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Yes... Vampire Weekend is Sold Out... Get Used to it |
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Written by and photos by ANDREW GOODMAN
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Sunday, 21 September 2008 |
Depending on where you live, Vampire Weekend is either the next big thing or a band you’ve never heard of. But with the power of more and more shows “curating” their episodes with indie sensations like VW, songs like “Oxford Comma” and “A-Punk” often elicited people to ask who the band is that sings the song or by telling me how familiar the song sounds. The point is simple, Vampire Weekend, a band formed by Colombia University students and made mainstream by the information super highway and blogiverse, is coming to your neighborhood and they are coming for your IPOD. With a debut album that is one of the more repeat-listenable records in a long time, VW has become a sensation.
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Vampire Weekend
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 Entertainment
 Art
The Wiltern
Los Angeles, CA.
September 18, 2008 |
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I first heard about them after SXSW and since getting an early copy of the LP, it hasn’t left the rotation. The thing that has always stood out to me about VW is their ability to blend Soweto-style chord progressions and drums right out of the Paul Simon playbook with falsetto melodies and clever song writing. But this is no band review, this is a concert review but like most bands that only have one album, the sets go by fast and for the special bands (The White Stripes for one), your mind is blown. But for most freshman acts, VW included, the concert makes you ready to play the record again at work the next day. So it is about the band more than it is about the show.
When you go and see a band with only one album, you pretty much know what you’re going to get: the entire record, maybe one new song and hopefully a cover. Vampire Weekend’s set on the second night of their two-night sold out run at the Wiltern and final show of this tour was exactly what I had predicted. But you have to take your hats off to these kids. They’re selling out big venues with ticketholders that know all the words to all of their songs and are eager for more. The audience was filled with fans of all ages and I always enjoy seeing parents taking their kids to their first show sponsored by KROQ.
The band normally performs their songs in a garage-band punkish style, but this night was filled with almost carbon-copy versions of the songs from the album including string section and great call and response. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with duplicating an album live, most bands can barely sing without the assistance of the levers and pullies from the studio where they recorded. Lead singer Ezra Koenig is able to sing well and play his guitar even better and Vampire Weekend is a well-oiled machine.
Throughout the 45 minute set I was keenly aware that I was watching a band that was on the rise and was seemingly enjoying it. This is no bruiting band with a melancholic singer. These guys sing songs that make you feel good, tap your feet and hum along. In our increasingly cynical world controlled by fast-moving images, advertisement on every corner and bullshit talking points, it’s important for me to have my soundtrack include songs that just make me relax, get through traffic and think about girls, guitars and Peter Gabriel. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, listen to their record.
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