Nightlife
LATE-NIGHT LOS ANGELES
BY JEREMY DILLAHUNT
When you want to party like a rock star in the City of Angels, head to the neighborhood by the lake: Silverlake.
The Silverlake neighborhood is the West Coast equivalent to Brooklyn’s Williamsburg—a place so cool that trends are measured in minutes rather than years. (It is said that an LA hipster opined that the iPhone was “so five minutes ago” before it launched.) While such an attitude can prove daunting, it masks a subculture that attracts and produces some of the finest musical talent in the US. As a bonus, Silverlake is one of the few places in LA where it’s possible to walk from place to place, a boon for anyone who likes to see more than one attraction per night.
Little Temple
4519 Santa Monica Blvd
323-660-4540
Little Temple is an offshoot of the Santa Monica stalwart Temple Bar, and, as its name suggests, it is a smaller version of the latter, proving good things do come in small packages. The front of the club is a bar on one side with cozy nooks, banquettes and stools on the other. Through the back there is a stage that hosts soul, hip-hop and Latino acts including SaRa, Breakestra and Very Be Careful. DJs spin nightly so bring your dancing shoes and look sharp.
Spaceland
1717 Silverlake Blvd
323-661-4380
What do The Shins, Scissor Sisters and The Rapture all have in common? They all played their first LA shows on Spaceland’s stage. If you want to be the first to hear tomorrow’s stars in an intimate 260-person venue, this is the place to go. Popular celebs make appearances from time to time, too.
Echoplex
1154 Glendale Blvd
213-413-8200
Located underneath The Echo and accessible by meandering down a back alley, Echoplex is the spot to see some truly unique and epic performances. For instance, one week last November, the space hosted reggae legend Eek-A-Mouse, Parisian distortion master Surkin, indie rock rising stars The Campesinos and the soul pipes of old-timer Jimmy Scott. As the lineup suggests, Echoplex is a place where music lovers get to see the acts they crave in a relaxed setting.