A few days ago, I was lucky enough to see Yeasayer live in Brooklyn. As corny as it sounds, I feel blessed to have attended that shows as it was probably one of the top five gigs I’ve ever been to. The crowd was into it, the band was into it, and I was into it. It was fucking amazing.
It was at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, which I had never been to before. I was sort of expected a nice, big venue with seating and everything, but when I arrived, I was VERY pleasantly surprised. It was intimate, alcoholic-friendly, and filled with tons of people that were passionate about music (specifically, Yeasayer’s music).
The first two acts (Class Actress and Javelin) were above average. Good, entertaining groups that knew how to please the crowd. Unfortunately, the hoard of fans from the downstairs bar didn’t really show up until Yeasayer was about to play, thus these “bands” didn’t have a huge audience. Still fun to watch though.
And now the main event. Yeasayer took the stage to a roaring applause. I really liked the setup of the stage as the synthesizers were on lit up stands that constantly changed colors. Really cool effect! Panels that stood behind the band also lit up in sync with the stands, making it really wild to watch.
They opened up with probably their only song that I don’t really like, “The Children”. I actually liked it live, but there’s no way in hell that song will grow on me like many of the other tracks from their new album, Odd Blood (which is amazing, by the way). They then played one funky psychedelic pop song after another to the crowd’s delight.
It was beyond words how incredible the set list was. “Grizelda”, “Madder Red”, “Sunrise”, “2080″, “Love Me Girl”, “ONE”, and “Ambling Alp” (which was one of the most exciting songs I’ve ever seen performed live) were all near perfection. Another thing I was impressed with was that while they talked to fans a bit, they didn’t overdo it (remember my experience at the 30 Seconds to Mars show in London?).
If you live across the Atlantic (in Europe), I’ve got some great news for you. Yeasayer is heading your way right now to play shows in England, France, Germany, Belgium, Norway, Italy, and more! Do yourself a huge favor, and buy some tickets. They’re such incredibly gifted artist, and will blow your mind.
