, $50 for non-members, with a special rate of $25 for anyone showing up after 2am.

If you're looking to spend around $20-30 for your ticket, there are several options for you. The revelry at 12 Galaxies includes sets by New Monsoon and Hot Buttered Rum String Band, plus a champagne toast at midnight and a full breakfast served after Hairy Apes BMX performs. Tickets are $30 at the door, or $25 if you buy them in advance. The Great American Music Hall has some jam rock with Tea Leaf Green and ALO for $30. $25 gets you into any of the following shows: The Lovemakers and Paradise Boys with DJ Jefrodisiac at Cafe du Nord; Rogue Wave, Kelley Stoltz and The Herms at Bottom of the Hill; AC/DShe, Gator Alley and The Stanleys at Slim's. For $20, you could enjoy some local live hip-hop jazz with the Crown City Rockers at Elbo Room or head to the Milk Bar for DJs HAUL and MASON.

Our mid-priced pick is the Rickshaw Stop's Extravaganza with Gold Chains & Sue Cie and hey willpower, fresh off some tour dates with Le Tigre. We saw hey willpower at Mesh Magazine's 1st anniversary party and were blown away by their shameless dance-pop (complete with fresh choreography and backup dancers) for the hipster crowd. Admission is just $15, or the bargain of $20 which includes two drinks.

Finally, for those of you who are looking for a cheap ticket so you can spend your money on alcohol, or, say, a corsage for your date, all of the following shows cost $10 or less. Party with Popscene and DJs Aaron, Omar, Disco Shawn and Nako, with a live show from Madelia, Brit-Pop Karaoke and free music gift bags for some lucky recipients. Hotel Utah has Private Partiers, The Rondo Brothers, The Love X Nowhere and Magnetism. Thee Parkside's website didn't state the cover charge to see Bart Davenport and The Cuts, but we imagine it'll be cheap. If SFist Jackson were in town for NYE, he'd be celebrating at the Shattuck Down Low with some hip-hop, reggae, funk and soul with DJ's Platurn, Zeph, Smokey, Kool Kyle and Mark Jaeger, with a special performance by Inspector Double Negative and the Equal Positives. Admission is a dirt-cheap $5 before 10:30pm. The best bargain for $10 is down at the Hemlock with SFist favorites Von Iva, Veronica Lipgloss & the Evil Eyes, and the Death Rock Booty Call DJ Krew. Don't fret that the Hemlock is too small for a rockin' NYE; they're moving the pool table to make way for a dance floor, and we imagine it's much more fun to shimmy and shake when you're shoulder to shoulder with scores of strangers. Protectors of personal space should note the Hemlock is going to work to expand their music room in 2005.

Have fun, be safe, and we'll be back with more entertainment options in 2005.