There is buzz and then there is what Vampire Weekend has been getting over the last year or so. These four cute and/or cuddly Columbia University grads created a noise comparable to the buzzing of all the bees in their native Central Park. The point is their eponymous debut was highly anticipated, very much so. Lucky for them and the music listening public, Vampire Weekend came through with a fully realized well-constructed pop album.
Vampire Weekend wear their influences on their preppy cardiganed sleeves. Take one part indie, one part classical, and one part of African pop and you get what they guys call "Upper West Side Soweto" (a term that I am pretty sure the band doesn't even know what it means, exemplifying how they take themselves so incredibly not serious and extremely serious at the same time). The best comparison floating around is a cross between Graceland era Paul Simon and later Talking Heads.
Still, at their essence Vampire Weekend is a college band like the rest that exist all over the country. However, these four went to Columbia, which makes it no surprise how literate and worldly their tunes are. The biggest difference from every other college band is that the music is undeniably exceptional. It is the music you would want to hear at the perfect summer BBQ (the biggest knock on this album is that its summer music released in the winter).
Furthermore, it is the summer (specifically this summer) that many expect Vampire Weekend to break through to the mainstream. These songs are just too good and approachable to be relegated to just the New York scene.
Vampire Weekend wear their influences on their preppy cardiganed sleeves. Take one part indie, one part classical, and one part of African pop and you get what they guys call "Upper West Side Soweto" (a term that I am pretty sure the band doesn't even know what it means, exemplifying how they take themselves so incredibly not serious and extremely serious at the same time). The best comparison floating around is a cross between Graceland era Paul Simon and later Talking Heads. Still, at their essence Vampire Weekend is a college band like the rest that exist all over the country. However, these four went to Columbia, which makes it no surprise how literate and worldly their tunes are. The biggest difference from every other college band is that the music is undeniably exceptional. It is the music you would want to hear at the perfect summer BBQ (the biggest knock on this album is that its summer music released in the winter).
Furthermore, it is the summer (specifically this summer) that many expect Vampire Weekend to break through to the mainstream. These songs are just too good and approachable to be relegated to just the New York scene.
