First and foremost a music venue, Silverlake Lounge plays host to some of the best local punk and indie bands of SoCal on weekends. During the week, it's one of the last … Silver Lake Latino drag bars to survive the area's gentrification, so watch which night you come or risk being seriously underdressed. On Sunday, the beer bust starts at 3 p.m., and $5 pitchers (of Budweiser, the only beer on tap) last until the 6 p.m. drag show starts and sometimes even longer. [link]

Faultline is a dive bar's dive bar, but the worn 1970s décor only adds to the fun. The crowd's a wild but friendly mix of bears, leather types, and younger, hipster-y … gay guys, and the primary activities are pool, smoking, and whatever goes on in the dark corner -- knitting? Crochet? Oh, and the beer busts (check the web site for dates) are one of the best deals in town. [link]

There aren't many piano bars left in LA, but people flock to this one, especially to hear the Friday night act, James Lent, whose cabaret-style show would be entertaining … even without the cheap, strong drinks and cheesy atmosphere. Dinner at the Flying Leap, the restaurant next door, is practically de rigueur before attending a show. [link]

Gay porn playing on every TV screen. An S&M theme. Cheap beer. Just three of the many good reasons to visit the Eagle, a favorite among eastsiders largely for its … diametric opposition to the pretty boys, fag hags, and designer cocktails of WeHo. But don't let us give you the wrong idea -- the crowd is a mix of leather daddies and assorted Silver Lake residents, and there's even a great lesbian night on Wednesdays. [link]

Ah, the joy of MJ's. With something different happening practically every night of the week (our favorite event, by far, being "Rimjob Tuesdays," for its subtlety), MJ's … attracts primarily bears and otters, by which we mean big hairy gay men and their littler scruffy counterparts. The bartenders are friendly and make the drinks strong, and there's a dancefloor for that moment near the end of the evening when you start to wonder why old Nine Inch Nails isn't a part of every DJ's dance mix. [link]

Akbar adds vaguely Middle Eastern décor to cheap drinks and a good jukebox and comes out ahead, though we're willing to bet the mixed crowd of hipsters who pay the bills … don't need a Moroccan theme to draw them in. The music in the lounge area is a nice mix of indie rock and punk, and it's anybody's guess what they'll play on the separate dancefloor. By that time, you'll be so wasted on $5 mixed drinks, you won't notice. [link]