Last week at the Greek theater, just prior to the Walkmen taking the stage, I overheard a man trying to explain the band’s sound to his date. A number of adjectives and descriptors were tossed about — ‘torchy,’ ‘indie rock,’ ‘crooner,’ ‘jazz’ — which is fitting for a group that continues to defy easy genre construction, inhabiting their own space in contemporary music. When I got back that night I put this one on, “Paper House” — a b-side from last year’s Lisbon, like the best of the Walkmen’s work, it’s all blue cigarette smoke and shadow.

MP3: The Walkmen :: Paper House
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