Cults w/ The Vanderbuilts (2/29/12)
I first heard about Cults back at the end of 2010 from our dear Production Manager at the time, Marc Sollinger, in his top 10 new bands of 2010 article. Like many, I downloaded their three song EP from their Bandcamp and was surprised by how entertained I was by the music. I’m very skeptical of free music, but this wasn’t half bad. It was good, even.
Flash forward a year, Cult releases a self-titled album on Columbia and is a household name as for as indie rock goes. The folks at University Union made an excellent choice by picking Cults, along with local band The Vanderbuilts, to kick off their Spring 2012 Bandersnatch Concert Series.
The night started off with local favorites The Vanderbuilts. We’ve been following these guys for a long time, and they just released a new album Miguel’s Orchard last Friday. This was their second show since the album dropped, and it was easy to tell how excited they were to perform new music for the students. Classic, energetic set from The Vanderbuilts, with old favorites and soon to be new favorites.
Cults followed soon after. With a backdrop of strange found footage and TV noise, Cults jumped right into their garage rock with the first track off their album “Abducted.”After that was “The Curse,” taking us to a deep dark place, even deeper than being in the basement of the student center (for those of you who don’t know where the Schine Underground is). But by their third song, “You Know What I Mean,” the crowd was moving and enjoying themselves. Rogue, rhythmic handclaps from the crowd would pop up, as well as a lot of foot shuffling and hip swinging, reminiscent of the band’s dance moves. Other favorites like “Most Wanted” and “Go Outside” excited the crowd even more. But, like all good shows, once you start feeling the energy, the show has to come to an end. Regardless, it’s always nice to see some diversity in concerts at Syracuse University. Cults put on a solid show, and I think people are ready for some more indie music on campus.
-Kyle Kuchta
-Photos by Jeanette Wall
