Vampire Weekend's drummer, Chris Tomson, has stepped out of his comfort zone and into the spotlight.
Turns out, it's not that bad.
After the Grammy Award-winning rock band took a much-needed break from the "Modern Vampires of the City" tour in 2014, Tomson took a few steps away from the drum set to hit center stage as frontman of his solo project, Dams of the West.
The simple difference between the two may sound a little hokey, he said, but it's true.
"Honestly, the weirdest thing is standing up," Tomson said, laughing. "When I'm singing, I usually stay in place, but then there's those moments when I'm not singing and I'm stumbling around in the moment. The whole performance stuff is what I'm still figuring out."
Sitting behind Vampire frontman Ezra Koenig for a decade can do that to a drummer. (The funny thing is, Tomson was originally slated to be the guitarist, alongside Koenig.)
Tomson's Dams of the West will open for Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears at 9 p.m., Thursday, April 13 at the Fox Theatre in support of his debut solo album, "Youngish American," released in February.
Chris Tomson of Vampire Weekend, at right, will bring his solo project, Dams of the West, to the Fox Theatre in Boulder on Thursday, April 13. Also pictured left to right is Chris Baio, Rostam Batmanglij and Ezra Koenig. (Alex John Beck / Courtesy photo)
Tomson, as the music press has incessantly disclosed, is the last member of Vampire Weekend to embark on a solo project. But no matter how long it took, Tomson now has a shiny new solo album that sings with a lighthearted approach to the anxieties of aging, adulthood, married life and self-worth.
"I think any pressure that I had to produce an album was definitely self-imposed," Tomson said. "I don't think the marketplace was necessarily clamoring and saying, 'What is this other Vampire Weekend guy going to do?'"
Tomson said he approached this album not so much as an album, per se, but as a life objective. He wanted to see if he was capable of writing interesting and worthwhile songs. If he was, should he release them to the world?
What transpired is an album of conversational prose balanced with his brand of indie rock. The brand sounds quite familiar. Although Vampire Weekend's complex and purist approach (the members met at Columbia University, if that offers any insight) is a bit distant from the raw garage whimsy of Dams of the West.
Nonetheless, he's definitely from Vampire Weekend.
"Any time you are known for one role in particular, it's hard to break out of that or to create a new role for yourself," he said. "It took me a while, but I feel like I got there and the album was the result."
He said most of Vampire Weekend's writing was crafted by Koenig or the band's former multi-instrumentalist Rostam Batmanglij. However, there is that one fantastic anthem in that one famous song about that one familiar girl, Johanna, that Tomson wrote.
"Most of my stuff for Vampire Weekend has been fairly rhythmic. There are a few specific cases, the most notable of which being the 'hey, hey, heys' in 'A-Punk.' That was all me," Tomson said, laughing.
Vampire Weekend has been a sonic and work-ethic influence for Tomson in creating Dams of the West.
"I learned a lot from those guys," said Tomson. "By seeing the choices they make and ultimately holding dear to their underlying philosophy of: Don't phone anything in. Don't phone a lyric line in, don't phone an instrumental part in. Everything should be beautiful. I think that's why a lot of people have responded well to Vampire Weekend. That's not just a good driving principle in music, but in life, too."
Chris Tomson, drummer for Vampire Weekend, will bring his side project Dams of the West to the Fox Theatre in Boulder on Thursday. (Emily Tomson / Courtesy photo)
Played every instrument on album
"Youngish American" was produced by Patrick Carney, drummer of the Black Keys, and Tomson said he brought an overall calming presence to the creation of the album. Plus, Carney's general attitude of "Lived it" didn't hurt either, Tomson said.
"My thought mode is to overthink," said Tomson. "Sometimes I'll be left with paralysis for no particularly good reason, other than overthinking. Pat, to his eternal credit, at a number of points would say, 'Let's just do it.' He'd just make things happen."
Tomson said the fact that they were both drummers in big bands put the pair at a commonality, creating cohesiveness from the start.
Other than a few orchestral string instruments, Tomson said he played every instrument on "Youngish American." He knows his way around a rock band. Drums, though, are probably his favorite, he said.
"There's something just really super fun about playing the drums," Tomson said. "Just the act of hitting and smashing and stuff."
