Bows + Arrows + Headbutts

September 5, 2011
The Venue
Vancouver, British Columbia

I realize I'm behind on concert recaps (I'm calling them "recaps" instead of "reviews" now, because "recap" sounds far less critical), but I'm going to do my best to catch up, starting with the Walkmen show at the Venue three nights ago.

I never thought one of the weirdest shows I'd go to would have been the Walkmen, but once again, I stood to have been surprised. It wasn't how they played or acted that made the show weird though; it was the audience.

First of all, I was completely blown away by the number of bros at the Walkmen. I never thought the Walkmen's sentimental croon-rock would have appealed to thick-headed, beer-swillin' beefcakes who like to yell obnoxious comments such as, "GET THE FUCK ON STAGE, HAMILTON!!!!!" (referring to lead-singer Hamilton Leithauser), but I guess I sold them short. And while I can talk endlessly about the fucking wasted jackass who was hitting on every girl he saw all night and whose dance moves(?) included sticking his beer bottle in his shirt to resemble a dick (or something), I'll stop myself there.

Within minutes, security busted one of said bros for lighting up a joint in the front row. Genius. Security continued patrolling the middle of the crowd that night, often signalling for a spotlight on certain parts of the crowd where they suspected "nefarious" activities.

The most serious incident of the night occurred when a mosher HEADBUTTED someone. That's right: people moshed - at the Walkmen. I think guy two, the non-mosher, politely asked guy one to calm down a bit after guy one knocked around guy two's girlfriend a bit. Some words were definitely exchanged, and then WHAM!!! The mosher fucking threw his head forward a few feet as he lunged in for the blow. I never thought the Walkmen would have been the first time I saw someone headbutt someone else at a show, let alone see a fight at a show.

After security gave the mosher some words, and the other guy tried to enjoy the show as best as he could with a quickly blackening eye, the two of them almost went at it again. This time, a security guard separated them and stood between them for a while as the show continued. That was the extent of anything I saw between the two guys for the rest of the night.

Enough about the unruly, mixed-bag audience and security guards though. The Walkmen themselves were sharp as fuck - every bit as tight and clear as I'd always imagined. Hamilton Leithauser's voice is just incredible live. He can totally take over a room and have every person in it hanging onto his every word/note. Unfortunately, I could hardly see drummer Matt Barrick for most of the night. He is just amazing to watch. Just ask the broski who, when Matt took the stage, yelled, "THAT'S THE DRUMMER!!!!! THAT'S THE DRUMMER, BRO!!!!!"). I caught good, long enough glimpses of Matt later in the night when I moved around though.

Also great was the fact that the Walkmen played all but one song I wanted to hear including "Juveniles," "Angela Surf City," "Woe Is Me," "My Old Man," "The Rat" and "Little House of Savages." The only song I wanted to hear that they didn't play was "We've Been Had." "The Rat" and "Savages" were definitely the best rock-out moments of the night.

Lastly, I was really surprised by the small size of the Venue. Maybe I was more surprised by the fact that the Walkmen would play such a small venue. I thought they could have easily sold out the much larger Commodore Ballroom which holds at least three, maybe even four, times as many people. The venue's small size may have had one particular advantage though: it may have amplified the audience's voices. I've been to a lot of shows where everyone has sung along to almost every word (most notably the White Stripes and Broken Social Scene), but the roar of the crowd when it sang along with the Walkmen was just astounding. Sometimes, I couldn't even hear Hamilton over everyone else.

I was extremely disappointed that I missed the Walkmen when they played with the fucking National at the Malkin Bowl last summer (the ultimate double-bill in my mind), so I was glad I caught the Walkmen this time around. I always wondered how anyone could dislike the Walkmen. Seeing them live made me question subjective taste more than ever.