The Walkmen + Cass McCombs – Beachland Tavern – Live Review

Disclaimer:  Rob is a new addition to the Citizen Dick family, and he attended this show with me.  In a horrible mishap of miscommunication, he thought I’d bring my camera and I thought he’d bring his.  This was not good.  Unfortunately the few pictures we were able to take were from his Blackberry.  We apologize for the really poor quality, and hopefully my words will paint a better picture for you.  Rob will be fired if he doesn’t bring it next time. We have no room around here for nonsense. Note my intense sarcasm.

It’s tough to review The Walkmen albums because so many of them have shifted in focus and sound, so I’ll spare you the in-depth analysis of their progression and success.  Along with about every blogger on the planet, we included their 2008 release, You & Me on our “Best Of 2008″ list, and for good reason.  There’s an unshakable uniqueness and passion to their music paired with a sloppy and drunken fuzz that permeates and allows that passion to bloom.  Nothing points this out more than the fact that at the Pitchfork Festival on Sunday, we could hear the band belting out “In the New Year” from all the way over at Stage B while we awaited Japandroids set.  The sound at Pitchfork was turned down just enough so it wouldn’t hinder the other performances at the separate stages, but this did not matter in the slightest bit.  That forlorn wail erupted through the mid-afternoon air and people even turned their heads away from Stage B to figure out where the voice was coming from.  You can only imagine how excited I was to see this in a tiny venue.  They shredded last night to a pretty packed house at Beachland Ballroom, and while their set wasn’t exactly too lengthy, a pretty unique and cool night was the result.

Cass McCombs started things off tonight, and although there was endless chatter and mulling about from the audience, it was a pretty good set.  The 5-piece on the stage did a pretty stellar job of creating a good atmosphere.  The band’s most recent release is getting high marks everywhere, and the interesting conglomeration of folk, rock, psychedelia, and electronica is intriguing to see.  At the root, the band is a folk band, but the talent projecting from the speakers is expansive.  Low, low bass drives and underriding synthesizers filled the room.  The standoffish nature of the band is done on purpose and to a nice effect, as well.  Some Clevelanders didn’t quite get it, but it didn’t stop the band from belting out six or seven songs with authority.

The Walkmen set began with some new material on the upcoming album that the band said they’ll be recording in the next couple of weeks.  Interestingly the new material seems to be toned down a notch from the previous album, as Hamilton Leithauser picks up the guitar and the smooth horns and slower tempo promises some killer new stuff ahead.  I was unable to locate the track titles on some of the new material, but immediately after the opener, they launched into “In the New Year,” and regardless of how much knowledge the audience had about The Walkmen, this song tore the roof off.  Of course, there’s no shortage of live versions available of this song on the web, but there’s a wholly different experience when watching it in the confines of a local concert venue.  Leithauser goes after it to the highest extent, the intensity rising to the point of spine-chilling effect.  In my years of concert-going, I’m uncertain if I’ve ever seen such a cathartic song played live.  The song is lyrically purposeful and sincere, and the vocals are for the ages.  I questioned the placement of this song in the set-list (like I did at Pichfork) but I’m uncertain my opinion really matters to the band.  That’s their gig, and I don’t think anyone who’s been listening to the band for awhile expects anything different.

The next thirteen songs mixed a healthy dose of new material with a lot of You & Me and Bows + Arrows tracks.  “Postcards from Tiny Islands” was the third song, with hand shakers, a step away from the upright piano, and loud crescendos of vocal delivery and guitar.  What’s important to note about last night, is that the band took the exact structure of the recorded material and simply turned up the volume and intensity in the live versions.  I’m not one who frowns upon different versions of my favorite tracks live, but those who are were not disappointed tonight.  The horn section was an excellent addition to the already huge sound the band creates, and we’re uncertain if the section tours with them or they were some young bucks pulled off the street to play some trumpet.  It was quite hair-raising to have all of these sounds employed on the tiny Beachland stage.

The stage presence of the band is also well-documented and it was a treat to see it live last night.  Leithauser lazily holding the microphone while leaning back and hitting every note was something I saw in their opening set for Kings of Leon earlier this year, but the smaller venue allowed the vivacity to pop and wail.  In addition, wittier bon mots added to the overall effect.  There wasn’t a lot of interaction between the audience and band, but after the first song, Leithauser smirked, “All five of us messed up and forgot an entire part of that song.  This rarely happens.”  Also, at the close of the show we got a true compliment, as they said, “Thank you all for coming out to see us tonight.  It was an um…unexpected delight.”  Knowing The Walkmen and understanding how the band operates is important here.  I don’t think we could have expected anything better as a compliment here in Cleveland.  Well worth it.  I’ve posted the basic setlist (minus the new material that I had difficulty locating titles for), along with several tracks from their most recent WOXY lounge act session from May.  Enjoy the tunes, and you can hear the entire live set, along with an interview with the band by CLICKING HERE. Get out and see these guys if you haven’t had a chance to.  The smaller the venue, the better.

The Walkmen – Postcards from Tiny Islands (Live on WOXY.com)

The Walkmen – On the Water (Live on WOXY.com)

The Walkmen – New Country (Live on WOXY.com)

The Walkmen – Seven Years of Holidays (Live on WOXY.com)

Concert Setlist:

1.   Unknown – New Material

2.  “In the New Year”

3.  “Postcards from Tiny Islands”

4.  “Canadian Girl”

5.  “The Rat”

6.  “Donde Esta La Playa”

7.  “Red Moon”

8.  “On the Water”

9. “Thinking of a Dram I Had”

10. “Louisiana”

11. “All Hands and the Cook”

12. Unknown – New Material

13. Unknown

14.  Encore 1: “New Country

15.  Encore 2: “I’m Thinking of a Dream I Had”