The Walkmen were the musical guests on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert Wednesday night, marking their first live performance since 2014. Instead of debuting new music, however, the rock band performed their 2004 classic “The Rat.”
Personally, if we were scheduling our first concert in nearly a decade, we would not want to do it on television! But The Walkmen, who have a handful of proper reunion shows coming up, made their time away feel insignificant, especially considering it was barely over a month ago when guitarist Paul Maroon tweeted that “The Rat” was “extremely fast and currently [he] cannot play it.”
All of The Walkmen must’ve really hunkered down and practiced. “The Rat” went off without a hitch on Colbert, with the band playing the breakneck rocker pretty dang close to the studio version’s tempo. All the members looked a little bit overwhelmed, but also stoked to be back; most importantly, they sounded very, very good. Watch The Walkmen make their grand return with “The Rat” on Colbert below.
The Walkmen begin their reunion tour later this month with a residency at New York’s Webster Hall. They’ll then play shows in Philadelphia, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington, DC, and more. See the full schedule below, and grab tickets here.
Jamming live together for the first time in 10 years, @TheWalkmen reunite on #Colbert to perform their 2004 hit, "The Rat." 🐀 🎵 pic.twitter.com/klX4vENOZD
— The Late Show (@colbertlateshow) April 19, 2023
The Walkmen 2023 Tour Dates:
04/22 – Westerly, RI @ Westerly Sound at United Theatre
04/24 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall
04/25 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall
04/26 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall
04/27 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall
04/28 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall
05/02 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
05/03 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
05/04 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
05/06 – Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West
05/07 – Atlanta, GA @ Shaky Knees Festival
05/13 – Los Angeles, CA @ Just Like Heaven Festival
05/14 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Block Party
05/17 – Chicago, IL @ Metro
05/18 – Chicago, IL @ Metro
05/19 – Chicago, IL @ Metro
05/20 – Chicago, IL @ Metro
05/23 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
05/24 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
05/25 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
05/26 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
05/28 – Boston, MA @ Boston Calling
05/31 – Washington, DC @ The Atlantis
06/10 – Copenhagen, DK @ Syd For Solen
08/17 – Paredes de Coura, PT @ Paredes de Coura Festival
08/18-20 – Crickhowell, UK @ Green Man Festival
08/21 – Glasgow, UK @ SWG3 Galvanizers
08/23 – Dublin, IE @ Vicar Street
08/26 – Manchester, UK @ New Century
08/29 – London, UK @ KOKO
08/30 – London, UK @ KOKO
08/31 – London, UK @ KOKO
