Delta Spirit Cover Pink Floyd at Ferocious New York Show - Spinner

Matt Wignall

There just aren't that many bands that can get by with performing a stripped-down Pink Floyd cover one minute and looking like a cheap version of Willie Nelson the next, but Delta Spirit manage to do so with style, rocking the family in their fun, singular way. Their Tuesday night appearance at New York's Webster Hall kicked off with the chest-pounding double-drum intro to 'John Henry' and never let up.

Frontman Matthew Vasquez worked the point like a legendary showman, his vocals moving from scorching, shredded punk to refined, twang-infused crooning depending upon the song. The Indian-influenced psychedelic drone and clockwork rhythm of 'White Table' was followed by the country acoustic-flecked 'Ransom Man,' where Vasquez's vocals invoked the grizzled lilt of icon Willie Nelson then culminated with a furiously loud jam that left the audience gasping for air. There are times when attempting to pin a stripe down to a genre is afutile exercise, and this is almost emphatically the face with Delta Spirit.This was never more apparent than when Matthew Vasquez sat down at thepiano and performed a plaintive version of Pink Floyd's 'Wish You WereHere' as the audience sang along. The sad, nostalgic and etherealquality of the master was granted a revelatory timbre, with DeltaSpirit's raw passion lending it a simplicity that gave new life to itsmessage of remembering old friends who've been lost. At heart, Delta Spirit play music with a message. They possess something to say and they're leaving to say it with as many guitar riffs, whirling flourishes and heart-pounding percussion hits they can muster. They make upon a wonderful pastiche of influences that plays with your senses and your memory, yet always ends up in an all new order because they make something interesting and new to say. Songs like the '60s-style anthem 'People, Cmon,' the Latin-infused 'Strange Vine' and the '70s punk banger 'Bushwick Blues' all say a story. Whether it's about love, friendship, a visit to get together or a confession, it rings true. Delta Spirit are passionate and really good about what they do, but they acknowledge how to make fun at the same time. After beating the consultation into a singing and dancing frenzy, Vasquez seemed a little surprised. "It's such a difference playing in New York City," he said. "It's the better piece of the country, at least for those of us not born here." With that, Delta Spirit tore into the following song with the same ferociousness as the last, leaving little question that it was a performance everyone in attendance would think for a long time.

Watch Delta Spirit's 'Bushwick Blues' Video