Vampire Weekend capped off their first-ever South by Southwest experience with what they deemed to be their best gig at the Austin festival.
The New York rockers were in top form during their packed showcase at Antone’s late Friday night (March 14), with people queuing around the block to see one of the festival’s most hotly tipped acts.
“This is already our best South by Southwest show, and it’s also our last one,” frontman Ezra Koenig told the loudly cheering crowd after playing just one song – ‘Mansard Roof’.
The band performed several tracks from their debut self-titled album, including crowd pleasers ‘Oxford Comma’ and ‘One (Blake’s Got A New Face)’, which resulted in a mass sing-along.
At one point, keyboardist Rostam Batmanglij mentioned that the band are preparing to head to the west coast to do some research for their new album, adding: “We’re proud to have an independent record label and an independent booking agent.”
The packed house danced throughout most of the band’s 45-minute set. Before leaving the stage, Koenig said, “Thank you guys – this has honestly been our best experience here.”
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