The Walkmen / Adam Green - New York Hudson River Pier 54 - 7/8/03
3/5
By: Joshua K
For anyone who thinks that being a rock-critic is all glitz and glamour, we submit the following scenario. You, standing on a pier - air a good bit cooler than it should be, because you're surrounded by water - suddenly becoming deluged via the form of pissing rain, your every inch coated. Meanwhile, your photographer - clearly more sensible than you are - begs off his assignment at the last minute to attend an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting.
But, friends, rockfeedback has The Libertines' credo in its heart: 'If you've lost your faith in love and music, then the end won't be long'. So, weather be damned, we find ourselves on a showery night at Manhattan's Pier 54 to see the promising double-bill of Adam Green and The Walkmen.
Green is on first and, sans the Robin Hood and Elvis costumes of his Moldy Peaches tenure, he emerges as a confident, compelling frontman with a rich voice. Joined for the evening by a full band including strings, he delivers a tight, show-stealing set that proves his recent 'Friends of Mine' album to have been no fluke.
The crowd warmly received tunes from both 'Friends...' and earlier solo LP 'Garfield', inclusive of 'Jessica', 'We're Not Supposed To Be Lovers' and 'Dance With Me', plus long-forgotten, early '90s C+C Music Factory hit 'Everybody Dance Now'. Then, after an impressive run through 'Baby's Gonna Die Tonight', he's gone, in the enviable position of having left us wanting more.
Unfortunately, the same can't be said for The Walkmen. Yes, standout album-track 'Wake Up' was tops live as well, all moody organ and pounding drums. And both an echo-laden run-through of 'The Blizzard of '96' and powerful newie 'House of Savages' were equally special - the latter a bruising blend of Gang of Four rhythms and heavy guitar that bodes well for LP #2 (due early 2004).
Yet, other songs, inclusive of 'Revenge Wears No Wristwatch' and a number of unidentified new tracks, merely shuffled and limped along damply. Hampered by the rapidly worsening weather and a standoffish demeanor, their fifty-minute set was therefore only alright when it could have been explosive.
Leaving the stage, singer Hamilton Leithauser thanks us for 'putting up with all the bullshit tonight.' To which we reply: 'Not sure exactly what's eating at you, mate. Good thing we like you enough to give you another chance.'
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