At local bars and parties, when one thinks of so-called "dance music," Jay-Z or 50 Cent usually take the cake.

Yet while the fliers for Roustabouts -- held every Wednesday at Bar Bleu, 114 S. Garner St.-- say "music to make you dance," these artists are the last ones in the world that will be played.

Patrons are more likely to rock out with The Replacements than any certified MTV jam.

"This is a much less mainstream thing," said Jeff Van Fossan, creator of the Roustabout festivals in the local area. "It's not all that you would consider dance music."

After hosting bimonthly Roustabouts at other local venues, Van Fossan was approached by Dante's Inc. President Dave Wells about doing a weekly gathering at Bar Bleu.

Hesitant at first, Van Fossan said he couldn't refuse once he saw the setting.

"The Bar Bleu space is fantastic, in that it's intimate," Van Fossan said. "I couldn't say 'no' once I'd seen the space."

The focus of these weekly parties is indie-rock, Brit-pop, rock 'n' roll and '60s soul, provided the music has a beat and patrons can dance to it. Van Fossan, who sometimes deejays the event, said he likes playing "shoe-gazing" stuff, such as The Shins, early Blur and early R.E.M.

While bands occasionally will play the deejayed event, Van Fossan said it is hard to get a full band down in the space. Last week though, Van Fossan's band the Bullet Parade played an acoustic show.

"If it's a performance that's smaller in scale, then it's possible," Van Fossan said. "The live act component at Bar Bleu will be more sporadic than other Roustabouts."

After deejaying the last Roustabout with his collection of old soul 45s, Ken Kubala, manager at City Lights Records, 316 E. College Ave., said people were cutting a rug at the party.

"This is only the second week that it started," Kubala said. "Last night was a blast."

He said the cool part about the weekly party is that the people who are there want to be there.

"It's a party where everyone gets it," Kubala said. "People give it undivided attention."

Kubala said he enjoys deejaying the event and that he spins soul and '60s garage.

"I play some obvious stuff and some not-so-obvious stuff," Kubala said.

In addition to the weekly Roustabouts, Van Fossan will continue to host Roustabouts at The Darkhorse Tavern, 128 E. College Ave., and Tall Shiva Hookah Lounge, 224 W. College Ave.

Van Fossan was worried that, because the Bar Bleu Roustabout excludes all-ages, it might result in less participation than the well-attended Hookah Lounge events.

"The amount of people coming to Roustabouts is growing," Van Fossan said. "When it rains, it pours I guess."

There is a cover charge of $3 for the weekly Roustabouts.