Reunited indie rock royalty The Walkmen don’t hold back on the XPNFest River Stage

After 14 years, east coast indie icons The Walkmen returned to the River Stage to headline day one of the 2024 XPoNential Music Festival. The NYC-born indie rock band took the stage at 9:20 pm under an ideal night sky and in crisp, 70 degree air. “You don’t always get asked back to things,” the band would later state happily.

The band consists of five members: Peter Bauer on keys, Walker Martin on bass, Paul Maroon on guitar, Matt Barrick on drums, and Hamilton Leithhauser singing lead vocals. Throughout the set, Bauer, Martin, and Maroon switched instruments for certain songs. Leithhauser appeared very excited to play, and brought an expressive performance throughout the night, gripping the mic stand as he moved across the stage.

The five-member band didn’t disappoint with a high-energy setlist

Their sound for the aptly-titled second track “On the Water” was atmospheric with some tasteful feedback from the guitar, an organ background, and even a brief whistling solo at the end. Overall, The Walkmen’s setlist contained dynamic range, between each song and within them. The band mostly drew from their fourth studio album You & Me, playing songs like “In the New Year,” “Dondé Está La Playa,” and “Postcards from Tiny Islands” during the first half of the set. Midway through the set, they would dip into their older albums for fan favorites like “The Rat” from 2004’s Bows + Arrows and “Wake Up” off their 2002 debut Everyone Who Pretended to Like Me is Gone. 

The Walkmen | photo by Megan Matuzak for WXPN

Leithhauser had a lot to say during the set, from detailed stories of tour, to recountings of studio sessions, and also multiple introductions of the band, making sure to emphasize each member’s cities of residence. Barrick was singled out as a current Philly resident, and the crowd was encouraged to say “hi” on the street. A memorable story centered around a spontaneous arm wrestling match between Leithhauser and Maroon at their Harlem studio Marcata Recording, in which Leithhauser accidentally “snapped (Maroon’s) f*cking arm in half.” After immediately apologizing for cursing on air, Leithhauser described it as the “most disgusting thing” and advised “kids, do not arm wrestle.”

The set’s penultimate track was “Heaven,” the band’s second biggest streaming hit behind “The Rat.” Leithauser stated that this was the most recent song that the band had written, coming from their 2012 album of the same name. The group would go on hiatus after that project, but a decade later they would announce that a live reunion would be happening. Since then, The Walkmen have played festivals and shows around the world despite not releasing any new music. Leithhauser commented that they didn’t have many more shows booked after this one, and that he didn’t know how many more they’d do before another break, but that this band of lifelong friends “will always be around”.

The set was closed with “We’ve Been Had,” ironically following their newest track with their oldest. As the song ended, Leithhauser thanked the crowd and the radio station and hopped off the front of stage to high-five the front row and run off stage past the media tent and over towards the water.

The Walkmen left a joyous ending to day one of the 2024 XPoNential Music Festival at Wiggins Park in Camden, NJ. Stay tuned for coverage of day two!