Reports are surfacing this morning of a secret memorial service held last night in Westwood for Heath Ledger, who was found dead earlier this week in a New York apartment. Although rumors of an intended public memorial were swirling about the newswires yesterday, no formal announcements were made regarding services to honor the Aussie actor locally. The rainy night gathering took place at Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park and Mortuary, and it's being......

Mayor Villaraigosa serves the city in "dineLA Restaurant Week's Big Kickoff" / Photo by Elise Thompson We always encourage you to press that little recommend button at the bottom right hand corner of every post if you enjoyed it. For one, it tells us what you want more of here at LAist. So here's this week's three most recommended and commented posts, as recommended and talked up by you: Most Recommended What is That......

Tim Minchin may very well be be the funniest comedian you've never heard of. Already wildly popular in the UK and his native Australia, Tim makes his U.S. debut tonight in New York before heading west and playing shows next Monday and Tuesday at the ACME Comedy Theatre here in LA. Tim's blend of piano-driven pop songs and razor sharp comedy yields songs that range from a love song for an inflatable doll to a......

Architecture In Helsinki harness a preternatural exuberance that no other band carries. Perhaps it's due, in large part, to the fact that they're headquartered in the land down under. I'd like to think so. Whichever the case may be, their band bio sums their presence up best: "Like a giant Voltron robot uniting at the sunset." I arrived at the Troubadour on Wednesday just in time for Nike "Dunk"-laden AIH to take stage. They were......

What can I say? We're huge fans of Aussie collective Architecture In Helsinki. Mr. Sternberg gave you 5 reasons to go see them back in June and for good reason. AIH's funk-infused, pop jams make you feel downright good. Their latest album Places Like This is an addictive romp that draws comparisons to Talking Heads and Muppets On Crack. I don't care what Pitchfork has to say. Their music is adorable and inspires lighthearted shimmying.......

If you weren't at The Echo last night, then you missed out on an overdue Modular People extravaganza. Aussie one-man band Muscles and London's own New Young Pony Club rocked the house with their dance-laden equations. With Halloween costumes in full effect and drinks a flowin', the sold out house was full of bopping NYPC-a-holics intent on getting their fix. Well, I believe that we all got more than we bargained for. Muscles opened......

Artist: Dappled Cities Release Date: June 2007 Album: Granddance Label: Dangerbird Records The Aussie band Dappled Cities (formerly Dappled Cities Fly) are often compared to the Flaming Lips and I just don't get it. The Dappled Cities produce measured indie rock that has marching highs and Sigur Ros-like lows but none of the crazy, out-there solos or fantastical weirdness of the Lips. Their release, Granddance, on LA's Dangerbird Records, is 11 tracks of well-crafted......

Aussie Jake Brown decided to drop in on the X Games here in LA. In fact, he dropped 50 feet straight down onto a hard surface, landing so hard that both his shoes popped off of his feet. This is NOT a good video for people with weak stomachs. Amazingly, Jake walked away. We still aren't sure how. By the way, a couple seconds before the crash he actually landed the first 720 ever......

One of the beautiful aspects of film is its ability to transport us to strange and unusual worlds. Compared to our gridlocked streets of LA and million dollar homes, nothing could be more strange or unusual than a film about mostly-naked aboriginal tribesfolk cruising around in canoes in the northern Australian forests. Ten Canoes, opening tonight at the Nuart and playing through Thursday, is not only a breath of fresh air visually thanks to......

A friend is flying in from Australia on Friday. It’s his first trip to Los Angeles, and he comes bearing gifts. Authentic, “only in Australia” kinds of gifts. I’m talking Penfolds red wine. I’m talking an Akubra hat. I’m talking a stuffed koala for my son (in Pietà form no less, cradling another tiny stuffed baby koala that sings Waltzing Matilda. Fuckin’ show off). I thought I’d forgo the “here, have a fridge magnet”......

