Hamilton Leithauser Archives

Ahead of their first live performances since 2014, beloved New York rock outfit the Walkmen visited CBS' The Late Show With Stephen Colbert last night (April 18) to dust off their 2004 classic, "The Rat." Beforehand, the band jokingly intimated that fans should keep expectations in check, because since the Walkmen's earliest days, they've "done everything by the seat of our pants. We don’t ‘plan’ much. So during our Zoom ‘planning’ meeting, we decided the best way to play together for the very first time would be on national television without a single rehearsal. I guess there will be a soundcheck but we don’t even know if this equipment works.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?vwEg_8mpp_Kk In their first interview about the reunion last November, group members Hamilton Leithauser and Peter Bauer told SPIN that the recent 10th anniversary of the Walkmen’s final album, Heaven, played no role in the timing for the upcoming shows. “It’s just a coincidence,” Leithauser said. “We started reissuing some of our old records, and that got the conversation started a little bit. Before that, there hadn’t been all that much communication.” Added Bauer, “There was no, ‘OK, this is the reason and the moment we’re doing it.’ It just came together naturally in terms of feeling comfortable and excited to do it.” Reflecting on why the Walkmen split in 2013, Leithauser said, “I think we were at a point where we’d been doing this together since we were little kids. We’d never not done it together. It’s always in the back of everybody’s minds. Look at all of our contemporaries. They all have their own side bands or solo things. It’s an interesting thing to try, and we had never done it. I wanted to see what it would be like to play all the instruments myself.” The Walkmen's first show back together is Sunday (April 22) in Westerly, R.I., and will be followed by a sold-out, five-night run at New York's Webster Hall from April 24-28. Nearly 30 additional shows are on tap through an Aug. 29-31 stand at London's KOKO.

Hamilton Leithauser

The Walkmen Preview Reunion Tour With ‘The Rat’ on Colbert

Hamilton Leithauser Reveals The Loves of Your Life

Lee Ranaldo, Britt Daniel, Craig Finn, and More to Play Electoral Benefit Show in NYC

Video: Hamilton Leithauser – “Heartstruck (Wild Hunger)”

Hamilton Leithauser – “Heartstruck (Wild Hunger)” ft. Angel Olsen

Hear Hamilton Leithauser’s Cover of the Talking Heads’ Classic “Road to Nowhere”

Hear Hamilton Leithauser Cover Shane MacGowan for Anti-Islamophobia Benefit

Hamilton Leithauser + Rostam Share Fitful New Track, ‘When The Truth Is…’

Hamilton Leithauser + Rostam Age ‘A 1000 Times’ in New Video

Rostam Plays a Couple New Songs on Radio, Clarifies Relationship With Vampire Weekend

Hamilton Leithauser + Rostam Will Release an Album, Share ‘In a Black Out’

You’ll Want to Listen to Hamilton Leithauser + Rostam’s New Single ‘A 1000 Times’

SPIN Singles Mix: Youth Lagoon, M.I.A., Swervedriver, and More

The Walkmen’s Hamilton Leithauser and Paul Maroon Team to Release Album

Listen to Hamilton Leithauser’s Jaunty ‘Room For Forgiveness’

I Did It My Way: Hamilton Leithauser Enters His Second Act

Liberation Days: Peter Matthew Bauer Begins His Spiritual Search

The Wonderful World of Walter Martin

Hamilton Leithauser Goes Mis-Adventuring in ‘I Don’t Need Anyone’ Video

10 Albums to Stream: Neil Young, Sharon Van Etten, Mariah Carey, and More

The Walkmen’s Hamilton Leithauser Kicks Back in ‘I Retired’ Video

Watch Hamilton Leithauser’s Jubilant ‘Alexandra’ on ‘Conan’

Watch Hamilton Leithauser Play His Entire ‘Black Hours’ Album

See Hamilton Leithauser Cruise NOLA in ’11 O’Clock Friday Night’

The Walkmen’s Hamilton Leithauser Goes Solo With ‘Alexandra’ Video

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