Sleepwalkers recently killed it at the Broadberry for a home-team crowd. The genre-juggling band, built around two brothers from Richmond, Michael and Austin York, released a minor classic of catchy indie pop with the 2014 album, “Greenwood Shade.” Now it’s about to get even more notice as the tour opener for the nationally successful Lumineers.
If that weren’t enough, the Yorks also have some high-profile fans in the likes of Ryan Adams, who once tweeted “they should be the biggest band right now,” and famed Hollywood comedy director Judd Apatow, who re-tweeted the sentiment.
Sleepwalkers should, at the very least, have as many fans as Vampire Weekend, c’mon. When we caught the band playing an intimate gig at the Rice House once, the undeniable energy was impressive. It’s clear that it’s headed for bigger things: It seems to have that winning mix of passion for its own musical vision and hooks that the mainstream will love.
“The chemistry and kinship between the York brothers is an undeniable force when the Sleepwalkers take the stage,” well-known local drummer Dusty Ray Simmons says. “I’m already a fan but every time I see them there is a newfound energy within the group. They deliver their own brand of psychedelic pop rock with pride and poise and as a fellow musician and music lover that’s about all you can ask for. People ask me all the time: Who’s your favorite rock band in Richmond? That’s easy: Sleepwalkers.”