Jonathan Meiburg, Okkervil River
One weekend, two nights of Okkervil River at the Bowery Ballroom in NYC. A packed house both nights. Will said to the crowd, "we've been waiting for this show for a long time." Three-fourths of the Elvis Perkins in Dearland band providing a horn section, joyously pumping fists into the air. On Saturday, a wannabe crowd surfer leaping off of the stage and subsquently faling flat on his face when nobody caught him. The retirement of "Kansas City" (Will Sheff to Jonathan Meiburg, "You've been waiting for this night for a long long time"). Dozens of feverish fans shouting along to "Westfall."
My affection for this band runs deep; I was hooked, like an addict, when I heard the first strains of "Red." I've been to many Okkervil River shows over the past few years, and this one was probably the tightest, loudest, most intense. It was an hour and a half filled with sweat and tears and catharsis. Live music rarely gets better than this.
Thanks, guys. Please come back soon. More photographs.
Photographs on this site are © Kathryn Yu. Don't steal.
