Posted May 13, 2019 at 3:47am
Genre: Indie
Vampire Weekend's new album is, quite literally, everything
At twenty one and, well, unbelievably white, this band was tossed into indie pop with bright eyes and a thoughtful, jagged sense of songwriting… “Father of the Bride” is different.
Since their start, Vampire Weekend has produced collection after collection of compelling indie pop. They’re a band who’s unintimidated by the strange, embellished or baroque and take you through a whirl of influences that range from punk rock to African music. The product of this range, however, hasn’t always hit just right – so much so that they’ve faced a pretty long series of misconceptions over the years. At first, Vampire Weekend struck the world as whitewashed (myself included), and you couldn’t get to know them better with their soundtrack, which was somehow simple and exhausting all at once. With a name that airs on the side of “prep school’s secret boy’s club” and a soundtrack that at one point screamed “way too eager,” these guys were not doing themselves many favors. And, might I add, I was not the only one convinced of this band’s mediocrity. Their initial effect on the industry can be summed up by the hilariously dark headline in the Village Voice following their debut, Vampire Weekend: Hated On Mostly.
We were confused, and how could you blame us? We had what seemed to be a couple-a britpop wannabes who were producing music that (sorry in advance) was as tightly wound as they were. Safe to say, though, that the band’s returned with a pretty defined sense of identity after six years following your . They’ve done a great deal of teasing for their newest project—their fourth record, Father of the Bride—and what we’ve heard so far is far from comparable to anything they’ve done previously. To start, we should’ve known what we were getting ourselves into with this new material when they started releasing their singles in pairs.
Now with three sets of double singles out – each with their respective brightly-colored artwork – from the sound of these new tracks it’s clear the group has broadened their reach beyond the processed indie rock. Debuting the album with “Harmony Hall” and “2021,” from the very beginning you could feel the weight of earlier synthetic instrumentals and heavy sound effects lifted, replaced by something much lighter. The music, while still very much crafted with meticulous attention to detail, gives off a faux-yet-freeing, stripped-down feel. It’s airy, like the feel of taking off your shoes to walk barefoot in the grass. Layers of joyous vocal ooh’s and piano riffs, bouncy percussion, and the thin guitar plucking welcome us into this radiant new era of Vampire Weekend.
Written by
Becca Carroll
“2021” by Vampire Weekend official audio via YouTube; first single off Father of the Bride
One thing that stood out to me was how unintimidated this new style is by empty space. It’s pretty impressive – with of the release of second single, “2021,” half of us were stunned by its invention, while the other half stood gaping, mouthing ‘what the fuck’ behind their hand at the song’s wild use of sound bites. Koenig starts to look inward, and apparently onward, on this track, asking, “2021, will you think about me? I could wait a year, but I shouldn’t wait three.” This song ingeniously quilts together samples of unusual sounds, forming a disjointed depiction of the singer’s sense of apprehension. So far, I’m hooked on the way this new material captures a balance we don’t often hear between pure freedom and restriction. It’s lyrical urgency and overall peculiarity pull you into this record’s overwhelming sense of crisis, ripping through themes that hit heavily on societal concern and existential questions. But at the same time, this record has a way of lifting you into a colorful, quite liberal world – a world where up is sort of actually left, and the things that bring us fear should actually be terrified themselves that we’re aware of them.
Close behind these gems were the simultaneous release of, yes, a second pair of singles, “Big Blue” and “Sunflower,” giving us the first glance of Steve Lacy’s two-track feature. These tracks tend to also fall in line with this thematic stylistic paradox, having a toned-down sense of drama that, while once may have been heave, feels like it’s been drowned out by the sunlight. While “Big Blue” meanders into the spectrum of art-pop, edging the line of avant-garde, “Sunflower” is a burst of zany energy.
“Big Blue” by Vampire Weekend official audio via YouTube; third single off Father of the Bride
Utterly charming as well as charmed themselves, apparently, Vampire Weekend and their new stylistic appetite has achieved not just a new sound, but rather an entirely way of songwriting. This new music is catchy, it’s orchestral, it’s rock’n’roll, it is a teenager’s pensive daydreaming soundtrack, a midday mood boost, a wrenching celebration of life, an outpouring of questions, answers and convictions. Twenty one and, well, unbelievably white, this band was tossed into indie pop with bright eyes and a thoughtful, jagged sense of songwriting—this new album has removed ‘indie pop ’ from the band’s vocabulary altogether. Vampire Weekend is looking forward, and, from the sound it of, they’re getting closer to whatever that may be.
