Band Of Horses at Grand Central Terminal

Every so often, a band plays in a space that couldn't seem more suited. Last night's free Band of Horses pop-up show at Grand Central's Vanderbilt Hall was one such time. The show, announced scarcely more than 24 hours earlier, was packed with diehard fans, but "packed" in this case is only relative to the unique size of the venue, made genuinely intimate in the roped-off hall. Grand Central's enormously high ceilings and stone walls created a larger-than-life reverb seemingly made for Ben Bridwell's lush, echo-y vocals belted over Tyler Ramsey's driving, twangy guitar.

The show started exactly as the station clock behind them struck 6:30, with the band playing a mix of favorite songs shouted out by fans and tracks off their month-old album, Infinite Arms, many of which were sung along by the crowd just as fervently as the older ones. The audience was visibly appreciative of the more-than-expected free show, cooing "awws" when Ramsey took lead vocals for a whispery, tender acoustic duet of "Evening Kitchen" with Bridwell. Audience members shouted out "THANK YOU!" between songs which a delighted Bridwell returned tenfold, apologizing for the sold-out show this Sunday with Grizzly Bear at Williamsburg Waterfront. Ryan Monroe on keyboard for "Compliments" was an exercise in pure enthusiasm, booming powerfully through the vast hall and giving contrast to the crisp, carefully quiet "Monsters" which followed later in the set, whose pauses again confirmed the space's crazy reverb. The band ended with "The Funeral," the loudest song of the night. No one seemed to mind the unsuccessful encore, filtering out on to Lexington Ave in orderly non-Drakeian fashion amidst appreciative murmurs and happily hummed strains of despondent lyrics, "...at every occasion, I'm ready for a funeral..." â Zoe Schlanger

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