Vampire Weekend [Explicit Lyrics]

Vampire Weekend | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 29, 2008)
• Original Release Date: 2008
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Explicit Lyrics
• Label: Xl Recordings
• ASIN: B0010V4TZU
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (187 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #386 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #16 in Music > Indie Music > Rock > General
  • #23 in Music > Alternative Rock > Indie & Lo-Fi > Indie Rock
  • #69 in Music > Classic Rock > Album-Oriented Rock (AOR)

Track Listings

1. Mansard Roof

2. Oxford Comma

3. A-Punk

4. Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa

5. M79

6. Campus

7. Bryn

8. One (Blake's Got A New Face)

9. I Stand Corrected

10. Walcott

11. The Kids Don't Stand A Chance

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

It would take a lot for Vampire Weekend's debut to rise above the stench of privileged hype that surrounds it. A bunch of kids who formed the band in their Columbia dorm room borrow wholesale from Afrobeat and angular '80s stuff, and they quickly become an online buzz band before releasing a single album? Thankfully the record, and the band, are great fun: playful, pop-wise, and smart enough to pull their shtick off with aplomb. Organ and drums are often the focal point of the music, bringing to mind a goofier, happier Clinic (if that group's record-collecting habits were more scattershot). On the excellently named (and better sounding) "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa," Vampire Weekend asks, "Does it feel so unnatural / To Peter Gabriel too?," immediately disarming--with self-aware brazenness--any criticism of their pomo/postcolonialist borrowing of "ethnic" music. It's clear that these dudes have not only inherited the nerd-rock omnivore's mantle from the Talking Heads, they've actually and already improved upon it. --Mike McGonigal

Product Description

This NY four-piece draw on their diverse backgrounds and interests, experimenting with African guitar music, the Western classical canon, hazy memories of Cape Cod summers, winters in upper Manhattan, and reggaeton. "Equal parts shruggy New York indie strumming and groovy Afro-pop, Vampire Weekend's organ-and-drum runs highlight narratives about relationships, punctuation, and sometimes both" - Spin. Named "Hot New Kids" in Rolling Stone's "Hot" issue. Vinyl contains MP3 coupon.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

80 of 103 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars SMART INDIE POP FOR A WEEKEND IN CAPE COD (3.8 stars) January 31, 2008

By Cary S. Whitt

Format:Audio CD

A daunting task reviewing a disc that has already been hailed by many as the first important disc of 2008. Such is the case of the debut from Vampire Weekend, 4 Columbia students gone preppy-indie to catch the eyes and ears of David Byrne, Lou Reed and aging hipsters alike.

It was a few months ago when I first read David Bryne's glowing review of their highly circulated CD-R, so naturally I was cautiously interested to say the least. Like with many other early-praised NYC bands (Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Strokes, Clap Your Hands, The National, Interpol, MGMT), Vampire Weekend meet most of the expectations head on, and give us a few surprises in the process. The first of which is a pretty obvious nod to Afro-pop stylings as well as a love for Paul Simon and (naturally) later Talking Heads recordings.

The first track is the lead single, Mansard Roof (google it). A track as studious as it sounds, with tight changes, nice lyrics, and crisp melodies, a perfect pop moment that would make fans of Belle and Sebastian squeal into their book bags. The band then up the ante with Oxford Comma, again, just as collegiate friendly, but with a little more bite to it. In it they even manage to drop a well-pronounced F-bomb and make it sound like the Queen's English. The overall result is my favorite track off the disc. The song A Punk (months already on itunes) continues the impressive string of songs at three now, A Punk carries a bit more Strokes flavor to it in its brevity and faster pacing, but its pace doesn't seem foreign at all. The Paul Simon-isms finally rear their head with the track Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa. I immediately think of You Can Call Me Al, with that overbearing saxophone and stop-start melody. Even though that maybe be purely unfounded, I'm pretty sure others will hear what I'm talking about. Maybe it's the worldly guitar line, or it could be the vocal stop-start of the verses? After it's all said and done, it's nothing the hipsters won't be able to swallow. M79 brings in a harpsichord sounding synth as its calling card and does so without becoming annoying. Campus is another Stroke styled stroke, right down to the melancholy and wishful tone of the lyrics and for me another one of the better songs. A few more tracks that don't quite impress as much, fill the gaps until the album's closer, The Kids Don't Stand a Chance. The track adds a little bit of reggae into the repertoire but again, it isn't enough to turn me completely off. It just somehow works for these guys, call them lucky or smart, or both.

If anything, the afro-pop, New England fashion sense (docksiders), and even the reggae, pump up the irony of this very collegiate group of boys and their appeal to fans of all types of music, especially indie music. It may be a stretch to say everyone will like some part of this record, but I found most of it pretty darn enjoyable and that in this day and age is getting more rare than not. So not a perfect record, but I'll agree with the masses in calling it the first important record in a very young 2008. Have fun trying to get into their upcoming tour, I have a feeling it's going to be quite popular

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars I like it April 25, 2010

By E. Sterling

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

Some of the negative reviews and comments for this band are ridiculous. People are saying they're hyped, preppy, talentless, ripoff artists. Blah Blah Blah
I don't care about the industry,the record label, what's indie or not, who they sound like (or try to sound like), what they look like, the band name, ect. All the music snobs out there annoy me. If you don't like the album fine. Critique the band's music if anything. Save all the BS. Vampire Weekend is catchy. The songs get stuck in my head. That's how I choose what to listen to. The songs don't have much guitar, but the drums and rhythms are good. And the singer has a good voice. The new album Contra I like almost as much as this one. Hopefully they keep up the good work.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Why Would You Lie About How Much Coal You Have? February 23, 2008

By oxxo

Format:Audio CD

OK, so this album has officially been out for three weeks and already I feel like I arrived late to the party. Yeesh. I listen to tons of new music, but somehow missed all the so-called hype about this release, and really only checked it out because Vampire Weekend played PopScene in SF recently. A quick check at KCRW.org shows that it's still high on Nick Harcourt's current favs.

I admit, I was expecting the usual indie darling's college radio fare à la Clap Your Hands Say Yeah [shudder]: silly, ingenuine, self-consciously outré junk for the black lipstick crowd.

Quite the opposite. I mean, when was the last time you heard harpsichord, flute, cello & bongos in American pop music? Been awhile folks. Admittedly, you'll either love or hate this album. There's definitely roots here in dub-afrobeat-rocksteady-reggae-whatever, but comparisons to Paul Simon's Graceland are laughably off the mark. Only one track--One (Blake's Got A New Face)--nods to that Ladysmith Black Mambazo sound so associated with Graceland, and is the weakest (and jokiest) track on the disc IMHO.

Think Belle & Sebastian or The Magic Numbers with some occasional Afro mojo.

Strongest tracks: Mansard Roof, Oxford Comma, A-Punk, Cape Cod, M79 & Walcott.