Although Vampire Weekend has yet to play in Boulder (hint, hint), Tomson said he was in town not too long ago for a wedding.
"I did sign up for a one-day membership of your bike system. Which was delightful," he said of exploring the town via B-cycle.
Tomson said Dams of the West's bassist, Karen Kanan Corra (of Futurebrite) grew up outside of Denver, so she's very excited to come back to play the Fox Theatre.
Tomson's future with Vampire Weekend is "not a dead end with me by any stretch," but if song inspiration strikes again, he'd love to pursue Dams of the West on the side.
"I'm very proud of the album I made and I'm finding it very exciting to tour and create videos," he said. His wife Emily Tomson directed a couple videos. "The only reason I wouldn't continue with the project is if I felt like I couldn't write any more good songs. But the album's theme and the idea of aging is really a wealthy topic. Aging never gets old."
Figuratively.
"I don't know if anyone ever actually feels grown up, you know?" Tomson said. "There's always some part of you that feels like a kid, even if it's at eternally different ages."
And on his somewhat waggish approach to dealing with being 30-something on "Youngish American," he said: "I hope it comes across more like 'The Big Lebowski' and less like slapstick comedy."
Vampire Weekend's drummer Chris Tomson talked about why he chose Dams of the West as the name for his solo project:
"My legal name, Chris Tomson, is a fine name, but it wasn't really evocative of anything," Tomson said. "There's a few layers behind the name, but the main one, the inception being, I read a debate about actual dams in the Western United States. Some people thought dams had outlived their usefulness and should be torn down to let the rivers run free. And some were saying that the dams just needed a little work to fulfill the role that they were built for."
He added: "As a straight, white man writing, generally speaking, rock'n'roll songs," he felt a certain camaraderie with the concept. "It's this infrastructure from the middle of the country that's kind of crumbling, but also still worth it at some levels."
Christy Fantz: 303-473-1107, fantz@dailycamera.com or twitter.com/fantzypants
Read more here:
Newfangled frontman: Vampire Weekend's Chris Tomson plays Boulder - Boulder Daily Camera
- Who Does Matt End Up With in The Vampire Diaries? - CBR - Comic Book Resources - April 21st, 2024
- Oregon Man Staked His Mother's Throat Believing She Was a Vampire [Horror IRL] - Dread Central - April 21st, 2024
- V Rising 1.0 will let you sip the blood of history's greatest vampire - PCGamesN - April 21st, 2024
- Mourning the Muse You've Never Met | Mary Boone by Vampire Weekend - Impact 89FM - April 21st, 2024
- Abigail Directors Reveal the Method to Their Vampire Madness - Syfy - April 21st, 2024
- 'Abigail' takes audiences on bloody vampire heist The Daily Texan - The Daily Texan - April 21st, 2024
- New Teaser For Anne Rice's Interview With The Vampire Reveals 'Laws Of The Vampire' - Age Of The Nerd - April 21st, 2024
- Abigail Review: The ballerina vampire film is on pointe, and its a blast - Fort Worth Report - April 21st, 2024
- Music Monday: Vampire Weekend's Fifth Studio Album, Only God Above Us Proves That The Band Was Not Just A ... - Cardinal & Cream - April 21st, 2024
- Abigail Filmmakers Radio Silence on Their Genre-Hopping Vampire Thriller and Honoring Angus Clouds Final Performance - Variety - April 21st, 2024
- Abigail Review: Dan Stevens and Melissa Barrera in an Exuberantly Over-the-Top Vampire Horror-Comedy - Hollywood Reporter - April 21st, 2024
- 'Interview With the Vampire' Season 2 Trailer Learn the Laws of the Undead - Collider - April 21st, 2024
- New Interview with the Vampire Teaser Shares the Laws of the Vampire - ComicBook.com - April 21st, 2024
- 'Abigail' Review: This Ballerina Vampire Has the Perfect Bite - The Mary Sue - April 21st, 2024
