Vampire Weekend

O2 Academy Birmingham

words and pictures by James Watkins

Vampire Weekend were in storming form

New York Indie rockers Vampire Weekend lit up the O2 Academy in Birmingham with a glowing set of flirtatious riffs, sophisticated lyrics and suave bass lines.

Hot off the heels of their second album, Contra, which stormed the UK charts and earned them a US Billboard number one last month, the Vampires rocked during their West Midlands gig.

Their simplistic stage presence was aided by trademark chandeliers hanging from the lighting rig and they strolled through a plethora of their hits as part of their eight-date sell-out tour of the UK.

Opening with White Sky, Ezra Koenig’s vocals and kwirky guitar riffs inspired the crowd into delirious voice. Fans sang along to every lyric  thrown at them, roaring louder than a Six Nations crowd during the truly unique Cape Cod Kwassa.

The 3,000-strong crowd raved on throughout I Stand Corrected, Taxi Cab and the fast paced synthetic guitar riffs of A-Punk, before singing their own version of the marvellous Oxford Comma.

A three-song finale of new single Horchata, Mansard Roof and Walcott ended the night perfectly, confirming to all, that Vampire Weekend’s magical and fresh niche sound can clearly cut it with the mainstream.

Festival dates beckon and, for those assembled in Birmingham, they can’t come soon enough.