DJs, Not Decor, Are Cutting-Edge

Echo Park’s always been cool. The colorful region east of Hollywood and north of downtown boasts killer views, affordable rent and an invigorating mix of cultures. So it’s no surprise that over the past few years, Echo Park and its neighbors, Silver Lake and Atwater Village, have become a hotbed of bars and guitars.

The Echo is the latest draw to this already happening area. Although only a few months old, the new spot feels like it’s been there for years, where locals mix with the area’s musicians with ease.

With seven years of success under his belt as the driving force of Spaceland, former Westside resident Mitchell Frank created the Echo as an outlet for cutting-edge deejays and local artists. Frank, the music director at Spaceland--Silver Lake’s groundbreaking live music venue--adopted the Echo and transformed it into an extension of Spaceland, which is just a mile or so away. Like Spaceland, which grew out of a funky old discotheque, the club doesn’t have its name out front. Just follow the line of hipsters or look for the lighted sign promising “Guatemalan Musica” on the outside of the building. Inside, however, it’s a different story. The nightclub, which looks like a beat-up L.A. dive, is a haven for hot deejays--its primary raison d’etre.

Frank, who’s ushered a thousand bands in and out of Spaceland since ‘95, including memorable shows by Ween, Weezer, the Foo Fighters, the White Stripes and Beck, is focusing on two turntables and a microphone at the Echo. I poked my head in on a recent Thursday and caught Mannequin Lung, a deejay playing instrumental hip-hop. The music was so good and the sound system so crisp, you couldn’t help but get swept out to the dance floor.

Like Spaceland, the Echo also offers a stage for live performances where bands such as Ozomatli have rocked the house since it opened three months ago. But weekends are made for dancing, and the Echo mixes things up on Fridays and Saturdays with hip-hop, ‘80s music, punk and all forms of indie rock. In some ways, the Echo is the dance club equivalent to Spaceland, giving music lovers the option to get their groove on out on the dance floor. But if you’re not used to slumming it, go west, young man, because the Echo is not for you. Aside from some colorful strings of Christmas lights, the Echo’s interior looks like blackened carne asada. Its primary creature comforts are dozens of vinyl booths filling out the two-room club.

Although located on Sunset Boulevard, the Echo is on the stretch where you don’t have to stuff a million quarters into the parking meters. Parking is free at night. Mondays and Tuesdays are free, and the cover on other nights stays way low. It’s 18 and older most nights, too, and the young crowd appreciates the very un-Hollywood prices.

It’s so lo-fi, the respected indie music magazine, Destroy All Monthly, chose the Echo to host a punk rock yo-yo contest. And where else is someone going to hand you a flier for a 100% computer-generated “B.Y.O.L.” (Bring Your Own Laptop!?) event?

Tonight, music lovers can check out some soul-house deejays, and Saturday the Echo’s hosting a Black Arts “funk hop” party. Monday is ‘70s glam and old punk night; Tuesday is the convening of the Echo Park Social Club, a collective of local musicians and artists.

On March 19, the club presents live performances by Alex Gordon and Hels Fornander, with deejays Santo, Solid Todd and Pigpen helming the turntables.

The area already boasts some of the city’s most vital live music venues in the Derby, the “Fold” in the Silver Lake Lounge, the Garage and Spaceland, and a list of hot bars: the Short Stop, the Bigfoot Lodge, 4100 Bar, Good Luck and Akbar, to name a few. The Echo is but one more incentive to head east.

The Echo, 1822 Sunset Blvd., Echo Park. Open nightly. 18 and older with exceptions; some shows, 21 and older. Free Mondays and Tuesdays. Cover varies other nights. (213) 413-8200.