Vampire Weekend began Wellmont Theater run with the reunited Sophisticuffs (pics, video, setlists)

Vampire Weekend‘s Only God Was Above Us tour has officially hit NJ for their first shows in the state in 16 years. They’re in the midst of a four-show run at Wellmont Theater, which at a capacity of 2500 is considerably more intimate than their last shows in the area, two nights at Madison Square Garden last year. Like those MSG shows, and much of the tour, they’ve been taking fan requests for impromptu partial covers during the encores at Wellmont, and Monday night got Jimmy Buffett’s “Margaritaville,” Bruce Springsteen’s “Thunder Road,” Lenny Kravitz’s “Fly Away,” The Tokens’ “The Lion Sleeps Tonight,” Beastie Boys’ “Sabotage” (which Jeff Rosenstock, PUP, and Ekko Astral also recently covered in Brooklyn), Don Henley’s “The Boys of Summer,” The Beatles’ “Here, There and Everywhere,” and Gerry Rafferty’s “Right Down the Line.” On Tuesday, they did Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train,” Bee Gees’ “Stayin’ Alive,” Dire Straits’ “Walk of Life,” Alabama 3’s “Woke Up This Morning,” New Order’s “Bizzare Love Triangle,” The Rolling Stone’s “Beast of Burden,” and The Four Seasons’ “December, 1963.” And before the covers, of course, they played a good mix of material from throughout their discography during their main set, with an emphasis on Only God Was Above Us, one of our favorite albums of 2024. These shows also have the reunited Sophisticuffs, Ezra Koenig’s pre-Vampire Weekend high school band with Wes Miles from Ra Ra Riot, Dan Millar, and Andrei Padlowski, playing their first shows in over 20 years to open. See pictures from Monday night by Emilio Herce below, along with attendee-taken video and the setlists from nights one and two. SETLIST: VAMPIRE WEEKEND @ WELLMONT THEATER, 9/15/2025 Hold You Now Campus One (Blake’s Got a New Face) Ice Cream Piano Classical Connect White Sky Unbelievers This Life Sunflower Pravda Ottoman I’m Goin’ Down (Bruce Springsteen cover) Capricorn Gen-X Cops Diane Young A-Punk Prep-School Gangsters Mary Boone Harmony Hall Hope Encore: Margaritaville (Jimmy Buffett cover) Thunder Road (Bruce Springsteen cover) Fly Away (Lenny Kravitz cover) The Lion Sleeps Tonight (The Tokens cover) Sabotage (Beastie Boys cover) The Boys of Summer (Don Henley cover) Here, There and Everywhere (The Beatles cover) Right Down the Line (Gerry Rafferty cover) Walcott SETLIST: VAMPIRE WEEKEND @ WELLMONT THEATER, 9/16/2025 Diane Young Holiday Bryn Ice Cream Piano Classical Connect Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa Step This Life Sympathy Bambina Giant I’m Goin’ Down (Bruce Springsteen cover) Capricorn Gen-X Cops Cousins A-Punk Oxford Comma Mary Boone Taxi Cab Harmony Hall Hope Encore: Crazy Train (Ozzy Osbourne cover) Stayin’ Alive (Bee Gees cover) Walk of Life (Dire Straits cover) Woke Up This Morning (Alabama 3 cover) Bizzare Love Triangle (New Order cover) Beast of Burden (The Rolling Stones cover) December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night) (The Four Seasons cover) Walcott