Vampire Weekend, the rock band reminiscent of the indie era of New York, performed their first New York City show since 2019 at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 5, with DJ and producer Mark Ronson as the opener.
The indie rock band was formed in 2006 at Columbia University when band members Ezra Koenig, Chris Baio, Chris Tomson and Rostam Batmanglij performed at a battle of the bands at Lerner Hall. Upon graduating, the band members continued their collaboration by self-producing their debut album, Vampire Weekend released in 2008. Since then, the band has produced five albums with 5.3 million monthly listeners on Spotify.
Ronson opened with his millennial indie era curated playlist, playing iconic early 2010s hits such as “Heads Will Roll” by Yeah Yeah Yeahs, “A Milli” by Lil Wayne and one of the most pivotal songs of the decade, “Time To Pretend” by MGMT. As one of the final songs, Ronson played “Valerie” by Amy Winehouse, who he once worked with as her producer.
“If you feel like singing along to something, sing along to this one!” Ronson exclaimed right before playing “Valerie.” The crowd recited every single lyric.
Once Ronson finished his set, a giant curtain dropped, depicting the name “Vampire Weekend” in its iconic futura bold font. Lights went around the room and three men walked onto the stage.
“It’s been too long since we’ve played a show right here in New York City, the birthplace of Vampire Weekend,” lead singer Koenig said as the show began. “We are so happy to be back here.”
The unique energy and quirks of New York City have featured heavily throughout the group’s five albums, with this performance serving as no exception.
The group was on tour to promote the release of their most recent album “Only God Was Above Us,” which came out in April. This is the band’s fifth album and first since 2019.
Vampire Weekend began the show with “Ice Cream Piano” from their newest album, a slow rock tune that quickly transformed into an upbeat indie jam. Concertgoers of all ages danced along to the jubilant ballad.
Throughout the evening, fans were treated to a performance of iconic songs that are unapologetically gritty and convoluted in their style and lyrics. The unique energy and quirks of New York City have featured heavily throughout the group’s five albums, with this performance serving as no exception.
The crowd roared in excitement when Vampire Weekend sang their iconic song “A-Punk,” a 2007 tune that had the audience bopping along to lyrics about taking the subway and living in Washington Heights.
With this final segment, Vampire Weekend was able to show off their musical prowess and talk directly to their fans in a lighthearted way. From Steely Dan’s “Dirty Work” to Fall Out Boy’s “Sugar, We’re Goin Down,” the band was up for any challenge.
Vampire Weekend gave a nod to their Manhattan roots when introducing the song “Oxford Comma,” a quirky indie tune that pokes fun at English grammar. The song, released officially in 2007, was one of the band’s firsts and is currently one of their most streamed songs on Spotify.
“This band started in Upper Manhattan,” Koenig said as he addressed the audience. “We played this song in our very first show at the Columbia University Battle of the Bands, and we are still playing it today. We are so glad to be playing it for you tonight.”
After an evening filled with eccentric guitar riffs and infectious beats, Vampire Weekend ended their performance at Madison Square Garden with an interactive encore.
Koenig challenged his audience to throw out song suggestions for the band to perform. The only catch: they could not be Vampire Weekend songs. A wide range of artists were requested as the crowd eagerly met Koenig’s requirements.
With this final segment, Vampire Weekend was able to show off their musical prowess and talk directly to their fans in a lighthearted way. From Steely Dan’s “Dirty Work” to Fall Out Boy’s “Sugar, We’re Goin Down,” the band was up for any challenge.
As the evening ended one thing was clear: Vampire Weekend was in their element at Madison Square Garden. With an energetic crowd of all ages and a repertoire of songs that got everyone up and dancing, the New York indie rock band was given a warm welcome home.
Throughout the performance we could not help but comment on all of the artsy families and retired indie millennials that seemed to fill every seat.
While neither of us are diehard Vampire Weekend fans, we emerged with a greater appreciation for the unapologetically New York City band, and the contagious energy of their appreciative crowd. We also both got a pretty good workout from all the dancing we did, which never hurts.
Vampire Weekend’s “Only God Was Above Us” tour will continue until December 2024.
