Happening Tuesday: Sleigh Bells, Alex Ross and more

COMEDY

The BEATdown: Los Angeles Chris “Shockwave” Sullivan and Eliza Skinner host a night of “8 Mile”-style rap battles between five of L.A.’s preeminent comics and one participant to be drawn from the crowd. Six rounds of quick-thinking, verse-dropping freestyling later, a new grandmaster of flow will be crowned on premises. Featuring Michelle Collins ( “Chelsea Lately”), Nicole Parker (“Mad TV”) and others. Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, 5919 Franklin Ave., Hollywood. 11 p.m. $5. www.ucbtheatre.com.

POP MUSIC

Sleigh Bells This noise pop duo has been the subject of ever-increasing buzz since releasing its debut album, “Treats,” in May. Now opening for LCD Soundsystem on its North American tour, the Brooklyn-based Derek E. Miller and Alexis Krauss have been burning up dance floors with their infectious-if-abrasive dance tracks and explosive live performances. Catch them at a show all their own. Detroit Bar, 843 W. 19th St., Costa Mesa. 8 p.m. $15. www.detroitbar.com, (949) 642-0600

BOOKS

Alex Ross A great bass line is probably the most underrated part of a song. Halfway between drums and a guitar, it moves the rhythm while also establishing melodic themes. Alex Ross, the New Yorker’s classical music critic, guides a listening tour through the funkiest, slinkiest and incantory low-end riffs around the world, from lute riffs of yore to John Paul Jones’ gut-busting bass in Led Zeppelin. Aloud at Los Angeles Central Library’s Mark Taper Auditorium, 630 W. 5th St., L.A. 7 p.m. Free. https://www.lapl.org.

Lynda Barry Her graphic-storytelling takes on the memoir transformed two genres and cemented her as one of the great visual stylists of the medium. With “Picture This,” however, she instead wryly tackles the genre of how-to art manuals in her typically self-deprecating yet compassionate way. Skylight Books, 1818 N. Vermont Ave., L.A. 7:30 p.m. Free. www.skylightbooks.com.