Vampire Weekend, Hi-DIve July 25, 2007

I accompanied a friend of mine to see these four guys at the Hi-dive on Broadway before I had a chance to listen to any of their music. I was completely suprised. With a name like "Vampire Weekend," you'd expect a NY goth band mumbling about their life's misfortunes, yuppies, starbucks and other corporate injustices (Not that there's anything wrong with that). But their sound was the exact opposite. Four flip-flop and Loafer wearing Columbia grads with a great ear for melody. They derive much of their sound from Paul Simon (Graceland), Reggae, Buffet, backed with an african beat. They've introduced their sound at the perfect time, there are very few indie bands out there that have anything near their sound. The band consists of:
Ezra Koenig, Rostam Batmanglij, Christopher Tomson, and Chris Baio.
Here are a couple of samples:

Lez Zeppelin

Four good looking girls covering Led Zeppelin tunes? I'm in. These four Yankees rocked the Blue Bird August 22nd, real well. Set list included Black Dog, Whole Lotta Love, Achilles' Last Stand, Bron Yr Aur Stomp, Dazed and Confused, Good Times Bad Times, Houses of the Holy, Kashmir, and other greats. http://www.myspace.com/lezzeppelin

Lez Zeppelin consists of:


Sarah McLellan- Vocals


Steph Paynes- Guitars & Theremin.


Lisa Brigantino- Bass, Keyboards & Mandolin


Helen Destroy- Drums & Percussion. Whom I didn't get a picture of before I had my camera nearly seized. Apparently a SLR is a professional camera, thus making you a professional photographer. Even if you just have a blog to share pictures of your dog with your family.



The talented foursome exceeded my expectations. Helen Destroy had Bonham's beat to a tee, Steph even had Page's mannerisms down (the solos, the strut, all perfect with the guitar at her knees), and the sexual appeal... Lez or not Lez, they were a great Zeppelin cover band.



I recommend spending the $15 to go see these 4 the next time they pass through town (I didn't forget Grant, I'll pay you back). They've been touring for the past 2 years, and they head to Europe in November to introduce their sound to the east. Good luck girls, thanks for the great night, keep Ramblin.




-Spence