I did a search and saw some threads that included a mention of the band Vampire Weekend, but no thread about them specifically - so here goes.
This is a great band. The music style is fun, poppy and a combo of the various influences I list in the thread title. You hear the synths and thin guitars of 80’s pop and the jumping ska bass of The English Beat (The song A-Punk has a Mirror in the Bathroom kinda feel). The band identifies itself with African pop - and you can really hear bits of Mali-style pop, South African Graceland-style arrangements, etc. The vocalist sounds almost like Sting - but not quite as reedy.
So you get the idea that they have a world beat, pop feel. But what matters is the songs. Vampire Weekend is out of Columbia University and the songs have that college-intellectual, Steeley Dan archness, but with more emotional engagement. The song “Oxford Comma” is sung by someone who is trying to get past their lover’s condescending attitude - the title is a reference to a grammar nit that the lover must’ve corrected the narrator over. “Who gives a fuck about an Oxford comma?” indeed. Another song “Campus” perfectly captures a college scene where a guy seems someone on campus.
The first song on the CD, Mansard Roof - is a bit of an acquired taste / defining statement for the band - a kind of “okay - try this” - it has the college-smarty-pants lyrics like “I see a Mansard Roof through the trees” painting a scene - but also having an atypical-for-pop African drum line that kicks in. And the melody almost sounds like, I dunno, Gilbert and Sullivan (??). I have come to really enjoy it, but it is an acquired taste and the band seems to have put it there proudly - but the CD becomes more and more accessible as you dig into it - and repeated listens have been a joy so far.
Yeah I’ve been keeping an eye on them for the last 6 months or more. I think they’ll be huge. They’re already used to soundtrack alot of TV ads etc here. I bought the album off emusic.
Here are two of their new songs–> http://jp917.blogspot.com/2008/06/new-vampire-weekend-tracks.html
I think they’re great–I don’t know how many good albums they have in them, but the debut was a doozy. It’s a perfect summertime album.
I expected more backlash in hipster circles when they played SNL and started showing up everywhere, since they were being hyped on the blogs for months before the debut even came out. Most of the backlash I’ve seen has been from people who take their preppy side a little too seriously; it strikes me as pretty firmly tongue-in-cheek.
They are a great band and I have been heavily recommending them in just about every “recommend some music” type thread I can find. They will be hated by the hipsters in about 1 month (I am seeing subtle signs of backlash starting already) but they are a really genuinly great band.
This is one of those rare occasions where I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the hype surrounding a band. Vampire Weekend (the name needs work, but apparently its based on a short film one of the band members made in college) is genuinely good. The Paul Simon similarities are what I hear first, but that’s okay because it’s still a sound that has yet to be fully explored, imho.
Agree with the notion that they might not have too many albums left in them, but I’m hoping to be proven wrong and for now, their debut album is more than enough to tide me over.
I have to be honest, they irritate the hell out of me. I like A-Punk and maybe Oxford Comma, but it feels like these guys were so concerned with making hooks that they forgot to play their instruments.
Honestly, I look at this band and I want to kick their ass so bad that now I know how people felt when Huey Lewis was still around I’m probably just being too hard on them. They can write a catchy tune, I just don’t feel the hype.
As I’ve often said, one of the few great things about growing old is that you never, ever have to worry about what’s cool. You can like whatever you want, no matter who it’s by. The hype completely misses you and so does the hipster’s derision. It’s wonderfully freeing.
Been listening to their latest record, their third album,* Modern Vampire Of The City*. It’s not doing much for me. I’m a bit disappointed. Their debut was one of my favourite albums ever and the follow up was pretty spiffy too but this one seems patchy at best.
I also liked their first album the best, but I think Modern Vampires is quite good work. Some of the lyrics and themes seem a bit more interesting than their earlier stuff. Apparently, it seems that the people that really hated Vampire Weekend really like this album and the critics are going crazy about it.
I had mixed feelings about them before. I’m not usually fond of their vocals. Their lyrics are damn good, though - I’ve never heard a VW song where the lyrical content grated, and I usually wish I had written it. The guitar parts by themselves were usually enough to keep me from changing the channel. However, their earlier stuff seemed kinda detached, and to borrow a phrase, it “lacked garlic”. Far from bad, but not really my thing.
I really do like what I heard off the new album, though. Not quite as laid back and detached, I like the synth sounds better; and I’m a sucker for intrusive, absurd sounding vocal manipulation. They still have great lyrics, and the whole seems to work better.
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I’m probably just being too hard on them. They can write a catchy tune, I just don’t feel the hype.