- Interview with the Vampire Season 2 to Include 'Cool Twist' Not Seen in Original Books - CBR - Comic Book Resources - April 21st, 2024
- Review: New York City is Vampire Weekend's muse on 'Only God Was Above Us' - America: The Jesuit Review - April 21st, 2024
- Ikki Unite, the Feudal Japanese Vampire Survivors-like, Arrives on Switch and Steam - Co-Optimus.com - April 21st, 2024
- 'Abigail' review: A vampire bloodbath with pools of sticky stuff - Detroit News - April 21st, 2024
- 'Blood Hunt' #5 Demands a Heavy Price to Bring Down the Vampire's Reign - Marvel - April 21st, 2024
- Vanpires Are Back: 17 Vampire Books to Read - The Everygirl - April 21st, 2024
- Interview with the Vampire season 2 will be bigger, and include a huge twist that's not in the books - Gamesradar - April 21st, 2024
- A vampire ballerina and hired hitman hit the screens this weekend - WDIV ClickOnDetroit - April 21st, 2024
- Abigail's Directors Tell Us Why They Included The Vampire Ballerina Twist In The Movie's Marketing, But I Still Wish It ... - CinemaBlend - April 21st, 2024
- 'I get bored easily': Jacob Anderson reveals 'worries' about Interview with the Vampire season two - El Paso Inc. - April 21st, 2024
- Interview with the Vampire Season 2 Teaser Trailer Unveils the Laws of Being a Vampire - ComingSoon.net - April 21st, 2024
- 'I get bored easily': Jacob Anderson reveals 'worries' about Interview with the Vampire season two - Yahoo New Zealand News - April 21st, 2024
- Amazingly Accurate Real-Life BG3 Astarion Shows The Vampire Ready For Combat - Screen Rant - April 21st, 2024
- Interview With the Vampire Star Teases Teases Major Season 2 Twist - ComicBook.com - April 21st, 2024
- 32 astonishing ancient burials, from 'vampire' decapitations to riches for the afterlife - Livescience.com - April 21st, 2024
- Zendaya Becomes A Kick-Ass Buffy The Vampire Slayer In Photo-Realistic Art - Screen Rant - April 21st, 2024
- Nosferatu: First Footage Shows Off Bill Skarsgard as the Vampire - TheWrap - April 12th, 2024
- Vampire Weekend and Amber Coffman Cover Grateful Dead's Peggy-O - Pitchfork - April 12th, 2024
- Watch: Goose Welcome Vampire Weekend for Half-Hour Jam on Night Four at The Capitol Theatre - jambands.com - April 12th, 2024
- Woman found dead in Italian church was dressed like vampire and looking for ghosts - Express - April 12th, 2024
- Goose Welcome Vampire Weekend for Half-Hour Jam on Night Four at The Capitol Theatre (A Gallery + Recap) - Relix - April 12th, 2024
- A Guide to Vampire Weekend's Most Jewish Songs and Lyrics - Alma - April 12th, 2024
- Review: Vampire Weekend's 'Only God Was Above Us' sinks its teeth into nihilistic perspectives - Washington Square News - April 12th, 2024
- Watch Vampire Weekend Join Goose for a 31-Minute Redition of "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa" | Exclaim! - Exclaim! - April 12th, 2024
- Vampire Weekend's Only God Was Above Us: Review - Consequence - April 12th, 2024
- Vampire Weekend Covers The Grateful Dead's 'Peggy-O' On SiriusXM - Digg - April 12th, 2024
- Vampire Weekend Covered Grateful Dead With Amber Coffman On SiriusXMU: Watch - Stereogum - April 12th, 2024
- Savannah Basley Co-Stars in SyFy's REGINALD THE VAMPIRE Season Two - BroadwayWorld - April 12th, 2024
- Review | Vampire Weekend's 'Only God Was Above Us' is sure to get stuck in your head - UI The Daily Iowan - April 12th, 2024
- Vampire Survivors Contra Crossover DLC Will Come to PlayStation Later in the Summer - Push Square - April 12th, 2024
- OGWAU Is Vampire Weekend Keeping Things Fresh - HeadStuff.org - April 12th, 2024
- Vampire Survivors is Crossing Over With Contra - GameRant - April 12th, 2024
- Vampire Survivors Headed to PS5 and PS4 This Summer - News - VGChartz - April 12th, 2024
- Vampire Survivors teams up with Contra for new DLC and fangs its way onto PlayStation consoles this summer - VG247 - April 12th, 2024
