Faded Picture, A

There were two quintessential LA shows this week at the Echoplex, a concert venue within walking distance to my house that could easily double as a roller skating rink. The first show, on Tuesday night, featured Mika Miko and No Age, a couple of bands that I’ve wanted to check out for a while, neither of which disappoint.

The next time, we went back to see Entrance, the Seeds, and Ya Ho Wa 13. Everybody was dressed in costume, the beards and dresses equally as flowy, for the main attraction: Ya Ho Wa 13, a legendary psych rock band from the 60’s that used to be a cult. It was quite the spectacle, even though it looked like they just went down the street to the park and gave a couple of homeless people some beer to stand on stage and play the tambourine.

Just as equally tactile, but in the worse way possible, was a 3-D viewing of Beowulf. The first half hour was all right, if only to see what 3-D film involves. But then I realized I hadn't blinked in thirty minutes. From there, I took off my 3-D goggles, shut my eyes completely, and settled into a one and a half hour nap.