The Walkmen must have felt right at home on Thursday night, as the Doug Fir’s basement lounge could have easily been mistaken for a New York City club, from the lighting to the patrons sipping their PBRs (probably ironically). The band responded with a blistering live set that showed the full range of the group, from somber reflection to pure energy. Those who came here for a good time were suitably impressed, and fans were left wanting even more.
The Subjects provided a good appetizer for what was to come, with their trebly rock showing the influence of the headliners—the similarities were uncanny, from the sound of the guitars to the head-bobbing drummer, who gets his entire body involved into the process of keeping time. The Builders and the Butchers provided a change of pace, as their quirky indie folk-stomp had more than a few admirers in the crowd, despite their blatant violations of the unwritten rules of rock (“Thou shalt not haveth a mandolin player nor multiple 'hand percussionists'"). However, their repetitive set went long, delaying the arrival of the main event.
The crowd responded enthusiastically as The Walkmen ripped through their setlist, focusing on more recent material, including a few new songs (with the easy distinction being Peter Bauer manning the organ/piano and Walter Martin playing bass, as the two switched roles during their latest album, A Hundred Miles Off). The band was able to fully recreate their unique style, from the vintage guitars overloaded with reverb to Hamilton Leithauser’s compelling voice, which often approached its breaking point (but not quite) with his emotional howls. It is music that fits the black-and-white, antique-style aesthetic that you'll find in their videos, but suitably modern that it would still irritate the older folk. To the uninitiated, it may be noise, but those in the know have found the beauty in the dissonance.
One of the highlights was a stirring rendition of “Louisiana”, which overcame the lack of a horns section with the stirring playing of Bauer on piano (and the help of a few singing fans). Overall, the group was no-nonsense, eschewing banter for the most part as they played their set, with the notable exception being the multiple trips backstage Leithauser took to gather a beer as the band played on.
Perhaps the finest moment of the show was the one-two punch of “Thinking of a Dream I Had” and “138th Street” from the album Bows & Arrows, which effectively showed the two sides of the band. The careful ballad “138th Street”, whose peak was the quiet strumming of a twinkling guitar and a mournful melody from Hamilton, presented a nice contrast to the fire of “Thinking”. The galloping drums combined with Hamilton’s anguished wailing, as the cacophony gradually built until the organ broke through the din with its beautiful melody. It all nearly made up for the lack of "We've Been Had" or the intense "The Rat", my only quibbles with the set. Because I'm an ass like that.
But I'm sure as shit going to see them again. Hopefully someone will finally return their gourd by then.
4 comments:
Who steals a gourd?
Granted, that is one hell of a gourd...
I stole the gourd.
...just like Marmaduke.
I also hate Mondays.
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