The Walkmen @ Bowery Ballroom: Old Forgotten Soldiers

While Jen was off in Stella*land yesterday evening, I was at The Bowery for my gazillionth and first Walkmen show (actually I think this marks #7 if I'm counting correctly). As usual, the band was flawless.

It might be easy to forget that for all the Walkmen-esque bands that have formed over the last few years, there's nothing that can beat the real thing. The Walkmen proved once again last night why they are a force to be reckoned with, and apparently, imitated endlessly.

The main set was rather scattered; there was a multitude of new tracks (most with a horn section which sounded superb), some ditties off of last year's A Hundred Miles Off, some Bows + Arrows tracks and even a couple of songs from their debut - including 'Everyone Who Pretended To Like Me Is Gone' which was a more-than-pleasant surprise.

After the main set was complete, the band came back out for an unprecedented SEVEN song encore! The guys focused on Bows + Arrows for the final half hour, including but not limited to a euphoric take on 'The Rat', 'Bows + Arrows', 'Little House Of Savages' and my favorite Walkmen tune of all time, 'Thinking Of A Dream I Had'.



The 85-minute set could have easily gone for two hours and I would have been ecstatic, but I always appreciate a band that knows when to fold 'em (yes, I'm looking at you, Badly Drawn Boy!), and The Walkmen are geniuses at that.

The band will be touring with Kaiser Chiefs and Annuals this spring. That show hits Roseland next month! Check out my interview with Walkmen bassist, Pete Bauer, here!!

MP3: The Walkmen - The Rat