Vampire Weekend brought their “Father of the Bride” tour to the Hollywood Bowl on Wednesday for a memorable night that included a heap of songs from their new album (their fourth), a cameo from the Haim sisters and a cover of “The Boys Are Back in Town.” Well, a snippet of it.
The latter came after the band, performing as a seven-piece, opened the encore with “Stranger” and frontman Ezra Koenig opened things up to requests. The tune felt fitting, since Vampire Weekend was playing its first Bowl show in six years. Then, also by request, they played 2008’s “Boston (Ladies of Cambridge)” and 2010’s “Giving Up the Gun” before Koenig said “That was a chaotic request session but we loved it” and got back to the setlist.
The Haims — Danielle, Esta and Alanna — sang harmonies on “This Life,” with Danielle staying to duet with Koenig on “Hold You Now.” Koenig said, “Vampire Weekend comes from New York, but L.A. is a second home. Thanks to L.A. for producing such talent, we were honored to have Steve Lacy, Haim and Ariel Rechtshaid on our newest album.” They ended the first part of their set with “Jerusalem, New York, Berlin” with Danielle Haim again lending her vocals.
By the end, Vampire Weekend had played 2 1/2 hours, closing with “Worship You,” “Ya Hey” during a rain of confetti and “Walcott.”
Setlist: Bambina, Unbelievers, Holiday, Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa, Sympathy, Finger Back, M79, Unbearably White, Step, My Mistake, Horchata, New Dorp, New York (SBTRKT cover), White Sky, Sunflower, This Life (With Haim), Hold You Now (with Danielle Haim), Harmony Hall, Diane Young, Cousins, A-Punk, Hannah Hunt, Oxford Comma, Jerusalem, New York, Berlin. Encore: Stranger, The Boys Are Back in Town (Cover), Boston (Ladies of Cambridge), Giving Up the Gun, Worship You, Ya Hey, Walcott.