Nowadays the reality just is that unless you closely follow the bands and the local radio stations that play them, you're taking your chances with any "regular" method of acquiring tickets. I still say getting them online is the fastest, easiest way. Especially if you have a high speed connection.

But Justin's point has some real merit. If you don't mind a few extra emails a month, go ahead and sign up for the mailing lists of your favorite bands, or even local radio stations. I personally despise the local rock station, but they still keep track of some bands I like, and so if they have some inside "thing", contest, whatever, I like to know about it, on the off chance that I may be able to get better seats than by using a "regular" method.

But I still make sure I'm online at the website at 10am in order to get tickets to a show. In one instance last year, this method got me good seats to a TOOL show, after I had left the box office because they said "lawn seats" when I was 2nd in line.