What are the best settings for concert photography?

Ok so i have been taking some concert photography but it keeps coming out wrong so i just switch back to auto i would like to stay on manuel(M) i may just be a bad photographer: P i do not like using flash because i like the colored lights to be in the pictures i have my setting on a high iso and i know this makes it grainy and my lowest f stop for more light but i see other concert photos and they look clear and not grainy so what are the best settings for concert photography and do you have any tips? I use a nikon d5000 if that help.

Possibly the clearer pics have been taken with more advanced equipment, especially with lenses with higher aperture (lower number, e.g. 2.8 or 1.8) and with an expensive camera body that has extended high ISO such as 12, 000 or above.