So.
There's this band called Vampire Weekend and they must have the Midas Touch or something equally legendary cuz man oh man, they appear to have the biggest blog uproar since, like, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah (or at least since Black Kids). Weirdly enough, I actually got to write about them back in July, when they were just a band playing through at a local show that now I wish even more that I had seen. I can honestly say this means that I am not a trend setter, but at the very least, sort of the Stone Temple Pilots to VW's Pearl Jam (which is far different than Pearl Jam's VD, for the record)(don't spread that rumor)(or maybe, do?).
And here's why you should listen to them.
1. Okay, fine. It's played out, but if you listened to music in the last 20 years or so, your reference point for African music (other than David Byrne's solo stuff)(but we are talking about enjoyability factor) is Paul Simon's Graceland. This band cannot escape the comparison. That means they are great listening, people.
2. You will be glad when you set your old-ass iPod shuffle to, er, shuffle, and they come up randomly.
3. "Who gives a fuck about the oxford comma?" --Vampire Weekend, "Oxford Comma"
4. They are the only thing that appears when I search for "Vampire" in iTunes.*
5. Even with all the hype around the album that come out on January 29th, they still have good songs available on their site for free.
6. The seem to be smart young lads that talk about the class stuff that could come up due to their sound. [link via]
7. They're just fun! Y'know? FUN.
Anyway, check them out. You have now become the Bush to my STP.
Portlanders take note: they play the best venue in the world on March 25th. Who's with me?
*weekend has a few more hits, which reflects our culture's Protestant ethic, and might someday be another post, though it's not likely.
[audio:01_Cape_Cod_Kwassa_Kwassa.mp3]
Vampire Weekend (includes downloads and streams and such!)
Music is the only thing good about Myspace
Vampire Weekend on Daytrotter
"A Punk" video on YouTube
NPR/KEXP Interview and performance (thanks, Smer!)