Land of 1,000 dances

Traditionally, the apex of any New Year’s Eve celebration is midnight. But at Giant Village 2005, the eight-hour New Year’s Eve extravaganza held in the streets of downtown L.A. on Friday, the most anticipated moment was just after 11 p.m., when the Killers took the stage at Wilshire Boulevard and Grand Avenue.

It marked the first time in the event’s five-year history that a live band had performed, and attendees were eager to see how a group would fit into what had previously been exclusively a DJ event.

The answer to that question is very well, thank you.

The enthusiastic crowd, which reached nearly 12,000 for the whole event, was ready to welcome any performer that could keep it entertained, and the Killers certainly did that.

Singer Brandon Flowers got into the New Year’s spirit, wearing a tux jacket and bowtie. But it was the Las Vegas-based band’s infectious, keyboard-driven alterna-pop hooks, displayed from the outset on “Jenny Was a Friend of Mine,” that had the crowd packed at the front of the stage singing along to every word. When the group did its breakthrough hit, 2004’s “Somebody Told Me,” there were several girls riding on friends’ shoulders, and the crowd stretched from Grand all the way back to Hope Street.

The quartet, Grammy-nominated for best rock album, stretched out a bit on the atmospheric, Joy Division-like “Smile Like You Mean It.” This being New Year’s Eve, though, fans wanted high-energy beats, and the Killers provided plenty of those.

As did the DJs, who remain the heart of Giant Village. John Digweed, Mark Farina, the Crystal Method and Paul Oakenfold were among those who created distinctive dance parties at the event’s three stages, set up between the laser lights beaming off the high-rises and a Ferris wheel.

At 2 a.m., the Crystal Method took the Grand Avenue stage, re-energizing the crowd with a quick-hitting set of breakbeats and stylish synthesizer rises. Around the corner on the Hope Street stage, house DJ Farina had his own soiree going strong, with familiar tunes such as the Police’s “When the World Is Running Down” delighting dancers.

But the strength of the DJ talent left fans with a tough choice from midnight to 2 a.m., as Digweed spun at the Flower Street stage and Oakenfold held forth at Grand Avenue.

While Digweed’s set went six hours, giving fans plenty of time to drop in on Oakenfold and still see most of Digweed’s set, there was still the nagging feeling that one was missing something at the other stage. Such is the quandary when two of dance music’s elite DJs are on simultaneously.

Digweed’s progressive beats and Oakenfold’s trance grooves did offer a clear choice, though. While the former delivered a consummately professional mix marked by repetitious beats interwoven with serious percussive grooves geared to devoted dance-music listeners, Oakenfold knows how to get a large crowd revved up. He’s usually been the guy to ring in midnight on the main stage. However, this time, the hour was celebrated by a video retrospective of 2004’s memorable moments and a fireworks display spewing from the four video screens.

Arguably, though, the most midnight-like moment came at a quarter after 1 a.m., when Oakenfold spun U2’s “Where the Streets Have No Name” and had fans dancing in the streets, just as he did in years past. In the process he reminded that while fireworks and rides are nice, it’s the DJs who make it feel like New Year’s Eve at Giant Village.