Record Review: Vampire Weekend

Vampire Weekend








So it is time to have a little fun which is never a bad thing. Every year it takes a while for new releases really to get out, get heard and get reviewed but this diner is happy to report that there has been some good stuff this year, and some fun stuff, and it starts with Vampire Weekend.

First of all... forget the name. Sure it is kind of gay and trendy and perhaps even a tad desperate. This CD is there first major release and it came out on January 29, 2008 so they are “fresh faced” at best and in a grammy dominated by Amy Winehouse (who could not even attend) there is a massive need for something...anything...fresh. These guys pretentiously claim to be influenced by African popular music and Western classical music... whatever. They burst onto the scene by way of the blogosphere and I am claiming them the first quarter of 2008’s “next big thing”. realize that they are only the next big thing for thirty and forty somethings like me. For teens and twenty year olds who are really cool the band was likely “over” before they ever released their first CD. Releasing a CD is becoming for these indie snobs an arrogant, outdated pretense. Screw them.

This is a CD that is not meant for february or even March but more for spring or summer. it makes you smile as these preppy ivy league boys with all their pretenses give us some odd percussion and and danceable rhythms but more then anything else it is music to dance to. Starting with “Mansard Roof” the lilting tones start immediately. Ezra Koenig plays a clean guitar and his vocals are excellent and as i say below he does a Ray Davies, Paul Simon, Sting thing that is hard to beat. There is a little bit of Sting type vocals that pop out occasionally such as on the second track “Oxford Comma” which seems to bemoan pretenses to a martial drum beat and polynesian sounding guitar. “A-Punk is track number three and it has the sounds of a signature concert song which once again echoes the Police at their best Zenyata Mendata days. Like I said it makes me smile. “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa” is full of pretense and to my sad little ears rips off Paul Simon’s “Graceland” but seriously... how bad can that be? “M-79” starts with...harpsichord? Isn’t that like soooo 2006? Lots of strings and more pretense but it all seems self mocking. More Paul Simon vocals here and it makes me miss his best work. “Campus” is a pean to the prep and this time... awesomely so Koenig is channeling Ray Davies and this one makes me miss the Kinks. God I love the kinks and this song only makes it more so. “Bryn”... I don’t know. perhaps the style is starting to wear on me by this time but this seems like the weakest song on the Cd but once again... great percussion might save this otherwise trite (to me) love song. “One” is not the remake of the great Three Dog Night song but instead is a little techno/caribe’ ditty once again giving me Ray Davies... in the sun. Nice or annoying chorus harmonies depending on your mood at the time but a nice tune.”I Stand Corrected” might be the best thing on the CD.

This is some good music by a good new band. The songs are short and punchy and the whole thing clocks in at like 39 minutes. They are pitching a fairly fresh sound but they seem to be reaching for something more. I am not sure that they get there. As I said redundantly up above the CD and the bands music is a lot of fun. i think, it will make several year end “best of” lists and that is pretty bold prediction for January releases. To find out a little more hit the links below. The always cool and pretentious Pitchfork liked it even more then I did. Buy it. 8 Slingers on the 10 scale.

THEY ARE ALSON ON SATURDAY NIGHT TONIGHT 3/8/08

Their Web Site: http://www.vampireweekend.com/

Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampire_Weekend

Pitchfork: http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/48053-vampire-weekend

http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/download/44502-vampire-weekend-cape-cod-kwassa-kwassa-mp3stream