Echoes of a Saturday Night

Date:  December 13, 2014

Destination: The Echoplex, Echo Park

Cost: $30.90 plus gas

Thank goodness the room was so dark. Standing near the stage, you could barely tell if the person next to you was man or woman, so I felt less insecure about being older than my fellow patrons by about 35 years. The Echo Park club scene has stirred my curiosity, but I usually found an excuse to avoid it. Learning that Gardens & Villa was headlining at The Echoplex moved me to action.

I’d heard this Santa Barbara band when they opened for The Shins a few years ago. Any group which adds a wooden flute and didgeridoo-like textures to their synth-beats has my attention, so I mustered up some courage and bought a ticket in advance, knowing I’d wimp out otherwise.

Saturday night traffic was blessedly light, and I found free parking a few blocks from the club next to Echo Park Lake. The Echoplex is a large, minimally appointed venue – the black walls surround banquettes and cocktail tables. There are television screens near the back bar, so you can watch the show from the rear lounge if you don’t feel like standing up front. Drinks aren’t too overpriced and are quite strong. The club is described as a hipster den, but to me it just seemed like a place where a lot of kids go to hang out on Saturday night, the crowd mostly attired in jeans and hoodies. Besides being the oldest person there, I was also overdressed. Way to blend in.

But, like I mentioned, it was dark, so I got over it and focused on the music. TV Girl started the evening with sunny electronic surf pop. Next up was the performance-art inspired musical stylings of Geneva Jacuzzi (the former girlfriend of Ariel Pink), who I found pretentious. She’s probably great at Burning Man if you’re on crazy drugs. Finally, at 11:45, Gardens & Villa took the stage.  It was worth the wait – their self-proclaimed “coco-vibes” were as chill as I remembered. They put on a poignant performance, since they were losing their founding drummer, Levi Hayden, and this would be his last show. Frontman Chris Lynch has a cool energy which carried the evening as the audience sang along.

The crowd spilled out onto Glendale Blvd after 1:00 a.m., so there was no traffic on the drive home. I was happy to have conquered the Echo Park club scene and won’t be afraid to return, although I’ll dress a little grubbier next time.