Vampire Weekend Deliver a 'Classical' Performance in Bend Debut
bend, oregon - June 19th, 2024
Back in April, Vampire Weekend released their first full-length album since 2019, and the world of indie-rock welcomed it with open arms. The band is known for their unique and surfy sound, pulling inspiration from from many genres. Their debut in Bend, Oregon was exhilarating and full of tracks old and new, and a whopping 28 songs were played. The “Only God Was Above Us” tour did not disappoint.
Image by @oofishme via Instagram
The band has roots in New York, and a lot of their history comes out of Columbia University, making it exciting for the crowd to hear them perform their song “Campus”. This also makes sense as to why the stage setup looked like a massive subway tunnel, using it as a nod to their home. Frontman Ezra Koenig brought such a youthful and entertaining energy to the set, his dancing and silly expressions made everyone feel free to have fun. “Classical”, a personal favorite from the new album, brought back the use of their signature twinkly harpsichord and keys, and “Step” had the same use delicate harpsichord and clever lyricism.
The band has a knack for making every song feel so engaging; from their stage presence to the way they look out into the faces of the crowd, it all adds to the experience. Bassist Chris Baio is a standout. It was such a joy to get to hear his bright and distinctive additions to each song, and his bouncing around on stage and singing along with the crowd (especially during “M79”) put such a smile on my face. “Sunflower” was a beautiful example of how Vampire Weekend connect with each other on stage, with Koenig, Baio, and violinist Ray Suen all meeting in the middle to play their instruments beside one another.
The on-stage banter really began with “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa”, a song which Koenig explained has a history of being extended from three minutes to as long as thirty minutes. Luckily, the Bend crowd got only an eight minute version, saving some time for other songs. But the special part about the performance of this song was the addition of Mike Gordon, the bassist of jam band Phish, and the show’s opener. The band invited him back to the front to play bass and it was a very cool moment to experience. “Capricorn” and “Gen-X Cops” took the crowd away into the realm of their new album, but soon transitioned back to their first album with “A-Punk”. Probably the most widely-known Vampire Weekend song, “A-Punk” had the crowd jumping and screaming the lyrics right back to the band, especially during the chorus when Koenig sings “Aye, aye aye!”
Photo by @schitter via Instagram
One of the most unique parts of their set was the mash-up of their song “Married in a Gold Rush” with a few other country songs, making this fast-paced hodge podge of country music with a Vampire Weekend twist. During the ten minute performance, there was a break in the middle in which they invited a fan onto the stage to play their “gold rush” game, essentially corn hole. Even though the kind volunteer didn’t actually get any bean bags into the hole, Koenig gave her $300 anyways. Lucky girl! This type of interaction is becoming more rare to see, so it was precious to know how much the band really do adore their fans.
They closed the set with “Hope”, an emotionally wrenching and nostalgically heartbreaking track about an invincible enemy, and letting difficult things go. This was my favorite part of the show, as the band continued the song, they exited the stage one by one, the last one standing being Baio with his bass. The soft piano holds a certain note of sad smiles, and Koenig repeating the line “I hope you let it go” brings home the soft sadness of the track.
But, even though that was their closer, they came back out for an encore. This was an encore ike no other, though! They took crowd song requests for them to play, except it couldn’t be Vampire Weekend songs. So, they ended up doing covers of songs such as “Smooth” by Santana, “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen, “Smells Like Teen Spirt” by Nirvana, and several others. But of course they couldn’t close a Vampire Weekend show with a Nirvana song, so they played one last original, that song being “Walcott”. An upbeat track about leaving Cape Cod, it feels like being a teenager once again and the overwhelming feeling of needing to get out of the place you’re stuck in. It was a wonderful song to leave the crowd with.
Vampire Weekend made their show special on so many different levels, going to lengths many artists don’t. It made each fan feel loved and appreciated, while simoultaneously being a part of the family they create on stage. The band will be touring all summer, so strike while the iron is hot and go see them live!
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