Seeing Vampire Weekend perform at Central Park was a lot like that pivotal river scene of The Notebook. It was absolutely pouring rain, emotions ran wild and then of course there was the part of the show when hottie frontman Ezra Koenig picked me up out of the audience, said "it wasn't over...it still isn't over" and whisked me to the dressing room. Well two out of three ain't bad ya know?
The concert was a homecoming of sorts for the boys, having not played a show in their native NYC in about six month. The crowd was equally ready for a party; about 5,000 people stood outside through an hour rain delay while thousands of others waited in line outside the venue, unable to come inside because capacity was reached early. Steam billowed off the hipster audience members, some of whom kept their Ray Bans on all afternoon despite the weather. Standing in the backstage VIP area, we were surrounded by the band's Columbia University chums, parents, girlfriends and siblings. (Hey, being a lowly intern has some benefits.) The environment was a little insight into how the band developed its eclectic sound.
VW hit the stage during a break in the rain, serenading the crowd with "Mansford Roof" to start. Despite playing on a large stage, all four band members were smashed together in the middle, as if unsure of how to scale the show for a larger audience. They were dressed nicely, wearing signature button downs and looking like all my awkward high school guys friends.
Simply put, the rumors about this band are all true. They live up to the hype of their phenomenal live performance. Koenig's voice was spot-on, wailing through "(One) Blake's Got a New Face" and "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa." They literally played every song on their self-titled debut and a cover of Tom Petty's "Don't Come Around Here No More," with surprise guitar support by Andrew W.K. Yes you read that one right, partymaster Andrew W.K. Additionally, VW played a new untitled song with a non-lexical chorus yelped by all band members.
A mega highlight of the set was "M79," a proper-sounding homage to public transportation in the Big Apple. During the song, a four-piece orchestra joined the band onstage which helped the bridge soar. As the song ended, the downpour chased the instrumentalist off the stage, their sheet music left to melt away in the rain. Immediately following was "Ladies of Cambridge," the stellar B-side from Vampire Weekend and it stole the show. Unable to see the band through the rain, the audience turned the pit into a dance floor with drenched bodies bopping together in time with the frantic keyboard line.
The set ended with "Walcott," a song fans were begging for throughout the performance. It was the perfect song to end on and left me ready to "get out of Cape Cod" with the band in hopes of catching its live performance at every opportunity. VW is hitting the festival circuit this summer in lieu of a headlining tour and the performance would make even the priciest fiesta pass worth it.
Vampire Weekend- "M79"
Vampire Weekend- "Ladies of Cambridge"
1 comment:
quite jealous
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