The Walkmen

The Walkmen were an American indie rock band formed in New York City in 2000, comprising vocalist Hamilton Leithauser, guitarists Paul Maroon and Walter Martin, bassist Peter Bauer, and drummer Matt Barrick. Formed largely from the members of Jonathan Fire*Eater and The Recoys, they arrived at the height of the early 2000s New York rock revival with a sound that was rawer, more romantic, and more rooted in pre-rock and roll American music than their downtown contemporaries.

Everyone Who Pretended To Like Me Is Gone (2002) announced a fully formed voice — jangly guitars, reverb-soaked production, and Leithauser's yelping, impassioned delivery. Bows + Arrows (2004) refined the formula and produced the band's signature song, The Rat, a howling, relentless track that appeared on countless best-of-the-decade lists.

A Hundred Miles Off (2006) and You & Me (2008) deepened their sound with more restrained, atmospheric arrangements, while Heaven (2012) — recorded in a crumbling mansion in New Orleans — was their quietest and most beautiful record, a meditation on domesticity and fatherhood that served as a fitting coda before their indefinite hiatus in 2013.

Leithauser subsequently released acclaimed solo work and collaborated with Rostam Batmanglij, while The Walkmen remained dormant — a band whose catalogue grew more treasured with each passing year. Alongside Spoon and TV on the Radio, they are among the most significant American indie acts of the 2000s.