More Licks
Posted May 13, 2019 at 3:47am
Genre: Indie
Vampire Weekend’s new album is, quite literally, everything
A review of Father of the Bride by Vampire Weekend
jam it while you read…
Since their start, Vampire Weekend has produced collection after collection of compelling indie pop. They’re a band who’s unintimidated by the strange, embellished or baroque and take you through a whirl of influences that range from punk rock to African music. The product of this range, however, hasn’t always hit just right – so much so that they’ve faced a pretty long series of misconceptions over the years. At first, Vampire Weekend struck the world as whitewashed (myself included), and you couldn’t get to know them better with their soundtrack, which was somehow simple and exhausting all at once. With a name that airs on the side of “prep school’s secret boy’s club” and a soundtrack that at one point screamed “way too eager,” these guys were not doing themselves many favors. And, might I add, I was not the only one convinced of this band’s mediocrity. Their initial effect on the industry can be summed up by the hilariously dark headline in the Village Voice following their debut, Vampire Weekend: Hated On Mostly.
We were confused, and how could you blame us? We had what seemed to be a couple-a britpop wannabes who were producing music that (sorry in advance) was as tightly wound as they were. Safe to say, though, that the band’s returned with a pretty defined sense of identity after six years following your . They’ve done a great deal of teasing for their newest project—their fourth record, Father of the Bride—and what we’ve heard so far is far from comparable to anything they’ve done previously. To start, we should’ve known what we were getting ourselves into with this new material when they started releasing their singles in pairs.
Now with three sets of double singles out – each with their respective brightly-colored artwork – from the sound of these new tracks it’s clear the group has broadened their reach beyond the processed indie rock. Debuting the album with “Harmony Hall” and “2021,” from the very beginning you could feel the weight of earlier synthetic instrumentals and heavy sound effects lifted, replaced by something much lighter. The music, while still very much crafted with meticulous attention to detail, gives off a faux-yet-freeing, stripped-down feel. It’s airy, like the feel of taking off your shoes to walk barefoot in the grass. Layers of joyous vocal ooh’s and piano riffs, bouncy percussion, and the thin guitar plucking welcome us into this radiant new era of Vampire Weekend.
“2021” by Vampire Weekend official audio via YouTube; second single off Father of the Bride
One thing that stood out to me was how unintimidated this new style is by empty space. It’s pretty impressive – with of the release of second single, “2021,” half of us were stunned by its invention, while the other half stood gaping, mouthing ‘what the fuck’ behind their hand at the song’s wild use of sound bites. Koenig starts to look inward, and apparently onward, on this track, asking, “2021, will you think about me? I could wait a year, but I shouldn’t wait three.” This song ingeniously quilts together samples of unusual sounds, forming a disjointed depiction of the singer’s sense of apprehension. So far, I’m hooked on the way this new material captures a balance we don’t often hear between pure freedom and restriction. It’s lyrical urgency and overall peculiarity pull you into this record’s overwhelming sense of crisis, ripping through themes that hit heavily on societal concern and existential questions. But at the same time, this record has a way of lifting you into a colorful, quite liberal world – a world where up is sort of actually left, and the things that bring us fear should actually be terrified themselves that we’re aware of them.
Close behind these gems were the simultaneous release of, yes, a second pair of singles, “Big Blue” and “Sunflower,” giving us the first glance of Steve Lacy’s two-track feature. These tracks tend to also fall in line with this thematic stylistic paradox, having a toned-down sense of drama that, while once may have been heave, feels like it’s been drowned out by the sunlight. While “Big Blue” meanders into the spectrum of art-pop, edging the line of avant-garde, “Sunflower” is a burst of zany energy.
“Big Blue” by Vampire Weekend official audio via YouTube; third single off Father of the Bride
Utterly charming as well as charmed themselves, apparently, Vampire Weekend and their new stylistic appetite has achieved not just a new sound, but rather an entirely way of songwriting. This new music is catchy, it’s orchestral, it’s rock’n’roll, it is a teenager’s pensive daydreaming soundtrack, a midday mood boost, a wrenching celebration of life, an outpouring of questions, answers and convictions. Twenty one and, well, unbelievably white, this band was tossed into indie pop with bright eyes and a thoughtful, jagged sense of songwriting—this new album has removed ‘indie pop ’ from the band’s vocabulary altogether. Vampire Weekend is looking forward, and, from the sound it of, they’re getting closer to whatever that may be.
Posted on Posted May 13, 2019 at 3:47am
Written by Becca Carroll
Submit a Comment
tags
More Licks
