Lina Lecaro2013 was a weird and wonderful year after dark in Los Angeles, and we've all seen the late-night selfies, Vines and Instagrams to prove it!
Our evolution in previous years has not always been so graceful: 2012, for example, was the year dubstep over-stepped its welcome. This year, however, there was something for just about everyone.
5. The return of disco
Daft Punk get props for bringing '70s discotheque jams back to the pop charts, but L.A.'s Giorgios has the sound on lock. Named after synth-god Giorgio Moroder, it's like a mini-Studio 54 inside the Standard Sunset, dark and chic — but more intimate. Not only has Moroder himself partied there but so has Mick Jagger, and Jody Watley is an every-week regular. Disco's rep as cheesy wedding music is fading fast thanks to Giorgios' DJ Adam 12 and host Bryan Rabin. Here's hoping the club is setting a model for future parties to come.
Credit: Lina Lecaro
4. Big bands on small stages
Sure, “secret shows” that everyone actually knows about are old hat in Los Angeles, but this year, some of them really did stay on the DL until the very last minute and some were huge. Depeche Mode at the Troubadour was awesome, and it doesn't get much bigger than the Rolling Stones at the Echoplex , trumping Jane's Addiction at El Cid, Foo Fighters at Dragonfly and even Prince at Sayers Club in years past. We can't even imagine how anyone could top that in 2014. Led Zeppelin reuniting at Lil Joy? David Bowie at Silver Lake Lounge?
Cherie Currie; Credit: Courtesy of Devious Planet
3. Groupon
A favorite for acquiring discounts on food and beauty services, Groupon is cool, but not “rock n' roll cool.” So when Live Nation joined forces with the company to present cheap concert tickets and club entertainment, some of the offerings seemed weird. Burlesque shows and Sunset Strip gigs are one thing, but Danzig's show (with opener Cherie Currie) at Gibson Amphitheater — the last rock gig before it closed! — just seemed wrong somehow.
Dave Navarro; Credit: Danielle Bacher
2. Body suspension
Not since the heydey of Sin-a-matic and Fetish Ball in the early '90s have we seen so much punctured, stretched skin in the clubs. S&M performance never died in L.A. of course, but it's been more about spanking — rather than hanging. That changed this year. We saw it at arty downtown parties, Black Book's Halloween hap at Loaded and mostly, at Perish Dignam's vampiric orgy known as V Society at Dim Mak Studios in Hollywood, where none other than Dave Navarro did a little swinging from his hyde. Nothing's shocking, indeed.
Credit: Lina Lecaro
1. Twerk it
Miley Cyrus was not the first dorky white girl to twerk; gals and guys were bouncing buns all over the clubs well before the VMAs aired. What Miley did was give everyone permission to jiggle their junk, for better or worse. Yes, this was the year of the twerk jerk. But we don't see it staying around as a staple on the floor in 2014. Anyone still do The Cabbage Patch or The Hustle?
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