mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus
mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus in July (more by Ryan Muir)

mewithoutYou, Big Eyes & Half Waif played BrooklynVegan-Red Bull Sound Select @ Saint Vitus (pics)

photos by Ryan Muir & Amanda Hatfield

Big Eyes at Saint Vitus
Half Waif at Saint Vitus

The latest BrooklynVegan-curated Red Bull Sound Select show went down last night (6/21) at Saint Vitus (instead of Palisades which got shut down). mewithoutYou headlined with local support from Big Eyes and Half Waif (I also DJ’d).

mewithoutYou have been touring a lot this year, and their previous NYC show was at the much larger Webster Hall (where they provided direct support to Say Anything), so it was especially nice to see them up close and personal in this smaller environment. In fact, seeing this band play for a packed crowd at Vitus was probably the best show of theirs I’ve seen of theirs in years. At least one fan in attendance agrees…

It was also nice because they used the opportunity of playing in a small dark venue (that usually hosts metal and punk) to break out a few off their heavy debut album A→B Life that I haven’t heard them play in a while (“Gentlemen” and “Bullet to Binary”). They also kicked off their encore with the raucous fan favorite “January 1979,” another that was absent from recent NYC shows. Even with all the louder songs, they still worked in softer acoustic stuff off Ten Stories and It’s All Crazy! It’s All False! It’s All A Dream It’s Alright, and managed to make it all sound like one cohesive show.

They also had a slightly different lineup for the show, with Dominic Angelella of Lithuania and DRGN KING filling in for Greg Jehanian on bass/vocals, like he’s done for them in Europe.

The openers were both fantastic too. The room was already full when Half Waif began the show, and they got very loud cheers from a crowd that mostly seemed unfamiliar with the songs. Half Waif is the project of Nandi Rose Plunkett, and live they were a trio (that included the drummer of Pinegrove). As heard on their recent album Probable Depths, they make synthy art pop that’s really tough not to enjoy. Nandi has a great voice, and the arrangements were very full for a three-piece. It’s not hard to imagine this band moving up in the world.

She apparently made mistakes, but we didn’t notice:

I’ve seen Big Eyes a handful of times in the past couple years, but this was my first time seeing them as a four-piece (usually they’re a trio), and this setup is definitely superior. With two guitars, Big Eyes could whip out twin leads that did wonders for their sound. They’ve always had a bit of a classic rock edge to their super-tight punk, but now more than ever it’s a main focus. I got Thin Lizzy vibes from most songs, and one (that had the drummer making liberal use of his ride bell) had them nearing NWOBHM territory.

Thanks to all the artists, Red Bull, Saint Vitus, and everyone who came out. If you were there, hopefully you grabbed a free poster and some pins?

Pictures of the show continue below, along with mewithoutYou’s setlist…

Half Waif at Saint Vitus

Half Waif at Saint Vitus

Half Waif at Saint Vitus

Half Waif at Saint Vitus

Half Waif at Saint Vitus

Half Waif

Half Waif at Saint Vitus

Half Waif at Saint Vitus

Half Waif at Saint Vitus

Half Waif at Saint Vitus

Big Eyes

Big Eyes at Saint Vitus

Big Eyes at Saint Vitus

Big Eyes at Saint Vitus

Big Eyes at Saint Vitus

Big Eyes at Saint Vitus

Big Eyes at Saint Vitus

Big Eyes at Saint Vitus

Big Eyes at Saint Vitus

Big Eyes at Saint Vitus

Big Eyes at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

mewithoutYou at Saint Vitus

And many more photos from the night in this gallery:

mewithoutYou @ Saint Vitus – 6/21/16 Setlist
Pale Horses
Nice and Blue Pt. 2
Red Cow
February 1878
Leaf
(written on setlist as “Aaron”)
Gentlemen
Torches Together
Magic Lantern Days
Timothy Hay
Wolf Am I! (And Shadow)
Aubergine
Fox’s Dream Of The Log Flume
Rainbow Signs
Bullet to Binary

Encore:
January 1979
In A Sweater Poorly Knit