Tonight - Friday - February 2nd, 2007 Lakers @ Pacers (KCAL, 5:30 p.m.) Ghost Whisperer (CBS, 8:00 p.m.) I just watch this for Jennifer Love Hewitt, I keep the sound off. Nanny 911 (Fox, 8:00 p.m.) By the time I get to Arizona Super Bowl's Greatest Commercials 2007 (CBS, 9:00 p.m.) The ghosts of Superbowlcommercials past Las Vegas (NBC, 9:00 p.m.) Ed must seek inner peace. 20/20 (ABC, 9:00 p.m.) Eminem's ex-wife makes an appearance......

A Word or 36: Hopefully the jerkoff session over the Aqua Teen Hunger Force is winding down and we can get back to real topics like: is Paula Abdul getting replaced by Courtney Love on Idol? And other such ilk. Tonight - Thursday - February 1st, 2007 College Basketball: Oregon @ UCLA (PRIME, 7:30 p.m.) Ugly Betty (ABC, 8:00 p.m.) With cameos from Tim Gunn and Katharine McPhee My Name Is Earl/The Office/Scrubs (NBC,......

Usually the Midnight Movie has a subject that's tied to Los Angeles in some way, even faintly. Sometimes it's a local band from days gone by, or a short film, or even a trailer. Tonight we present to you something that has nothing at all to do with our fine city, other than the fact that if someone walked around with a sign offerring "free hugs", the same situation might befall him as what......

After a summer-long audition, the Rockstar band formerly known as Supernova finally chose a singer tonight: Lukas Rossi. It wasn't a surprise that Magni was the first of the final four to go. Though he performed his blistering rendition of "Fire" again, American audiences never really connected with the man from Iceland. We were a little more surpised that likeable Aussie beefcake Toby got booted next. So it came down to Dilana and Lukas......

Fearless Aussie Steve Irwin, who had no problem around alligators, crocodiles, snakes, and all forms of dangerous animals, was killed this morning in what's being described as a freak accident, when a stingray thrust its barb through the 44 year-old Irwin's chest, puncturing his heart. Although stingrays have venom in their serrated spines they are typically not aggressive and their actions are not lethal. Unfortunately because it was a strike to the heart, not......

LAist managed to stop crying for a few minutes last night (over our girl Zayra’s shocking departure last week) to tune into the latest episode of Rockstar: Supernova. So Tommy Lee, Gilby Clarke and Jason Newsted are continuing their search for a singer to front their band. Here’s what we got left: Storm Large (yes, again, that’s the name she uses): Good singer, but a little too karaoke for our taste. She’s definitely the......

The Aussie group The Grates were in LA for the final show of their US tour. Before they flew home to gear up for the release of their forthcoming LP Gravity Won't Get You High, which will be released in the US next month, the band was nice enough to answer some questions for us. LAist: We are very big fans of yours. Now that you are big stars and loved, will you consider......

Patience Hodgson gets some air while Alana Skyring drives the beat as The Grates charmed the crowd at the Silver Lake club Wednesday night. The Aussie trio (John Patterson, not pictured) return home to Brisbane at the end of this week, winding down their US tour as they prepare to release their new single "19 20 20" back down under. The Grates were full energy. Dazzling the typically sedate Spaceland crowd with unbridled giddiness......

Of the hundreds of shows going down in LA this week, heres two that we're thinking about checking out. The Grates at Spaceland tonight. Giddy, fun, silly, and adorable, the Aussie quartet was recently in Vancouver in support of their new record "Gravity Wont Get You High" where they charmed the locals: Near the end of their set, Patience got off the stage and sang "Rock Boys" while waving around one of those ribbons......

Of the best acts at Coachella this year, Wolfmother were on the elite short list. Afroed, sabbathed, intense, and suprisingly soulful, the Aussie trio reached back into the 70s and brought back all the dark pleasures of Ozzy, Zeppelin, and even Yes, chock-full of beefy guitar and keyboard action. As mentioned by Duke on Tuesday, the hard-rock group is also the music you hear in the latest iPod + iTunes ad (video). Tonight Wolfmother......