Okkervil River Tickets

We loved it. Great show, great band, cool venue. We all had an amazing time.

So I swore that I would never set foot in Terminal 5 again. With the exception of there being someone I really wanted to see. And Okkervil River is one of those bands. The show was not sold out and based on the very small group on the roof deck waiting for the club doors to open I was afraid that Okkervil River would be playing to a small house. (By the way, if you do go to this club, check out the roof deck and have a delicious taco.) The advantage of the small crowd was that rtb and I were able to snag the good spot on the second level just above the stage. The floor was half empty for the first opening act and filled up for the second opening act when violaleeblue showed up. None of the bands were terribly loud and I was comfortable even with the array right above me. The vocals were the most clear I’d ever heard them in this club, although they got muddier the more instruments you added. Future Islands had set up their own speakers on stage, which was a bit strange. There’s a lead singer, bassist, keyboard/effects player and they are (in no particular order since I can’t find identification) William Cashion, Samuel T. Herring, and J. Gerrit Welmers. The singer was a bit of a trip. He’d hit himself in the head and dance around and emote and was all over the place. His vocals for some of the songs would start out with the heavy metal Cookie Monster growl and then he’d go into a Flock of Seagulls voice. The music was definitely New Wave (they call it Post Wave) and would not be out of place in most of the dance clubs I hung out in in my 20s. Their fans were singing along with the arm movements and shouting and emoting and they are welcome to the band because I don’t want them. I saw Titus Andronicus open for Lucero in April 2009 and I wasn’t impressed then and I can’t say they changed my mind much this time around. Since then they’ve added Amy Klein on electric guitar and electric violin but the sound is still old-school punk (now with some Irish punk leanings) and nothing that I haven’t heard better before. The rest of the band is Ian Graetzer on bass, Eric Harm on drums, David Robbins on keyboards and guitar and Patrick Stickles yelling on vocals and guitar. They’re from New Jersey plus they are supposed to be the next big thing so there were plenty of fans in the house singing along and moshing violently downstairs. Okkervil River is Will Sheff (lead vocals, guitar), Lauren Gurgiolo (guitar, lap steel guitar, very short skirts), Michael St. Clair (keyboards, horns), Cully Symington (drums), Patrick Pestorious (bass), and Justin Sherburn (keyboards, guitar). This is the third time I’ve seen them headline – they also opened for Levon Helm in the same space a year and a half ago and was the band for Roky Erickson last year. The first time I saw them was a month after ACL 2008 where rtb saw them and I saw her right after and she was still flush with excitement. As usual, Sheff and Pestorious looked like they were having the time of lives and the rest of the band worked incredibly hard. All of them are great musicians but Symington stands out for me as a particularly wonderful drummer. It was a little slow when they played some of the new songs but the crowd was still singing along for most and they even moshed at the end of the night when Sheff had us jumping and dancing and clapping. For “So Come Back, I Am Waiting” Sheff had the stage darkened and the poster on the back of the stage was back-lit and a village showed up between the two wolves. If you're buying the new cd, you should buy the cd itself and not download it. The artwork is really nicely done as is the booklet. There were a few technical glitches at the start but never a complaint. Sheff was using a second mic for vocal effects and it added an interesting layer to a lot of the songs – also he could scream once and then have it repeat without further burning out his throat (he’s had problems because he screams and doesn’t do it correctly – I’ll teach you how to scream and not ruin your voice, Will!) One thing that made me laugh was Pestorious’ set list – he had written it out on a piece of paper that had been pointing to a trash can. The club has a 11:00pm curfew and at 10:45pm, their monitor guy informed them so Sheff said there would be no encore and they would just continue playing. The band brought it and more and at the end Sheff threw his mic stand off the stage and was down on his knees playing to the rock and roll gods.

Okkervil River was great. Tons of energy. Sound mix seemed off all night though -- waaaay too loud for the opening acts, it was unbearable to be anywhere near the stage and just didn't sound good.

Okkervil River killed it on Friday. They played a lot of the stuff from their new album as well as old staples like A Stone, Westfall and Red. You missed a great show. The only problem was the crowd, when the lead singer cleared the stage to sit down and do an acoustic "A Stone" no one would shut up so that the song could be heard. I have never seen a crowd that rude to the Band. Okkervil River if you read this I apologize for the Philadelphia fans. Please come back again and rock a show!

Okkervil River was amazing, they really pleased the crowd and got everyone moving

Such a great live performance...the live bands were questionable but OKKERVILLE rocked!!!

these guys rocked. one of my favorite bands and they sound amazing live. great stage presence and just overall good sound. My only problem: they rushed through the show. The didn't play enough songs and they only played one song for the encore before ditching, whereas they usually play 3. Other than that though, it rocked

my only gripe is how late okkervil river came on. I don't really see any reason for the main act coming on so late. Two opening bands I don't think was necessary.

