Haunted House

'Come down to Somerset House this evening, its going to be spooky', was the message that greeted us this morning here at The Established Man office answerphone. Spooky? Surely not? Halloween is long gone and haunted houses are a thing of myth on ITV2, god bless Yvette Fiedling. But Somerset House was in for a very different kind of spooky soiree as details revealed themselves in a clearer sense. That music lot always have to talk in tongues don't they.

No no, there would be no goulish antics or steaming culdrens, Vampire Weekend were going to play a half-hour gig on the balcony overlooking the ice rink and we promptly got ourselves down there pronto. You'd think those Vampire Weekend boys would have been in La La land drinking Horchata and enjoying some sun rather than a cold, wet, grey afternoon in London town. But what sun, or lack of was in the clouds was replaced by their set and the upbeat mood that transcended the cobbled stones of the courtyard at Somerset House.

With a mix of songs from their ledgendary first album and the new one titled Contra the crowd were certainly more than pleased to see them and responded in grand London style to 'Oxford Comma', 'A-Punk' as well as some new ones such as 'Holiday' and obviously 'Horchata'.

Bearing in mind the boys don't tour until a good month or so and its block to block sell out this was a golden opportunity to catch them at their best. Despite a loss of power towards the end, resulting in unanimous 'We can't bloody hear you!' and 'Come down here' chanting from the crowd they pulled it of and in the most special of settings. That's our kind of fright night.


www.vampireweekend.com
www.somersethouse.org.uk