- The face of a 500-year-old vampire with a brick between her teeth - Metro.co.uk - March 24th, 2024
- Scientists recreate face of 16th-century vampire buried with brick inside mouth - WION - March 24th, 2024
- Montreal daily apologizes following backlash over Netanyahu vampire cartoon - The Times of Israel - March 24th, 2024
- This Major Aspect of 'Interview with the Vampire' Makes It Better Than the Movie - Collider - March 24th, 2024
- Stare Into the Screen Not the Sun: Vampire Weekend to Livestream Special Solar Eclipse Show - Rolling Stone - March 24th, 2024
- Vampire Dormitory Anime Cast to Cover Every Little Thing Song for Ending Theme - Crunchyroll - March 24th, 2024
- Vampire Weekend will livestream Austin eclipse show - Brooklyn Vegan - March 24th, 2024
- 10 Essential 80s Vampire Movies You Might Have Missed - Flickering Myth - March 24th, 2024
- Vampire Weekend, Slightly Stoopid, Portugal. The Man, and more shows announced at Dillon Amphitheater (so far) - Summit Daily - March 24th, 2024
- 'Interview With the Vampire': Meet the Real Armand With Assad Zaman (VIDEO) - TV Insider - March 24th, 2024
- Xbox Game Pass gets cowboy vampire-slayer classic today, just in time for weekend - ReadWrite - March 24th, 2024
- Vampire Weekend Tease Punky, Jammy New Offshoot With An Imaginary Backstory - Stereogum - March 24th, 2024
- The GLAAD Wrap: Trailers for The Acolyte and Interview with the Vampire, New Music from Xana, Anglica Garcia ... - GLAAD - March 24th, 2024
- Interview With the Vampire Season 2 Will Unlock Deeply Hidden Memories - Gizmodo - March 24th, 2024
- Netanyahu caricatured as vampire in Canadian newspaper: 'Every Jew understands the meaning' - Ynetnews - March 24th, 2024
- Vampire Weekend tease a new offshoot project with an "imaginary back story" - NME - March 24th, 2024
- Scientists Reconstruct Face Of 16th Century 'Vampire Woman' Buried With Brick In Mouth - Study Finds - March 24th, 2024
- Here's a haunting, beautiful Interview With The Vampire season 2 trailer - The A.V. Club - March 24th, 2024
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer's Most Important Moment Features One Word - Den of Geek - March 24th, 2024
- TV Shows Like 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' That'll Suck You In - The Lineup - March 24th, 2024
- Remember When Pedro Pascal Was on Buffy the Vampire Slayer? - Remezcla - March 24th, 2024
- Interview With The Vampire Season 2 Goes Bigger Than Ever, See The Extended Look Into Fan-Favorite Series Return - Giant Freakin Robot - March 24th, 2024
- Fury Over Antisemitic Canadian Newspaper Cartoon Depicting Netanyahu as Blood-Sucking Vampire - Algemeiner - March 24th, 2024
- INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE: Memory Is The Monster In Stunning Extended Season 2 Trailer INTERVIEW WITH ... - CBM (Comic Book Movie) - March 24th, 2024
- Interview with the Vampire Season 2 Extended Look: Memory Is Monster - Bleeding Cool News - March 24th, 2024
- Interview with the Vampire trailer season 2 trailer is brimming with queer lust and the return of Lestat - Gay Times Magazine - March 24th, 2024
- Everything we're obsessed with in the new 'Interview With the Vampire' trailer - Pride.com - March 24th, 2024
- Pedro Pascal Was Saved By Buffy The Vampire Slayer - Giant Freakin Robot - March 24th, 2024
- AMC reveals an extended look at Interview with the Vampire Season 2 - Claire and Jamie - March 24th, 2024
- "Interview with the Vampire" Season 2 Trailer Previews the Return of AMC's Anne Rice Series on May 12 - Bloody Disgusting - March 24th, 2024
- Scream directors explain how their new vampire horror movie fits into the Universal Monsters universe, and share ... - Gamesradar - March 16th, 2024
- 'Blood Hunt' Connecting Cover Holds the Line Against the Vampire Armies - Marvel.com - March 16th, 2024
Reviewed and Recommended by Erik Baquero