Review: Vampire Weekend

Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend at Starlight Theatre on a chilly night when the bats were out. Potos by Susan Pfanmuller/Special to The Star

Saturday's bill at Starlight Theatre was one for a warm summer night. It showcased the sunny melodies and tropical rhythms of Vampire Weekend and featured an opener that calls itself Beach House. 

But the weather this evening was typical for early autumn, so many of the 3,500 or so fans in attendance looked like they were dressed more for a football game in November than a day on Cape Cod in July. The music, however, would help generate plenty of warmth.

Vampire Weekend is four Ivy League guys from New York who famously made the cover of Spin magazine before releasing their debut album in 2008. The band's music blends a few strains of African pop with Western music, including bits of classical, which they revealed in the baroque-ish "M79," an early number Saturday night.

The West African/Afro-Cuban rhythms and traits are present throughout VW's music (especially Ezra Koenig's guitar play); thus the comparisons to Paul Simon's acclaimed "Graceland" album.  But it sounds like they've studied more than just that Simon album, and his influence shows itself subtly in some of VW's Western pop melodies and chord progressions.

Ultimately, Vampire Weekend is a pop band; and if ever the word "college" was an apt adjective for a music, it is with this band, especially in its lyrics, which evoke the lifestyles of the privileged and the educated.

But even the lyrics are beside the point, which is entertainment -- singing along and dancing -- and letting the sugary melodies and irresistible rhythms grab you, even sweep you away. There is nothing deep  or epic going on, just ephemeral engagement with songs.

Koenig has evolved as a front man, developing a droll, low-key manner of talking to his audience between songs -- sincerity with some humor and sarcasm sprinkled in. Otherwise, the band was content to sit back and play workman-like -- 20 songs in about 75  minutes. The set included a happy-clappy pop rendition of Bruce Springsteen's "I'm Going Down" that fit right in with everything else. 

It also included a few moments of "Giving Up the Gun," which Koenig halted because "it didn't sound right," though whatever  might have been wrong with it wasn't apparent.

The sound could have been better -- Koenig's vocals were inconsistent all night -- but the light show was stellar. It featured a small flock of chandeliers that descended slowly from the rafters and floated above the band, blending nicely with the spotlights that shone from above, which changed colors.

The crowd was responsive all night, giving most of the songs a cheer  of recognition and saving the biggest for the finale, the exuberant "Walcott." It was hard to tell who was dancing and who was moving to stay warm or both. But like several other moments during its effervescent set, the band had most of the house in its sunny thrall.

Beach House: Their one-hour set was undermined by two factors: the sound, which muffled the loveliness of Victoria Legrand's voice; and the minimalist stage lighting, which shrouded the band in shadows most of the night, rendering them as silhouettes. (She should not be  hidden.) Nonetheless, they conveyed the lure of their music -- shoegazing, bedroom pop. The set list included "Walk in the Park," " Used to Be," "Zebra" and "Take Care."

Vampire Weekend setlist: Holiday; White Sky; Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa; M79; Bryn; Californa English; Taxi Cab; Run; A-Punk; One (Blake's Got A New Face); I'm Going Down; Diplomat's Son; I Think UR A Contra; Campus; Oxford Comma. Encore: Horchata; Mansard Roof; Walcott.

| Timothy Finn, The Star

Comments

[Penny]

Wanted to go, had won tickets, but chickened out because of the cold. You can tell I've turned 60...

[hoopstar]

Pretty much a perfect night for a show. Weather was awesome. Came for Vampire Weekend. Was bored with Beach House.

Great review.

[Green]

3,500 people ... much better than I thought they would get, I figured just a little over 2,000, but the place seats close to 8,000 so you have to wonder why they went there. The last few shows at Sandstone have been wide open as well, gigs with some heavy hitters too. I expected to see more at Alice in Chains but maybe filling that place isn't something thats very easy anymore.

[newsdayinsider]

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