The second opener kind of sucked, but the show was great. Will Sheff even did some modifications to the classics. It was well worth staying up late on a work night...

we could have done without bobby bare jr. but greatly appreciated the dan mangan performance, discovered a wonderful new artist and purchased his cd. okkervil river was very energetic, wish they would have played more from "dont fall in love with everyone you see."

I couldn't miss this rare opportunity to see one of my current favorite bands, and I wasn't disappointed. I consider the Crystal Ballroom to be one of THE WORST VENUES in town for anyone who wants to enjoy a great live music performance. Worse than usual was the fact that they had some 80s/techno music playing on a lower floor, and the bass was bleeding through during the entire show. Nonetheless, Okkervil River was fantastic. Lead singer WIll Sheff had a couple false starts and talked about being rusty at doing shows after taking time off to record 27 new songs for their upcoming album.

Once again the pyramid meets the eye, producing massive energy. Roky, backed by a very enthusiastic Okkervil River, put on an unforgettable show last night in Webster Hall, NYC. After years of waiting for this opportunity, I was not gonna miss it. That voice, so recognizable in chilling scream of Night of the Vampire, You're gonna Miss me, and others, but also in quieter form as True Love cast out all Evil. The pacing was good and the show went maybe 90 exuberant minutes. Minor technical difficulties on the house end and it also seemed at times that other acts were bleeding over (multi-use venue) or it could have just been low droning feedback intentional or otherwise. Generally the sound quality was appropriate. The lead guitarist (Lauren G?) did an especially great job with the material, rest of band smoking along too. Crowd liked the trumpet solo! Rock solid rhythm section and keyboards.

I guess my problem with this show is simply based on faulty expectations. Roky Erickson is a great musician, sure. Okkervil River is one of my absolute favorite bands. Together, what's not to like? On top of that, Okkervil's willingness to give Erickson a few really great shows is incredibly generous because with their energy, Erickson looks better than he has in decades. They played their hearts out and it was clear that Will Sheff, Lauren Gurgiolo, and, well, everyone was having an amazing time on stage. So what's the problem? Just that Roky Erickson's music isn't nearly as interesting or inspiring or well-written as Okkervil River's. He did a lot for music in his time, I'm sure, but his stage presence at this time in his life is more than a bit weak. He didn't look at the audience once the entire show and was barely audible while singing. Was the music good? Yes. But if Okkervil River is on stage, why don't they play a few of their own songs? Just one or two? I know, they're backing Roky Erickson. But he's not as good as they are and he doesn't have the presence they do. I know he's famous, but that doesn't mean much nowadays. So it was good. I just wish I'd been told that Okkervil wouldn't really be playing their own stuff at all.

Less rambling fire demon and more Okkervil River. Maybe it was the picture of Okkervil River next to the concert title, but I didn't go into this concert suspecting I'd have to listen to Roky Erickson sing his own songs AND Okkervil River's songs. This concert was not at all what I expected

The show started off with a wimper with a bland set by Bird of Youth. Yikes, how do mediocre bands like this get such amazing gigs? I was bored and the crowd was bored. I think this may have increased the excitement for Roky, though, because when he walked on stage, the place went wild. They opened with a bang by playing Night of the Vampire. Roky's voice is as good or better than it was when he first recorded this song. He seemed shy and let the lead singer of Okervill do most of the between song banter. Okervill was a great compliment to Roky's music - they made the songs fuller and more epic. The energy was fantastic. The setlist was a nice mix of classics and new songs. They played for a little over an hour and came back with one encore. My only complaint is that they didn't play my favorite song "The Wind and More".

I mainly attended this show because it had been so long since I'd been to the Fillmore. But I was really surprised at the energy Roky put into the show. Okkervil worked hard to be worthy accompanists, though some of the guitar playing could have been more anarchic, in '60s garage fashion. Still, they all rocked and I left the hallowed hall completely satisfied.

For anyone that knows the personal struggles that Roky Erickson has had to endure, its amazing that we are still graced with his presence and the opportunity to see him play. This man is a legend and revolutionized music as we know it today. His backing group, The Okkervil River Band, were brilliant. What an honor it must be to tour with such a music icon. Songs stretched from old 13th Floor Elevator cuts, to older Erickson solo tracks, to new songs of his latest album, and even some covers.

It was great to see Roky this well. it was my 4th time and he seemed most put together this time. Great seeing him in a larger venue like the Fillmor.

I was under the impression that Okkervil River would be playing Okkervil river songs! If youre going to this show for them - I'd recommend not going

Ever since I saw the documentary, (You're Gonna Miss Me) I wanted to see Roky Erickson perform. I was not disappointed. His band was great, & he was too! Great show!